Eat Movies, Drink Movies, Sleep Movies

Yuganiki Okkadu - A fantasy adventure

2010-03-07T11:34:00.000-08:00

Saw this movie last night, still feeling the kick as of this morning. The film sure leaves an impression on you, good or bad, the way you take it.

This is the 5th film from Selvaraghavan and the budget is whooping 32 crores. You will know why they spent so much once you see the movie. The heroines of the movie Reema Sen and Andrea Jeremiah did justice to their roles and sure looks HOT. Coming to the Hero of the movie, Karthik Sivakumar.He is the younger son of veteran actor Sivakumar and brother of Surya and also best known for his critically acclaimed performance as the title character in his debut film Paruthiveeran in 2007, for which he received the Best actor Film fare award. A little interesting fact about Karthik, after returning from US to INDIA, he got to meet noted director Mani Ratnam, who initially offered him to act in the film Aayutha Ezhuthu, in which he should essay the role of Arjun (later played by Siddarth). But Karthi instead joined him as an assistant director for the same film and its for Hindi version YUVA, since he always wanted to become a film director and preferred direction to acting.

Well coming to the movie plot, it's about the age old rivalry between Chola's & Pandya's and how the present day pandya descendants save their sacred idol by defeating the chola's.

The film begins with a folk street play showing the last period of the Chola king's reign. Then we are taken to A.D. 1279, where the death of the Chola dynasty seems imminent and people are being driven out of their kingdom by the Pandya's in southern India. To escape from them and save the life of his successor, the Chola emperor sends his son, along with his people to a secret territory unknown to his enemies. The Chola's also take away with them an idol sacred to the Pandya's, which angers them even more. To capture the escaped Chola prince and to retrieve their Sacred idol, the Pandya's extend their invasion to the unexplored territories, but eventually fail.

Several centuries later in 2009, Indian archaeologists continue searching for the existence of the lost Chola group based on clues left by the ancient Pandyan warriors. But all the archaeologists, who attempt to search for the secret land disappear during the search missions. Archaeologist Chandramouli (Pratap Pothan) is the most recent person to have reportedly traced the empire but he also fails to return from his mission.

The Indian government organizes a search expedition led by officer Anitha Pandiyan (Reema Sen) to find Chandramouli and the Chola Empire with assistance from the Indian army led by Ravisekharan (Azhagam Perumal). They meet archaeologist Lavanya (Andrea Jeremiah), the estranged daughter of the missing archaeologist Chandramouli, and she assists Anitha and gives crucial documents prepared by her father on the Chola dynasty with instructions on the route to reach the destination. She also joins the expedition since her insight is considered essential for the success of the project.Along with the army, Anitha employs a group of porters headed by Muthu (Karthi Sivakumar), to transport the baggage during the journey. The crew embark on a voyage leading them to an island, Min-gua, near Vietnam. Here they are faced with the seven traps set by the Cholas: sea creatures, cannibals, warriors, snakes, hunger, quick sand and a village.

Many porters and army men are killed on their way.Muthu, Anitha and Lavanya get separated from the others. They reach the ruins of a village where they get subjected to black magic. They nearly go mad before finally reaching the secret hideout of the Chola dynasty. The three of them find an ethnic isolated primitive Tamil group ruled by a Chola king (Parthiban). The king and his people are in hiding, awaiting the arrival of the messenger whom they believe will bring glory and prosperity back to their land and lead them back to their motherland. The king and the priest consult the Gods for omens and order Muthu, Anitha and Lavanya to be burnt alive as sacrifice to their gods.At this point, Anitha tells the king that she is the messenger he has been eagerly awaiting, sent from the homeland. Muthu and Lavanya are taken as slaves. Anitha is given a chance to prove herself asthe messenger. She tries to seduce the king and convinces the Chola king to heed her message - to march towards the homeland two days from then with his people and he would be crowned a proper king. He suspects her since none of Anitha's actions match the qualities of the messenger described by his ancestors and ancient paintings - the messenger will be ill-treated at first, but will eventually help out the local tribe and, also his arrival will be preceded by hail.

Anitha drugs the priest and poisons the water sources. She catches a glimpse of the Pandyas' sacred idol and leaves, finally exposing her identity as a descendant of the Pandya Dynasty. For generations, her race has been trying to find the whereabouts of the Chola prince and his people who escaped with the idol. The central minister who sponsors the expedition also is shown to be of Pandyan descent. The Chola king is shattered for having believed in Anitha as his true messenger. Anitha, with Ravishekaran, gathers an army and assaults the hidden kingdom. The Chola's are at war once again with the Pandya's. In due course, the king finds that Muthu is the true messenger - the chosen one who would save the Chola's from the clutches of Anitha and the army.They fight bravely but the Cholas lose and are taken prisoners. Their women are molested and raped by the army and the king is killed. The men drown in the seas. The story ends with Muthu saving the Chola prince. Thus the successor of the Chola dynasty is brought back to India by the messenger as predicted.

