Arrambam - Exclusive Movie Review

 Arrambam - Exclusive Movie Review

 Directed by     Vishnuvardhan
Produced by     A. Raghuram
Written by  Vishnuvardhan, Subha
Music, Re-Recording by     Yuvan Shankar Raja
Cinematography     Om Prakash
Editing by     A. Sreekar Prasad
Studio     Sri Satya Sai Movies
Release date(s)   31 October 2013
Country     India
Language     Tamil

CAST

    Ajith Kumar as Ashok
    Arya
    Nayantara
    Taapsee Pannu
    Rana Daggubati
    Mahesh Manjrekar
    Atul Kulkarni
    Suman Ranganathan as Ramya
    Kishore
    Akshara Gowda
    Krishna
    Prashant Nair
    Lee Whittaker

 Story

Arrambam tells the story of Siva, a commando officer, and his mission to find the ones who are responsible for an irrecoverable loss in his life and bring to justice those villains who are also a threat to the nation, with the help of few of his friends.

Arrambam was one of the most publicized Tamil movie since Enthiran. Even the title which was kept a secret till 2-3 months to release was done with much fan fare. An Ajith release after almost 15 months, Billa team reuniting for all these reasons the film had baggage of huge expectations. With a check mark against all the necessities before the release of a biggie, the film had humungous expectations surrounding it.

Now let's see if the film managed to live up to those.


Arrambam which was expected to be an out and out action thriller just fell short thanks to the half baked script. The first half of the movie is infact just average. Aarya-Taapse track should have very much been avoided. The movie never gets into pace till the pre interval portion, even though that sequence was executed tackily. Also Aarya surprisingly gets as many or even more screen space as Ajith in the first half, taking over the 'humor' part. The second half is much better, and in pace. Even though lots of things happens it has been conceived neatly. Logic goes for a toss in the movie, which is not a crime for mass entertainers.

Ajith is the mega plus of the movie. He never looked this dashing, stylish handsome and fit.
The character gets more scope in the second half & Ajith has done it with elan as always. Also credit to the actor for doing all those stunt sequences despite getting injured many times. Aarya too got an important role to play, especially in the first half its his character that help the narration move forward without much lag. Nayanthara just had to do the Billa act-nothing much [looked stunning eventhough], Taapse was OK. The supporting cast were very good.

Vishnu Vardhan is one such director who gives more importnce to the visuals than the script. Most of the times the narration suffers in the effort to make each scene rich [which infact is a plus of the movie]. In Arrambam to its more or less like that. Scripting by Subha should have more crispier, especially in the first half. But the dialogues were good with plenty of quirky and massy one-liners.

Special mention to the stylist - costumes, makeup man etc. All of the characters were looking their best, lead by Ajith.

Yuvan's music has been very good, the tittle/intro song and Tamizachi song were huge hits even before the release, now with the visuals expecting more to join the hit charts. His Background score was okay this time, nothing exceptional, but the genre had limited scope.

Camera work was top notch.Needed a bit more crisp editing as it drags here and there - a big no no for action entertainers.
.

The story has similarities with Sivaji and many other films that we have seen in the past, its the making and performances that saves the film. Thanks to the average first half , a great opportunity wasted (almost)

So in all Arrambam can be a great watch for 'Thala' fans, and above average time pass movie at the best for others.

Thala fan power and carpet bombing release coupled with immense hype should make the movie a hit.

Rating : 2.75/5

Verdict: Above Average

Box Office - Should be a Hit

Last Word: Go with less expectations

Krrish 3 - Kerala Release Paper AD with Theater List

Krrish 3 Kerala Release Paper AD with Theater List

Thor: The Dark World - Exclusive Movie Reviews Compilation

 An Exclusive compilation of the First on net Reviews of 'Thor: The Dark World', the highly anticipated sequel to 2011 blockbuster, 'Thor'.

 Disney/Marvel's latest slab of briskly amusing, elaborately inconsequential 3D entertainment is a buoyant if derivative ride.this robust, impersonal visual-effects showpiece proves buoyant and unpretentious enough to offset its stew of otherwise derivative fantasy/action elements.

