Tamil Review: 'Mayakkam Enna' is engaging

 

Cast: Dhanush, Richa Gangopadyaya
Director: Selvaraghavan
'Mayakkam Enna', one of the most awaited films of the year, brings together the celebrity brothers - Selvaraghavan and Dhanush - after a long time. The duo brings a touching story of a young man's dream on screen.

The south has 5 releases lined up this week.

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The movie has all ingredients to attract youngsters - friendship, romance, betrayal, heartbreaks and passion to achieve. Selvah has stepped out of his comfort zone to touch upon new elements in life. With an astute performer like Dhanush by his side, Selva has hit the bull's eye.

Karthik (Dhanush) is a freelance photographer who lives life on his own terms and conditions. He is called genius among his group. He works hard and wants to leave a mark as a photographer. He has a special eye for capturing the elements of life and in its best possible moments. Though he does portfolio and weddings assignments, his passion is wildlife photography.
Karthik spends his time with his close friend Sundar (Sundar) and their gang and they have a typical lifestyle that today's youngsters enjoy. One fine day, Sundar comes with Yamini (Richa), his girlfriend.
Unfortuantely, in their first meeting Karthik and Yamini have a bitter experience but they slowly develop some special bond. Though Karthik tries to stay away from the girl since he doesn't want to break his friend's heart, but sequence of events brings them closer.
After some drama Karthik and Yamini get married but their married life starts on a disastrous note as Karthik is insulted and cheated by a renowned photographer.
The man is shattered. The young couple is in turmoil. Yamini tries her best to bring back Karthik's charm and enthusiasm, but he has gone to a stage which is termed as madness by others.
The rest of the movie deals with what happens to the couple's life and Karthik's dream.
Selvaraghavan has presented the story in a sensitive manner and has avoided cliches. The story develops at a natural pace without compromising much on the entertaining aspect.
Selva has the guts to show a girl falling in love with her boyfriend's friend. The romance between the lead pair comes as a surprise. but the developments after that are predictable though executed well.
The way Richa's character shapes up in the second half is appreciable.
Though the movie tends to become slower in the second half, emotion packed climax compensates it. Though the climax is predictable, the way it has been executed could bring tears in eyes of the viewers.
It's Dhanush special. The actor, who surprised one and all winning national award for his performance as a rustic youth in 'Aadukalam', plays a contrasting role. As a freelance photographer, who is city-bred, he gives his best. His expressions and body language are the hallmark of the movie.
Newcomer Richa fits the role well. She brings out right emotions. She has proved her worth as a powerful performer.
Cinematographer Ramji and music composer G.V.Prakash should be complimented - they have done what they did in 'Ayirathil Oruvan', complimenting the theme with their work. GVP's back ground score is marvellous.
Selvaraghavan has succeeded in presenting a sensitive and engaging movie. Though the developments towards the climax look dramatic the impact of the climax compensates for it.

Swapna Sanchari Review.

Veteran director Kamal and actor Jayaram are coming together after a long gap of 12 years with a family package flick 'Swapna Sanchari'.Surely viewers will expect a 'Good Cinema' as the director-actor duo's history includes clean family entertainers like Peruvannapurathe Visheshangal, Pradeshika Vaarthakal, Thooval Sparsam, Shubhayathra,Aayushkalam, Krishnagudiyil Oru Pranayakalathu, Kaikudanna Nilavu. Latest 'Swapna Sanchari' adds to the list !!
The plot of the movie says: Ajayachandran Nair(Jayaram) is a quintessential Malayalee, whose main aim in life is to make quick money and live lavishly, showing off his riches. Like any other Malayalee, he spends a considerable period in the Gulf, earns enough money and settles back in Kerala. His father, Achuthan Nair rears cattle and belongs to a middle class family. Rashmi(Samvritha Sunil) is Ajayachandran Nair’s wife and Aswathi(Anu Emanuel), their only child.
Ajayachandran Nair’s spending habits and life style creates disturbs the harmony in the house. His needs have no end and Rashmi has to go along with him against her own better sense. Achuthan Nair(Innocent), Ajayachandran’s father, is severe in expressing his opposition to his son’s prodigal behavior. He asks his son to control his greed. But Ajayachandran Nair wants his wife and children to have the kind of life which he was denied to him in his youth. And he is particular that people around him see their affluence. This typically Malayalee attitude to life is picturised humourously in Swapna Sanchari by veteran director Kamal. The movie is produced by Thankachan Emanuel under the banner of Trueline Cinema.
Swapna Sanchari is a serious subject handled seriously. Gireesh Kumar's script always takes a preachy tone in the film. Anyway the film can marked as a digestible fun-filled drama with light-hearted moments. Swapna Sanchari has its moments for sure, but lacks freshness and effective fun elements that one look forward to in a movie.
Performances from the lead actors are consistently first-rate. Jayaram is quite at ease doing what he does best. Samvritha is aptly cast as Rashmi, and should hopefully be around for at least a while and is mature beyond her age. Anu Emanuel also shines as their daughter.Innocent excels as Achuthan Nair. Salim Kumar, Shivaji Guruvayoor, Balachandran Chullikkad, Kripa, Sasi Kallinga etc do their bit within the scope of their roles. Jagathy Sreekumar and Bhama appear in short cameos was Ok one.
Cinematographer Alagappan's lovely shadow-laden frames have in fact become a character in the film. K.Rajagopal's editing finely shape the movie. Songs by M.Jayachandran-Rafeeq Ahamed team well suited to the mood of the film.
In a nutshell, Kamal-Jayaram ticks the right chord once again making "Swapna Sanchari" a must-watch for the entire Family.
Verdict: Family Entertainer.

