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Reviews
Pachaikili Muthucharam (2007)
Eesh ... stay away
Going into this movie, I guess most people are attracted to the fact that this is a "Gautham Menon" film - the director who brought us "Minnale", "Kaakha Kaakha" and "Vettaiyadu Villayadu". Most people like the first two, and I find people divided on the last (personally, I found the movie very interesting until maybe the last 25-30 minutes, but still worth watching, if you ask me). The director certainly has laurels to attract an audience, but he comes up quite short here.
A quick synopsis of the story - Venkatesh (Sarath Kumar) is a happily married man, comfortable in his middle-class existence with wife and child, until his family life begins to go south when his son is diagnosed with juvenile diabetes. He can't connect with his wife the way he used to, and befriends Geeta (Jyothika) on his daily train commute. How his life comes crashing down afterward forms the rest of the story (I have to admit, it sounds much better on paper than it translates on screen).
I appreciate the fact that he cast Sarath Kumar, who typically doesn't play to a Gautham Menon audience, and he brings a lot to the role, but the screenplay leaves a lot to be desired, and I don't see this movie connecting with the Tamil audience (and apparently it didn't, it flopped quite badly from what I hear). What irks me the most, though, is that Gautham Menon thinks he can copy off Hollywood movies and pass it off as original and fresh in India. Wake up, Mr. Menon, everyone watches Hollywood movies - I didn't even have to see "Derailed" (starring Clive Owen and Jennifer Aniston) to know that this was a rip-off - I only watched the trailer! Even "Kaakha Kaakha" had its climax scene ripped off of the David Fincher directed "Seven" (which is quite good, recommend checking it out).
And what's with the score? The same tune is played over and over again throughout the movie, and its repetitive and annoying. Not to mention the fact that, again, one part of the score is ripped off of the Hollywood movie "Forrest Gump" - listen to that movie's theme music and you'll know what I mean. I find it hard to believe that we Tamilians cannot come up with some original ideas.
Aayitha Ezhuthu (2004)
Story with both a Heart and a Mind ...
I didn't really know what to think of "Ayutha Ezuthu" after the first time that I saw it - I suppose I was expecting a much different movie - but after revisiting it, I really have come to appreciate and enjoy it. Mani Ratnam is really a director who understands characters and shapes them with such heart and soul. The real stand-out actor here for me is Madhavan, who portrays Inba, the street thug who aspires to overcome his low-life existence but does it in all the wrong ways. The nuances of his character really show, and the 180-degree reversal from what we are used to seeing him as makes his performance all the more appealing. And Bharathi Raja ... wow! He comes off as a cunning and very humorous villain, and the exchanges between Surya and him are certainly something to see. I would least expect Mani Ratnam to put out something with a political message, but he does it with grace and style. A big thumbs up!