‘Thor: The Dark World’ Review: A Stirring, If Not Mighty, Return for the Thunder God

 

Superhero sequel Thor: The Dark World is a gloriously entertaining film that delivers spectacle, action, a daft elf villain, some smart 3D moments and – most importantly – a whole lot of fun

 

if you still love Thor, and especially if you still love Loki, Thor: The Dark World more-or-less satisfies -7.5/10

 if you're any kind of fan of comic books and comic book movies, you'll leave the theater with a big ol' dopey smile on your face. At least I did.

By Odin’s beard, this is an insane gumbo of a movie - 4/5

Thor: The Dark World is a hugely entertaining and sharply written continuation of Marvel's Phase 2, combining heart, spectacle and a shrewd lightness of touch.

 

This follow-up to the popular Norse-superhero blockbuster has a flabby plot and a rote, mechanical feel - 2/5

 

Thor: The Dark World is an ambitious, thrilling and often hilarious superhero sequel. Iron Man got things off to a great start, but now Marvel’s ‘Phase Two’ is in full swing. ANOTHER! 

 

The result is a film that is enjoyable in spots, but haphazard and ultimately unsatisfying.

To a very large extent, Thor: The Dark World works rather well indeed.

Even if it's not challenging to be Marvel's best movie, it's certainly its funniest.

Too much hammer time, not enough fun, except when Loki's onscreen.

As confident and assured as its lead character, Marvel’s great run continues. We give this Thor out of Thive. (Sorry.)  - 4/5

http://outnow.ch/Movies/2013/Thor2/Reviews/kino/ - 3.5/5

Mohanlal's Geethanjali postponed to accommodate Diwali releases ?

Geethanjali is one of the most awaited Malayalam movies of the year, because of the fact that it is a spinoff of 'Manichithratazhu', an all time classic. When the shooting began the idea was to release the movie during Pooja holidays [Oct 11th] and they were shooting with multiple units too. Then it was pushed to Nov 1st to get a solo, wide release.

But once the release date of Diwali movies were announced the film got again pushed ahead by two weeks. Geethanjali will now be releasing worldwide on November 14th. When Nov 1 was decided Only Krrish 3 was supposed to have a big release on that date, it was later that Tamil films - Ajith's Arrambam & Karthi's All in all Azhagu Raja joined the race. Both of these film were supposed to have arrived in different dates, but one got postponed and other preponed.

Other language movies [Hindi & Tamil] have a good market in Kerala cause majority of the people understand the language [If Telugu undubbed movies release with subtitles even those will have audience]. So theaters and distributors have made a lot of investments in these projects. So if a Mohanlal starrer gets released on that date it will eat into the screen count and opening week collections of other language movies. So it was idea suggested by Exhibitors federation too postpone the release as Geethanjali is also to benefit from the movie. Since 90% of the life time collections of most of the OL movies comes in the first week (or may be two weeks) it will be easy for Geethanjali to have a wide release on 14th.

So a win-win situation for both parties. But there was no other way possible for makers of Geethanjali than to postpone. Remember in 2011 when similar situation arose the exhibitors called for strike on some unnecessary reason to support Velayudham, 7am Arivu & Ra.One which were much bigger films than this year's OL Diwali releases.

Dulquer Salmaan finally making his Kollywood debut

Reports claims that the current heart throb of Kerala youth, son of Megastar Mammootty, is making his Kollywood debut soon. The project in talks will be the 2nd directorial venture of Balaji Mohan, who gave the run away hit Love Failure/Kadhalil Sodhapuvadhu Yeppadi. Like his first film Balaji himself is expected to pen the script for this yet untitled film too. Also like LF/KSY the film will be a bilingual, but Tamil-Malayalam this time. 

His 'Salala Mobiles' pair Nazriya Nazim will share screen space in this film too. Music will be composed by the current sensation Anirudh Ravichander. 

The film will be produced by Y'Not Studios [co production with Radiance Media] who are known for producing small yet innovative movies like Tamizh Padam, Va, LF/KSY, etc. The filming will begin once they are done with their ongoing production 'Kaviya Thalaivan', which also stars a Malayalam actor, Prithviraj.

