Just another cinephile

  There is a feeling that washes over a person once the credits roll on Iruvar. The viewer finds that for almost the past three hours, the film has held their attention to an extent where nothing else has mattered. It is one of the most accurate descriptions of being 'mesmerized'—mesmerized like how Anandan was when he first saw Pushpavalli, mesmerized like those in the cinema halls when they first saw Anandan on their big screens, mesmerized in a way that only cinema can achieve. Mani Ratnam brings his decades’ worth of experience to tell this star-studded tale about the birth of a state and its political superpowers, intertwined with its most beloved artform. He takes this story, which has been inspired by an epic real-life tale, and puts the best filmmaking talent behind it to achieve a stunning display of what sight and sound can accomplish. Every moment that is etched in the history of Tamil Nadu has been presented here, and the heft isn’t lost on any one of them. Santosh ...

There is an opinion amongst the general public that comic book cinema has seen its glory days and is now tumbling down to an unfortunate end. It is a sentiment that finds its origin amongst the myriad of dull and uninspiring films that have recently seen the light of day claiming themselves to be based on popular comic books. These are the films that are structured similarly to and tell the same story as a countless amount of other films. It has become a corner of cinema that merely exists because it is usually a safe bet to rake in box office numbers. However, I believe that it is reductive to claim that superhero or comic book storytelling has reached saturation. There are various distinct and incredible stories that exist between the pages of comic books. Comic books are a visually exaggerated medium of storytelling, and insinuating that the medium is the cause of error is an objectively wrong statement to make. Written by James Gunn, a man who has excelled in this format of cinema,...

Max is Sudeep's much-awaited return to the big screens after about 3 years. It is also Kannada cinema's long-overdue return to a commercial star vehicle that doesn't disappoint fans and general audiences alike. There is a charm in the structure and presentation of Max itself, that serves as a reminder of why this style of filmmaking is popular in Sandalwood to begin with. This is the sort of film that audiences have fallen in love with for years. It gives them the required cinematic highs essential to escape into its world. Once "Max" has successfully gained the viewer's love and trust, it continues to give more such moments while also delivering an engaging experience. One of the major triumphs of Max is that it is made upon the realization that stringing together multiple "mass" sequences will not result in an ultimately satisfying product. All of the moments designed to have fans hooting and cheering are built upon a strong story that serves as th...

UI is not an easy film to describe. It is its own beast for most of the runtime. The film is a confident display of Upendra's skills at directing a metaphorical and multi layered script. It essentially tries to highlight the downfalls of world politics with a specific focus on Indian politics' unbreakable bond  with caste and religion. However, instead of directly dealing with the issue at hand with a basic level, Upendra's signature style takes the story into a realm 10 or more notches higher.  The universe that he creates is a desolate and concentrated display of mankind's exploitation of the world we live in. Set within this universe is this tale of political uprising. The tale is made interesting by the narrative decision taken to highlight how easy it is to manipulate the public into voting by using the aforementioned weapons. All of the aspects from this point are fantastic versions of a true reality that we see on a daily basis. It never tries to make itself into...

Courtroom dramas are a staple in cinema. Time and time again, viewers have expressed great interest in watching law play out like a game on the screen. However, the most popular courtroom dramas present the set of truths to the audience before they are manipulated to appease the law. Justine Triet’s “Anatomy of a fall” is a courtroom drama, which flips this cliché.  The most interesting aspect of the film lies in how it manages to mask the truth throughout the film. The event is placed right at the start and everything that the audience learns about what happened leading up to it is along with the court itself. The evidence is presented for the audience to make judgements along with the court. The trial is a rather sensational one, only if the murder is proved. Thus, the media and the court focuses on the absurd evidence that it is able to find as proof of motive. The rather clever title foreshadows the hare-brained investigation by the judicial system. A man has fallen from the to...

Kiran Rao’s impressive yet simplistic “Lapaataa Ladies” is an attempt to break down feminist ideas into its most basic principles. The film uses long standing bollywood cliches in an effective manner to convey its central ideas to the audience. These cliches are borrowed from the now overused “small-town film” playbook. This can vary from incompetent policemen, uneducated dwellers of the village, a misogynistic older generation and long shots of agricultural fields. The film never shies away from its familiarity and instead uses it to strengthen its messaging.  The film tells the story of two newlywed women who are accidentally interchanged. The interchange happens due to the “ghoonghat”, a tradition in the country which is used to conceal the identity of women. The interchanged brides are both given polar opposite characteristics. One woman has seen this mishap as an excuse to break free from the patriarchal norms that the society tries to coerce her into. The other woman begi...