Visaaranai – Gives and Takes away Hope
Visaaranai gives hope – The hope that there still are film-makers who can genuinely make you think a lot about films & how you actually are part of the stories some of them make.
Our Picks: 2015 Tamil Films
2015 kicked off with the Pongal releases & right in the middle of the mix was Shankar’s Vikram starrer I – arguably, the most expected film of the year that received mixed reviews but performed well at the box-office with Vikram receiving unanimous praise for the toils he had taken for the role! GV Prakash’s litmus test as an actor came in the form of Darling & the maverick SJ Suryah got back after a hiatus through his Isai that focused on a fictitous rivalry between Raja and Rahman.
Our Picks from Q4 2015 : Tamil Films
The final quarter of the year started off with the much-expected experimental Vijay film Puli which tamed timidly. A flurry of small releases over the next few weeks meant the weekend that saw the release of Naanum Rowdydhaan & 10 Endrathukulla a prominent one. While NRD got a positive verdict, the Vikram starrer failed to arouse the Box office. Then came the traditional Deepavali festival weekend which saw Kamal‘s Thoonga Vanam & Ajith‘s Vedalam release both catering to its own set of target audiences. Towards the end of the year, the films that created the buzz were small ones big in heart and ambition – 3 of which make it to our picks for the quarter. The year ended though with the jaded and uninventive Thanga Magan, an unpleasant reminder that Tamil Films have not completely come of age. Let’s look forward to a nice 2016.
To See or not to See : The Remake Dilemma
An excerpt from the book, The Art of Movies, by Nicolae Sfetcu states, “In film, a Remake is a newer version of a previously released film or a newer version of the source (play, novel, story, etc.) of a previously made film. The term “remake” is generally used in reference to a movie which uses an earlier movie as the main source material, rather than in reference to a second, later movie based on the same source.” (P.S. Without delving in to adaptations of novels and comics here, let’s just restrict this to remakes of movies alone).
Our Picks from Q3 2015 : Tamil Films
The third quarter of 2015 began with reassurance to the industry & the hero of Papanasam, the remake of the popular Malayalam film Drishyam, which turned out to be a wholesome treat. Close on its heels came SS Rajmouli's epic Baahubali (whose Tamil version was more of a remake than a mundane dub!). With the two films setting the quarter engine revving, there had to be a few big duds to bring the heat down and those came in the form of the drab trio of Maari, Vaalu & VSOP. Then came the surprise film of the year - Thani Oruvan - which helped Jayam Ravi wash away the sins of his other pedestrian outing & we can't thank Raja enough for getting us the ever-so-charming Arvind Swami back in an uber cool villainous avatar. The quarter ended on a sound note with critics lapping up the National Award winning Kuttram Kadithal & the fans giving their thumbs-up to the awkwardly titled adult comedy Trisha Illanaa Nayantara whose whopping collection would have surprised its hero GV Prakash himself!