Intro
A new chapter for Tamil movies? This new wave has already begun, but this film signifies a no compromise approach. Ultra real characters, who speak real dialogues, thrown into real life situations (although crazy ones). What happens when four carefree youths decide to play cricket, one day before one of them is to be married? It really is as simple and real as that.
Synopsis
Prem is set to marry the love of his life Dhana. His friends decide to get him to play cricket to ease his mind of the wedding tension. The game becomes very competitive and reaches a point where an important catch is dropped. It was not just the ball which went for a toss. Some parts of the middle (literal translation of the title) also go missing. I am keeping the synopsis a little cryptic for those who want the movie to speak for itself.
Good
This movie is a belter when it comes to keeping everything real. Even the actors were amateurs except for a few lead artists. The standing ovation the movie received at the end (at the Satyam movie screen) showed that the audience connected with this movie. The cricket scenes were so funny that some of friends could not stop laughing. It reminded them of, all that actually goes on in the cricket field. The humour creeps on you like a reptile. Slow and innocent looking at first, but deadly in the final third. The music complemented each scene brilliantly.
Bad
The editing and dialogues of this movie could have been better. I felt a little bored at times when I found the shots and dialogues repetitive. The director will argue that the nature of the script warrants this. But I will have to disagree. The movie could have been brought down to two hours from the two hour 30-40 mins. I felt some close shot in the movie were a little un-aesthetic. Since the movie was shot in digital I could see some colour and textural flaws as well.
Ugly
(I would like to clarify here as to what the 'Ugly' part of my reviews are. It is is not what is horribly wrong with the movie, but it is my reflections on what this movie means to my life, to this world and to various cultures notably Indian Tamil Mallu cultures. It is a deeper meaning to all this chaos that we usually encounter in a movie or anything for that matter in the media!)
Strangely the reviews for this movie were mixed. Tamil magazines gave this movie bad reviews, where as the english papers gave it great reviews. I think some audiences and the dominant media are not letting this new form of cinema grow that easily.
On a very deep note- this movie brings to light the need of our Tamil society to have be doing something productive. Like going to work and earning money. Playing cricket and watching television are for either the retired or the jobless youth.
On a very deep note- this movie brings to light the need of our Tamil society to have be doing something productive. Like going to work and earning money. Playing cricket and watching television are for either the retired or the jobless youth.
Marks
Watch only if you are willing to embrace something entirely new. No song and dance conventional tale this.
7/10