Arrambam - Exclusive Preview/Story/Synopsis

It has been 15 months since the last Ajith film hit the screens. Ever since it was announced that film following 'Billa 2' will see a reunion of Billa team [Ajith, Vishnu Vardhan, Nayanthara, Yuvan, Sreekar Prasad] etc the hype has been paramount. Everything including the title of the film was kept under tight wraps. Now with just 2 weeks to go for the mega release majority have no idea about what the plot of the film, well according to sources got a basic idea of what the film is about. [What follows the image might end up as Spoiler, so continue at your own risk]

According to sources Ajith plays a commando in a security force like NSG & Rana Daggubati as his 'buddy pair' & close friend. The get called into action during the Mumbai 26/11 terror attacks where something unexpected happens. The event shooks Ajith's character so bad that he goes to unexpected lengths to solve some mysteries and find the culprits who are responsible for 'something' that happened that day.

The negative shade of Ajith that we saw in the trailer could very well represent this change.

Aarya plays the role of a computer hacker whom Ajith seeks help from in his mission [just like in sword fish/Die Hard 4] . Nayanthara is reportedly paired opposite Rana [unconfirmed] & Taapsee opposite Aarya. Talking more about the film might ruin the suspense, so lets leave it at that, plus sources can also go wrong at times.....

Unlike usual action films the film deals with a very important issue underneath, something that even the media ignored during the 26/11 attacks. So Arrambam is the mission of one man to find the truth and bring to justice the culprits.

The film has been censored yesterday with clean 'U' certificate by Chennai censor board. Censor board members reportedly appreciated the makers for their noble intentions and making an entertaining film out of it. The film will hit the screens on October 31st as Diwali release world wide.

Nadodi Mannan (Malayalam) - Exclusive Movie Review

Nadodi Mannan - Malayalam Movie Exclusive Review

Crew

Directed by     Viji Thampi
Produced by     V.S Suresh, S. Madhan

Banner - Chithram film Company, Vendhar Movies
Written by     Krishna Poojappura
Music by     Vidyasagar
Cinematography     Sanjeev Sankar
Distributed by     Thameens
Release date(s)     October 18, 2013
Country     India
Language     Malayalam

Cast

    Dileep as Padmanabhan
    Ananya as Meera
    Mythili as Rima
    Archana Kavi as Aathira
    Sayaji Shinde as Purushothaman
    Sreelatha Namboothiri

Story

'Nadodimannan' tells the story of how a nobody, one day becomes the mayor of capital city & the troubles he face, for doing good to the people.  

Padmanabhan, a village youth who earns his living by supplying 'people' to public meetings, mass gatherings etc.On one such occasion he gets stuck up in Trivandrum city and gets involved with the local king pin Purushothaman which changes his life for ever. In an unexpected series of events, he gets elected the Mayor of the city. The rest of the film deals with how Padmanabhan cleans up the city.

Meera is a bold girl coming from poor family backgrounds, who forms Padmanabhans moral support. Aathira is a doctor & the member of a royal family. Rima, a broadcast journalist & Bollywood actor Sayaji Shinde, who makes his Mollywood debut, as the villain who is at loggerheads with Padmanabhan.

The film was promoted as Dileep's mass-comedy entertainer kinda delivers its promise in the first half. But what could have been Dileep's next 'Runway' or 'Lion' turns out to be an average fare thanks to an average, long and boring 2nd half.

The film begins very well, especially with the introduction of hero's character with lots of humor through out the first half, thanks to Dileep & co. But in the 2nd, especially once Padamanabhan becomes Mayor I think the writer lost his steam and had n clue on how to move forward and wrap up things. Characters played by Suraj and co who plays Dileep's friends after a good beginning gets disappeared in the proceedings which also affects the film badly.

Dileep has done a good job, his character in the beginning showed promise which couldn't be kept in the later half. Siyaji Shinde has made a good Mollywood debut as villain, major thanks to the dubbing artist. Out of the female leads Ananya gets more scenes, in 99% of which she has to do the same thing - shout or doubt.

For a moment we got an impression that this could be the come back vehicle for Viji thampy, but bad writing in the 2nd half let him down. With many flash cuts and all, editing looked just average, also @ 160 mins the film is tad too long. Camerawork was Ok. Songs were not only bad, but proved to be speed breakers, Lyrics felt like that of Telugu dub films. Many scenes has been shot in front of green screen and the VFX in such scenes looked bad.