The scenes i liked especially are:

1. Quick sand escape in big shadow (Nataraja Idol)

2. Fight scene between Gaint and Karthik with the chain ball

3. Dancing fight sequence between Reema & Parthiban

3 IDIOTS - No idiots movie - A must watch

2010-01-16T12:14:00.000-08:00

Till now, i was thinking "Taare Zameen Par" was the best movie ever made among the new generation movies. This movie "3 IDIOTS" sets the standard even higher.

Though it is said to be based on Chetan Bhagat's novel, "Five Point Someone", I haven't read the book really to comment on how much of it has been adapted to make this film. Hirani and co-writer Abhijat Joshi take this basic novel story, spin it on its head, and make it a tale of a quest of Farhan and Raju for their lost friend Rancho, who disappeared after topping the college. The writer duo packs in some fine humour and drama. I haven't laughed so much in the recent past.

Here's a story of three friends studying in ICE engineering college, Rancho (Aamir Khan), Farhan (R Madhavan) and Raju (Sharman Joshi). Coming to the important characters of the movie, Farhan (Madhavan) who wants to be a wild life photographer but is doing engineering to fulfill his dad’s dream; Raju (Sharman Joshi), a poor lad who’s so afraid of failure that his fear has become a self-fulfilling prophecy; and Chatur (Omi) who’s a learning machine adept at mugging up books. Viru Sahastrabuddhe (Boman Irani), fondly called Virus, telling them that the worlds a rat race in which one has to step on another to get to the top. I like one more character MM (fondly called millimeter) who did his part brilliantly. Rancho clearly is different from anyone else in the college with his individualistic thought-process and rebellious attitude, which invites the ire of the college principal (Boman Irani) and affection of his daughter Pia (Kareena Kapoor).

‘3 Idiots’ makes for an enjoyable watch, thanks to Aamir, Madhavan and Sharman. Aamir’s Rancho is a bouncy, fidgety genius with a golden heart. The 44-year-old actor almost passes off as a 22-year-old collegian, bringing out in his character the buoyancy and vivacity few actors of his age can. Madhavan and Sharman give ample support from the flanks, but a special word of praise for Sharman who shines equally in dramatic as well as funny scenes. Kareena, sadly, has been cast to make her presence felt in a few well-enacted sequences, but it’s Boman Irani who comes up with the best performance in the movie with his brilliant portrayal of an eccentric professor. His jaw line protruded, his speech lisped, Irani is every bit the vile and virulent Virus (he’s supposed to be).

Shantanu Moitra’s music and Muralidharan’s cinematography complement the flick well. Rajkumar Hirani does magic again with his director skills. He made the word "Ghandigiri" famous with his "MUNNABHAI MBBS" sequel and everyone will start saying " All izz well" after watching "3 IDIOTS". For this alone, ‘3 Idiots’ definitely ought to be seen and enjoyed.

2012 - Is the world really going to end???

2009-12-14T07:02:00.000-08:00

After hearing lot of hype about the dooms day movie "2012", went and watched it recently. First and foremost i should appreciate the technical brilliance of the Director Roland Emmerich. There are some scenes that would just blow your mind off. But coming to the overall picture i would say its not worth the price. It has lot of similarities with our typical Telugu Top graded Heroes movies. Well to start with, the scene where the hero comes to pick his family and all the city is disaster struck except the hero's house & his family. He still manages (again a technical visual feast) to escape in a L-I-M-O, yes you read it right, it's a limo. This happens not once but thrice in the movie, feels like luck has no role to play in this movie. The screen play is not perfect. There are some places where you don't feel connected with the movie. The President's scenes especially, feels like, are these actors really paid for what they did in this movie. The geologist guy is typical. He appears to be worried about all the people on the earth but at the same time does all the selfish acts of not letting the world know about the disaster and the ships (Arks) except for his father on a remote ship & getting on board Air Force One just to tell that President is not going to join them, making a huge speech at the end to get some people, who paid billions, to get into the ship as an act of charity.

Overall it's not worth to watch in theaters, for the techinical stuff that you need, just rent a video

Why should the weeding ring be worn on the fourth finger?

2008-02-21T19:35:00.000-08:00

This is interesting. Try it out! Why should the wedding ring be worn on the fourth finger? There is a beautiful and convincing explanation given by the Chinese..... Thumb represents your Parents Second (Index) finger represents your Siblings Middle finger represents your-Self Fourth (Ring) finger represents your Life Partner & the Last (Little) finger represents your children Firstly, open your palms (face to face), bend the middle fingers and hold them together - back to back Secondly, open and hold the remaining three fingers and the thumb - tip to tip (As shown in the figure below): Now, try to separate your thumbs (representing the parents)..., they will open, because your parents are not destined to live with you lifelong, and have to leave you sooner or later. Please join your thumbs as before and separate your Index fingers (representing siblings)...., they will also open, because your brothers and sisters will have their own families and will have to lead their own separate lives. Now join the Index fingers and separate your Little fingers (representing your children)...., they will open too, because the children also will get married and settle down on their own some day. Finally, join your Little fingers, and try to separate your Ring fingers (representing your spouse). You will be surprised to see that you just CANNOT....., because Husband & Wife have to remain together all their lives - through thick and thin!