Saif joins Ash, Sonam and Freida at Cannes…

Saif Ali Khan is all set to head to the prestigious Cannes Film Festival this month. He will be there to promote a global luxury brand.
Also present at Cannes this year again will be Aishwarya Rai, walking the red carpet for the tenth consecutive year, Freida Pinto, who will attend the American Foundation for AIDS Research dinner and after-party on May 19 and Sonam Kapoor, a newbie at Cannes.
As per schedule, May 11th will see the very gorgeous Aishwarya will walk the red carpet. It also happens to be the opening ceremony of the festival. Sonam will be seen on May 15th.
Coming back to Saif, off late, he has been very busy shooting for Agent Vinod, which is his home production. He will be seen opp his girlfriend Kareena Kapoor in the flick.

Amrita TV and Film Employees Federation of Kerala( FEFKA) all set to conduct the ”Amrita TV FEFKA Film Awards 2011”

Amrita TV and Film Employees Federation of Kerala( FEFKA) all set to conduct the ”Amrita TV FEFKA Film Awards 2011” on Saturday,April 23,2011 at Jawaharlal Nehru International Stadium,Kaloor,Cochin.
The event details was announced by Amrita TV and FEFKA at a press meet today at Cochin .
All the shining stars of the film industry,including Malayalam,Tamil,Telugu and Bollywood,will be present at the ”Amrita FEFKA Film Awards 2011”

China Town | full Movie | free downloads coming soon.................................................

Review- China Town
Producer- Antony Perumbavoor
Director- Rafi- Mecartin
Cast- Mohanlal, Jayaram, Dileep, Kavya Madhavan, Poonam Bajwa, Dipasha etc.
Music- Jassie Gift
Cinematography- Azhagappan. N
Story, Screenplay, Dialogues- Rafi- Mecartin
Review by : Unni
‘China Town’ has been an eagerly awaited film. Mohanlal, Dileep and Jayaram coming together in equally important roles and that too in a film by hitmaking director duo Rafi-Mecartin is big news for film lovers in Kerala. So it has been an eager wait for ‘China Town’, expecting it to be a full-length colourful entertainer.
‘China Town’, when it finally hit screens, is fun, at least half way through. Till interval it’s fun, real comedy that makes you laugh aloud. But then, post-interval, it’s not so. After interval, it’s a mix and at times even confuses you. Had the second half of the film been like the first half, it would have been much more enjoyable. As of now, ‘China Town’ has a good, enjoyable first half and a rather confusing, a bit boring second half. But the film may turn out to be a hit, a family hit.
Mathewkutty (Mohanlal), Zachariah (Jayaram) and Binoy (Dileep) are made to come to Goa by Gomez (Captain Raju), who is rich and runs a casino there. Gomez wants them in Goa as he wants them to take charge of the casino. Mathewkutty is accompanied by Rose (Kavya Madhavan) and later, during their stay in Goa, the trio, who become friends, also become close to Emily (Poonam Bajwa), who is Gomez’ daughter and also to Chandni (Dipasha), the home minister’s daughter. There is Gauda (Pradeep Rawat), a businessman and aspiring politician, with whom Mathewkutty, Zachariah and Binoy lock horns later. It’s with this that the story takes a new turn.
The scenes where Mathewkutty, Zachariah and Binoy are introduced are handled well and are real funny scenes indeed. Suraaj Venjaramoodu’s goonda Chandran Valanjavazhi alias CV also puts in some funny moments and elicits loud laughs. The romance part is also worked out well in the first half. But then, in the second half, it all goes wrong and it seems Rafi and Mecartin, who handle the script as well, lose control of the subject in a bid to make it entertaining and more humorous. The sumo-wrestler bit in the second half seems deliberately put in and is even distasteful at times. The scenes where the protagonists get drunk and drugged and lose track of what they are doing is all poorly executed. The second half thus plays spoilsport to the entire movie, which would otherwise have been 100% entertaining.
Performances
Mohanlal, Jayaram and Dileep do justice to their roles. Kavya is good but Poonam Bajwa and Dipasha don’t have much to do. Dileep is good in the first half but cuts a poor figure in the post-interval sections. The others in the cast are OK with their roles. One wonders why Jagathy Sreekumar was brought in, almost at the close of the movie and what his character was meant for. He has nothing to do, performance-wise.
Technical aspects
Azhagappan has done a good work of the cinematography. The editing and art-work are in tune with the mood and theme of the movie.
Music
The songs don’t make much of an impact whereas in usual Rafi-Mecartin films, songs, mostly peppy ones, go on to become hits and contribute towards making the film a hit. With ‘China Town’ it’s not so; the songs are just so so.
Script
Rafi and Mecartin have worked well with the first half of the movie while in the second half it seems they have taken themselves for granted and forgot that they were confusing the audience to an extent and even exhausting them. Of course there are things to laugh in the second half, but there is an apparent lack of logic and continuity in the second half.
Direction
Rafi and Mecartin, the makers of colourful entertainers, are in full form in the first half of ‘China Town’ and do justice to the script at hand in the second half too. The only problem is that the script, penned by Rafi and Mecartin themselves, go wrong in the second half and to an extent mar the totality of the film.
Overall verdict- Comic, funny first half followed by a not-so-good second half. Good for the family audience. Likely to be a hit.
Rating: 2.75/5