 The film has been in production for over 2 years, several production issues and miscellaneous reasons caused the film delay. The estimated final budget is about 8-9cr and with such an average script it looks will end up as a losing affair.

For a Dileep mass film to work it need to have plenty of humor [it doesn't matter if they are crass, crap or double meaning] with a majority share from the star himself, unfortunately this one doesn't have that. The  fate of  the film looks like a 'filler' before much hyped releases that comes in two weeks time.

Verdict: Average

Rating 2.5/5

Box Office: Flop

Last Word - watch the first half for Dileep and 2nd for  Sleep ;-)

Dileep's 'Nadodi Mannan' - Kerala Release Paper Ad's & Theater list

 

 Nadodi Mannan - Kerala Release Paper Ad's & Theater list

 Click Image to View in bigger size

Akshay Kumar's Boss - Kerala release Paper AD with Theater list

18th International Film Festival of Kerala 2013 - Complete List of Films Selected

 The 18th International Film Festival of Kerala is scheduled to be held from December eh to 13th at Thiruvananthapuram. The festival is organized by Kerala State Chalachitra Academy on behalf of Cultural Affairs Department, Govt. of Kerala. The list of films in the Competition, Indian Cinema Nov and Malayalam Cinema Today sections has been finalized. Festival will have 10 International Films, two Malayalam and two other language Indian Films in its prestigious Competition section.

 The details of the films are as follows:

International Competition Section: 

1. 101 Questions/101 Chodyangal [Dir: Sidhartha Siva / Malayalam / 106 min / 2012]

2. Arbani [Dir: Adi Adwan / lsrael / 84min/ 2013]

3. Capturing Dad/Chilli o tori ni [Dir: Ryota Nakano/Japan/74min.2012]

4. Club Sandwich [Dir Fernando Eimbeke/Mexico/82min/2013]

5. Const ructors/St roiteli [Dir: Aciilklian Yerzhanovi/ Kazakhstan/71 min/ 2013]

6. Errata [Dir: Ivan Vescovo /Argentina/76min/2012]

7. Inercia [Dir: Isabel Muitioz/Mexico/70min/2013]

8. Jonathas' Forest [Dir: Srgio Anclrade/Brazil/99min/2012]

9. Meghe Dhaka Tara [Dir: Kamalcswar Mukherjee/Bengali/152min/2013]

10. Parviz [Dir: Majid Barzegarilran/107min/2012]

11. So be it/Astu [Dir: Surnitra Bliave& Sunil Suktliankari/ Marathi/123min/ 2013]

12. Taj Mahal [Dir: Danesh Fighba Shavi / lran / 82min]

13. The Battle of Tabato [Dir: Joao Viana/ Guinea-Bissau / Portugal /83min]

14. The Master of the Play/Kaliyachan [Dir.Farook Abdul Rahiman/Malayalam/100min/2012]

.

Indian Cinema Now: 

1. Accident [Dir: Nandita Roy & Shiboprosad Mukherjee/Bengali/128min/2013]

2. Crossing Bridges [Dir: Sarme Dorjee Thongdolc / Sherdukpen/102min/2013]

3. Liar's Dice [Dir Geethu Mohandas/ Hindi / 101min/2013]

4. Lucia [Dir: Pawan Kumar/Kannada/ 136 min/2013]

5. OASS- The Dew Drop [Dir: Abhinav Shiv Tiwari / Hindi / 105min/2013]

6. Soodhu Kavvum [Dir. Nalan Kinnarasamy/Tamil / 133min/2013]

 7. The Coffin Maker [Dir: Veena Bakshi/English/l16min/2013]

Malayalam Cinema Today

 1. 5 Sundarikal [Dir: Shyju Khalid, Sameer Thahir, Ashiq Abu, Amal Neerad, Anwar Rasheed]

2. Annayum Rasoolum [Dir: Rajeev Ravi]

3. Celluloid [Dir: Kamal]

4. CR NO: 89 [Dir: Sudevan P.P. ]

5. English [Dir: Shyamaprasad]

6. Kanyaka Talkies/ Virgin Talkies [Dir: K.R.Mano] 

7. Venal Odungathe/ The Endless Summer [Dir: Sanjeev Sivan]

The Committee consisting of Sri. A. Meera Sahib(Film Critic), Sri. K.K.Chandran(Filmmaker), Sri. C.S.Venkiteswaran (Film Critic), Sri. Albert Antony(Filmmaker) and Smt. Sulochana Ram Mohan (Writer and Poet) made the selection of International Films in Competition. 