అన్నయ్యలందరు చూడవలసిన చిత్రం "ANNA VARAM"

2007-06-18T01:11:00.000-07:00

ఈ చిత్రం లొ అన్న గా పవన్ కళ్యాణ్, చెల్లి గా సంధ్య నటన ఎక్సలెంట్. ఇద్దరు నిజంగా తోడబుట్టిన వాళ్ల లాగా నటించారు అనే కంటే జీవించారు అన్టే apt గా ఉంటుంది. ఈ చిత్రం లో Especially కొన్ని సీన్స్ noteworthy. వేణు మాదవ్ చనిపొయే సీన్, తెలంగాణ శకుంతల ఎడ్చే సీన్, పవన్ కళ్యాణ్ & సంధ్య మధ్య సీన్స్ లో డైరెక్టర్ భీమినేని శ్రీనివాసరావు ప్రతిభ తెలుస్తుంది. రమణ గొగుల సంగీతం ఈ చిత్రానికి హైలైట్. ఈ సినిమా లో వేణు మాదవ్ మొట్టమొదటి సారి ఎక్కడా శ్రుతి మించకుండా నటించాడు.ఈ సినిమా లో ఇంకొ చెప్పుకో తగ్గ విషయం ఎక్కడా vulgarity లేకపొవడం. ఈ మధ్య కాలం లో చాలా నీట్ గా తీసిన సీనిమా ఇదే. Even పవన్ కళ్యాణ్ కత్తి తో చంపే సీన్స్ లో కూడా ఎక్కడా direct గా పొడిచినట్టు చూపించరు. Too much of blood shed, item songs ఇవేవి లేకుండా కథకు తగ్గట్టుగా తీసారు. కుటుంబం అంతా కలసి చూడదగిన చిత్రం అన్నవరం, ముఖ్యంగా ప్రతి అన్న చూడవలసిన చిత్రం ఈ అన్నవరం.

మంచి హింది సినిమా - Khosla ka Ghosla

2007-06-14T19:50:00.000-07:00

ఈ మధ్య నేను చూసిన వాటిలో నాకు బాగా నచ్చిన హింది సినిమా " Khosla ka Ghosla". అనుపమ్ ఖేర్ ఎంత అద్బుతమైన నటుడొ చెప్పడానికి ఈ సినిమా చక్కని ఉదహరణ.ఈ సినిమా కథ ఇప్పటి పరిస్థులకు అద్దం పడుతుంది.ఓక తండ్రి అవేదనకు, పిల్లల బాధ్యతలకు, రీయల్ ఎస్టేట్ మొసాలకు ఈ సినిమా చక్కని సమాధానం చెపుతుంది. ఓక ప్లాటు కొనడానికి అనుపమ్ ఖేర్ పడే కష్టం, దానిని కాపాడుకొడానికి పడే మరిన్ని కష్టాలతొ సినిమా మంచి రసవత్తరంగా సాగుతుంది. సినిమాలొ చాలా సీన్స్ సహజత్వానికి దగ్గరగా ఉన్నాయ్. అందరి పాత్రలకు దర్శకుడు న్యాయం చేకుర్చాడు. సినిమా చూస్తున్నంత సేపు అస్సలు బొరే కొట్టదు.ఎవరి పాత్ర అనవసరంగా ఉందే అని అనిపించదు. దర్శకుడు చాలా శ్రద్దగా పని చేసిన సినిమా ఇది. అందరు తప్పక చూడాల్సిన చిత్రం. ఎంజాయ్ చేస్తారు, నాది గ్యారంటి.

Hapy Viewing.

ఇట్లు
మీ రాఘవ

iLayaraajaa

2007-06-12T22:01:00.000-07:00

ఇళయరాజా ఒక గొప్ప మ్యుజిక్ డైరెక్టర్.సాగర సంగమం, అభినందన, రుద్రవీణ, స్వర్ణకమలం, స్వాతిముత్యం ఇలా ఎన్నెన్నొ మ్యుజికల్ హిట్స్ ఇచ్చిన ఇళయరాజా గురించి ఎంత చెప్పినా తక్కువే. ఇళయరాజా ప్రయివేటు ఆల్బములు
How to Name it (1986) & Nothing but the Wind (1988), indian & western classical music కి best examples.

2007-06-12T21:08:00.000-07:00

నేను మొట్టమొదటి సారిగా రాస్తున్న బ్లాగు ఇది. ఇందులొ ముఖ్యంగా సినిమాల గురించి నా అభిప్రాయాలు తెలియచేస్తున్నాను.అది ఒక పాట గురించి కావచ్చు లేదా ఒక సినిమా గురించి కావచ్చు లేదా ఒక సినిమాకు సంభందించినా వ్యక్తి గురించి కావచ్చు వగైరా వగైరా.

This is a blog where i will put my views about movies from different languages

2007-06-12T21:02:00.000-07:00