I saw my second Malayalam movie in theaters! Thanks to moviemavengal’s review. And I gave up on pronouncing the title at all when I bought the tickets and just called it “the Malayalam movie at 7:30”. Thank goodness, the ticket guy was able to figure it out from there. (It’s not that Malayalam is such a hard language, it’s just that I’m terrible at languages. The handy Hindi movie abbreviations are my saving grace!)
I think this is one of the movies that was recommended to me just because I was looking for another actress as good as Nazriya Nazim, and Namitha Pramod is so good. And it’s true! She is just so good! Even in this, when she was only 17. Kunchacko Boban was good too, and they made a nice pair, just like in Law Point.
This movie was very very well-made. And it managed to tell a familiar story in a new way. At least, familiar to me, since I’ve read a lot of books on film history and the same horribly depressing things always happen to the early filmmakers. Although, like I said, this film took a slightly new tack on it in a couple of ways.
Such a surprisingly good movie! Okay, that sounds insulting to police films. Such a surprisingly different movie! It looks like the standard police film, everyone has a mustache and the title is even “Mumbai Police“. But then, right away, it’s clear that it really really isn’t.
This is a movie I started and then rewound to rewatch bits a bunch. And then realized that I didn’t really have to rewind that much, because it was just moving forward, without much discussion of what we saw in the past.
Okay, I am slowly getting to understand Kerala history. I just need to watch Pathemaari and Celluloid, and I will know everything! This movie covered me for 1900 through 1946. Also, the British were really horrible, weren’t they?
Finally, a happy romance! Well, okay, there were still some kind of dark statements about law and assumptions and the pettiness of those in power. But also, a romance! With two leads who I like, Dulquer and Namitha Pramod!
First, and most importantly, I think I might “get” Fahad Fazil now! I’ve seen a fair number of his movies, from Bangalore Days to 24 North Kaadam, and he always just seemed sort of blah. But somehow in this, his character worked for me!
It’s not super super the world is hopeless depressing. But it’s not cheerful! Although, in some ways, it is also a direct answer to Kireedam. So I am glad I saw them back to back.
Everyone said “Watch Kireedam! Watch Kireedam!” They did not say “Watch Kireedam and then be depressed for a week!” Evil! You got me to watch it, and now I am all depressed! And not depressed in a “the nobility of the human spirit triumphed, even if the ending was kind of sad” kind of way like a classic Amitabh movie, but in a “Gosh darn it! Why’d it have to end that way?” kind of way.
Priyadarshan! I love Priyadarshan, his comedies are always funny, and yet somehow heartbreaking. Sort of “you look at the worst situation possible, and you can either laugh or you can cry” feeling. And somehow I did not realize until I watched this film that he came out of the Malayalam industry.
I am just zipping through my Malayalam list! At least until there is another big Hindi release that blocks me for a week. But in the meantime, Spadikam! Yet another Mohanlal film!
I’ve had such a hectic week at work! For no real reason. I do tech support for a small software company, and some weeks all of our users have questions, and some weeks they don’t, and I really can’t predict why! Anyway, to relax, I decided to check out one of the older Malayalam films that had been recommended to me.
(moviemavengal just watched it as well, check out her review here)
I watched Left Right Left! I am very confused. I am hoping people in the comments can help me. I think I got the main thrust of the characters and the overall theme, but the details of exactly what happened and when and why escaped me. Mostly because I don’t know a lot about the Kerala Communist party. Or maybe it is the all-India Communist party? I don’t even know enough to know which one it is! But at least the relationship/female side of things more or less made sense to me, so that’s the part I will talk about.
I watched Charlie! Which I don’t think is even on my To-Do List, but was recommended to me by a friend, and moviemavengal just posted a review and that it’s been added to einthusan, so I had to check it out.
I feel bad, I know I have a lot of faithful readers who are more here for the regional stuff than the Hindi, and I’m not going to have time to watch another regional film for another few days, not until I’ve seen Fan several more times. So I’m going to go ahead and post a review on a film I watched a while back and never covered here.
Hey! They are remaking Traffic! Well, they already remade it. They are releasing a remake of Traffic! I am a little worried that the trailer spoiled the movie.
Law Point! My third Malayalam film of the week! I have to get them all out now, because Fan-Fever starts next week and I will be dedicating my life to that for the foreseeable future. Anyway, I really liked the plot and the actors and the characters and all sorts of other things in this film. But the introduction of our hero was so evil, it kind of distracted me the entire time.
Continuing to work through the whole list of movies people recommended to me, Salt n’ Pepper! Such an adorable movie. Not like a super super great movie, but so lovable! Like a big floppy puppy!
So, this was an interesting movie! Almost too subtle for me to follow. Or maybe I just wasn’t paying enough attention (I was trying to finish it while getting ready for work).
I saw a Malayalam movie in theaters! Because my friend convinced me I should be brave and risk no subtitles. It was really really good! And subtitled, thank goodness.
(if you want to see a different review, moviemavengal has posted hers here)
I actually went to a theater and watched a Malayalam film! I am so proud of myself. Of course, I cheated a little and picked a movie with a title I can actually pronounce without struggling.
This is one of those recent movies that was recommended in a sort of “well, it’s kind of interesting, you might as well” sort of way. Instead of the “You MUST watch this movie!!!” kind of way. And that was basically my reaction too, it’s okay, it was enjoyable, but it didn’t blow my mind.
Well, sort of stuck in traffic, sort of got lost on the way and took a detour. Either way, appropriate! The point is, I got it two days late because someone at the mail center in India messed up and put in the wrong digit for my zip code, which meant it went to Dunkerton, Idaho, before it made its way to me. Actually, kind of remarkably it was only 2 days late, since that’s several hundred miles away from me. Also, remarkably, the funky Indian website where I ordered it was not at fault! I checked the original packaging and packing slip, and they had everything right, it was only when it was handed over to the private shipping company that it got messed up.
But, All’s Well that End’s Well, I finally got my DVD, and I was able to watch it in bits last night and while getting ready for work this morning.
(update: Moviemavingal just posted her take on it, including why it is and isn’t like the American style hyperlinks)
I watched Thoovanathumbikal! Because it seemed to be the general consensus that it was the next best one on my list. And it was really good, but also really made me think and concentrate to understand it. Partly because I was struggling with a wacky subtitle situation.
dontcallitbollywood 