The Committee for the selection of Malayalam Films in Competition and Malayalam Cinema Today sections include Sri. T.V.Chandran(Filmmaker), Prof. Chandramati (Author and Film Critic) and Sri. V.B.K. Menon(Producer).

 The Committee consisting of Sri. Renji Panicker (Filmmaker), Sri. Premchand (Writer), Sri. Jose Thomas (Filmmaker), Smt. Bhagyalakshmi (Dubbing Artist) selected the Indian films to be screened in Competition and Indian Cinema Now sections.

Idukki Gold - Malayalam Movie Review

 

Idukki Gold Malayalam Movie Review

Directed by Aashiq Abu 

Banner - Rajaputra Visual Media
Produced By M. Ranjith

Story by Santosh Echikkanam
Written By Syam Pushkaran , Dileesh Nair
DOP Shyju Khalid
Music Bijibal
Editor V Saajan
Costumes Sameera Saneesh
Production Controller Benny Kattappana
Distributed by Rajaputhra & Kaleeshwary
 

Cast

Prathap Pothen as Michael
Raveendran as Ravi
Babu Antony as Antony
Maniyanpilla Raju as Madan
Vijayaraghavan as Raman
Lal
Joy Mathew
Sajitha Madathil

The script of Idukki Gold is based on a short story written by Santosh Echikkanam under the same name. 'Idukki Gold' is the local name of 'Marijuana'. The main story is also set in Idukki

'Idukki Gold' is the story of camaraderie, 5 Men who are in their Golden 50s decides to get together like they used to do in their teens. The Events that follows on their get away to 'Idukki' for a 'nostalgic reunion' is the main theme of 'Idukki Gold'. The story switches back & forth between certain events in the past & present.

The online of IG gives one great expectations, a trip down memory lanes for every one, especially middle agers. Plus the charm of veteran actors uniting, beautiful locales of Idukki, a hit director-writer(s) combo etc also increases the hope and hype surrounding the movie. But unfortunately the film fails to meet any of those standards (Except the beauty of 'Idukki').

The film instead of being a nostalgic trip, turns out a trip just to smoke weed, drink alcohol & get high.
The first half of the movie is actually pretty decent, even though bit slow, but in the 2nd half all hell break loose. The movie drags like anything and goes on for ever, the climax twist also fells flat, it was very much predictable, especially if you have taken notice the cast & posters of IG. In order to satisfy the so called 'New-Gen' fans many things have been forcefully added into the film.

The biggest plus in the movie is the kids that play the younger version of the gang in the flashback episodes - they are simply outstanding. All of them have given  knock-out performances. One can't blame for hoping if the film was just about these kids.

 The 'vetrans' are the other saving grace of the film, especially Raju & Raveendran. Scene in which Babu Antony leaves hospital bed, walking down the hallway to the BG [which is also featured in trailer]. Idukki has been captured by Shyju Khalid like never before, it looked breath taking. There is just one song in the film which has been composed, written and shot beautifully. The movie definitely needs some editing, especially in the second half. Background score was impressive.

Aashiq Abu has done a decent job directing the movie, with whatever material he had.

There might be few out there who could identify with the movie, for whom the film might be entertaining enough. I am certainly not one of them. The film is low in content even for the likings of the so called 'New Gen' movie goers, who has been the main target.

The controversy/intelligent marketing have helped the film to get a decent opening, once the holidays are over If the movie still survives in theaters it will be a miracle, but this short run will be more than enough for the producer to break even I guess.

Hereby recommending 'Idukki Gold' for my 'Ganga' brothers, & as for others, please stay away, or just watch the 1st half and leave the theater

Verdict - Disappointing

Rating - 2.25/5

Pattam Pole - Malayalam Movie Review

Directed by     Azhagappan
Produced by     Karunakaran
Written by     Girish Kumar
Music by     M. Jayachandran
Cinematography     Jomon T. John
Editing by     Raja , Mohammed
Studio     Carlton Films
Release date(s)     11th October 2013
Country     India
Language     Malayalam

Cast

Dulquer Salmaan as Karthik
Malavika Mohanan as Riya

Anoop Menon
Archana Kavi as Sherin
Jayaprakash as Ramanathan
Lalu Alex as Mathews
Ilavarasu
Seetha as Sussan Mathews
Nandu as Father Alex
Shraddha Gokul as Rita

'Pattam Pole' is a Rom-Com told in the beautiful backdrop of 'Aleppey'. But unlike most films PP begins with a break up and tells the story of romance after break up. Karthik born in a Tamil-Brahmin family Ria born in a Christian family decides to part their ways finding themselves incompatible. If &  how fate reunites the couple forms the rest o the story.

Eventhough the one line is unique to Mollywod the film has been treated as any other Rom-Com, especially like the ones that Bollywood churns out in plenty ever year. The importance the families of her0 & heroine gets makes PP stand out. The first half was light breezy entertainer, in the second half the pace slows down and drags towards the end. There are no twists or turns, everything is quite predictable.

The film draws elements from various Tamil/Telugu movies of the past. The scenes between 'Karthik' & 'Varalakshmi' reminds Dhanush-Saranya love track in 'Yaaredi Ni Mohini'

Even though scripted in the predictable routine its the performances that makest the film stand out. Dulquer has once again given a convincing performance, where he had to underplay the character which e did beautifully. Malavika, daughter of noted cinematographer Mohanan has made a very good debut. She gets the dominant role which she delivered perfectly. (Credits should also go to her 'voice', if its not of her's). The supporting cast of Archana, Shradda, Jayaprakash etc have also done god job with their roles.


Azhagappan did a great job in his directorial job, the years of experience handling camera helped him a lot I think. Apart from acting & direction the superb visuals captured by Jomon T John also helps to cover the flaws in the script and makes the film engaging. Songs in the film are passable except the 'Mazhaye' number. 'Antha naalil' sounds exactly similar to 'Kannanayal Radhavenam'. Even though the run time is just about 124mins it drags towards the end, don't know if we can blame the editor for that. Background score was okay, suiting the mood of the film. 

So, Pattam Pole is a time pass Rom-Com flick, what could have been just average saved by the actors. 

PP is a must watch for all Dulquer fans, espeically female and all those who love good old Rom-Coms. for others its just a time pass or one time watch at the max.

Verdict - above Average

Rating - 2.75/5

Naiyaandi Exclusive Movie Review

Friday, October 10, 2013 Naiyyandi: Exclusive Movie Review

Written & Direction by A. Sarkunam

Produced by S. Kathiresan

Music by M Ghibran

Stars: Dhanush, Nazriya Nazim, Soori, Sathyan Sivakumar, Sriman & Vamsi Krishna

Movie Review by Sree Prasad Nair Theater – National Cinemas, Abu Dhabi, UAE 10/10/2013 – 1.00am Occupancy – 80% (Surprise)

A. Sarkunam is known for directing National Award Winning film Vaagai Sooda Vaa. The film was honored with the National Award For Best Feature Film in Tamil for the year 2013. Naiyyandi is the third film of director Sarkunam. The film was earlier titled as Sotta Vazhakutty. Naiyyandi stars Dhanush & the young 16 year old Malayalam actress Nazriya Nazim. Dhanush had a rocking year with his Superhit debut hindi film Raanjhanaa & an above average grosser Maryan. Nazriya also had a dream run at the Tamil box office with both Neram & Raja Rani turned hits. Naiyyandi also stars Soori, Sathyan Sivakumar, Sriman & Vamsi Krishna.

Story

Naiyyandi is the love story of Dhanush & Nazriya Nazim till the interval. But the second half is a

complete remake of 1993 Malayalam film Meleparambil Aanveedu. Dhanush's brothers (Sriman & Sathyan Sivakumar) are not as handsome as Dhanush. Both are 40+ old bachelors and struggling to get a girl to marry. Dhanush is afraid of whether or not his parents would agree to his marriage with Nazriya, so he keeps her undercover as a sales girl in his Kuthuvilakku shop. Dhanush's parents realize that Nazriya is pregnant and they decide to dismiss her from her job. Because of that Dhanush is forced to reveal that Nazriya is his wife. At the end his parents express their willingness to accept Nazriya as their daughter-in-law.

For me the film is disaapointing, so starting with the negatives...

Negatives

Like I mentioned in the first paragraph, director A. Sarkunam is known for his critically acclaimed-successful films like Kalavani & Vaagai Sooda Vaa. Unfortunately his third outing, Naiyyandi is plain mediocre. The director has relied too heavily on the tried-and-tested formula to convey the story, which is where he falters. There was ample scope for novelty, but he is letdown by his own poor script.

Music is just about Ok. But the biggest problem with the songs are most of the songs filmed at the wrong time. Infact no connection to the story and too many songs just spoiled the film, especialy 2 songs in the second half. Editing of the film is very poor.

Second half drags a lot and the climax is a huge let down. The desired impact in the climax is missing. For any love story to succeed, it is of vital importance that the emotional moments strike a chord, but in Naiyyandi, the emotions appear superficial. Even the ending is least exciting.

The biggest drawback of the film is Dhanush magic is missing especially in the second half. Yes, he is sidelined in this film. The supporting characters played by Sathyan Shivakumar & Sriman are more convincing and interesting than Dhanush in the second half. And in the first half Soori as Dhanush's friend is the real scene stealer.

Positives

Dhanush acting is good! but not extraordinary like his all films. Because in Naiyyandi he got small scope to display his potential as an actor as his role is not an author-backed role.

Nazriya Nazim looks like a doll, infact very pretty. Her acting is good. But she needs a crash course

in her expressions, especially in the songs.

But the real stars of the film for me, infact the only saving grace are Soori, Sathyan Sivakumar & Sriman. Soori was extra ordinary in the first half with many witty one-liners. Sathyan & Sriman provided maximum entertainment in the second half. There is a scene where Sathyan imitates Dhanush's Ottha Sollala song from Aadukalam, Hilarious stuff.

Overall Naiyyandi is a weak Dhanush film after a long time. The film has precious little to offer in terms of content and novelty. Film will struggle to get a good opening because of the low promotions and poor response to the trailer. Box office point of view film will be disappointing!!!

Verdict - Naiyyandi Is Boring

Rating - 2.25/5! Below Average 

This Reviewer can be contacted on Twitter : @i_spn : https://twitter.com/i_spn

Movie Poster showing 'Lord Shiva' & 'Che Guevara' smoking Marijuana creates controversy

This is the poster designed by a group of poster designers calle 'WaxApple' for Aashiq Abu's upcoming Malayalam movie 'Idukki Gold'. The poster has created a lot of buzz in the net world, which is slowly   spreading its wings to the real world and emerging as a new controversy. We still don't know if this is an official poster or one created by fans or supporters or just another 'MalayaleeGraphy' [Posters designed based on iconic Malayalam movie scenes & Dialogues]

'Iduki Gold' is a type of Marijuana/Ganga found/cultivated in Kerala. The movie is based on a short story of same name written by Santosh Echikkanam. The poster is designed based on a dialogue in the movie - " This is Idukki Gold, the same stuff that Shiva & Che Guevara used to smoke"

A bit of googling provided the information  that both Lord Shiva & Che used 'Marijuana' - Che, being a doctor, to treat his Aasthma and Lord Shiva to beat the extreme conditions in 'Kailasam'. 

Any way this poster has given rise to unnecessary controversy and a lot of media attention too, whether intentional or not.

The trailer of the film was earlier removed by YouTube stating "

This video has been removed as a violation of YouTube's policy against spam, scams, and commercially deceptive content"  

The makers of the movie responded to the warning by YouTube explaining everything and providing the censor certificate (U/A) given by CBFC, Trivandrum for the trailer which states its fit for public viewing. Only after this the trailer was restored. 

The film is set to hit the screens on October 11th. 

Dulquer Salmaan's 'Pattam Pole' - Exclusive Ultra HD Posters Set

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