[fundagenie]

Originally Posted by naveen.raju

Ezra

A good attempt (horror genre) from down South but cant match the sheer fear factor that Maya and Pizza 1 had delivered.

Ezra is loosely based on "The Possession". It did give couple of good scares but again, it was kinda expected and wont budge the horror fanatics . The BGM, actors were good and the climax was pretty good (similar to "one" particular Malayalam movie ). Mind you, the movie is pretty long and can drag a bit at times. They shouldn't have stretched it too long especially for an horror subject.

Rating - 2.75/5 (I always recommend horror movies to be watched in theaters but this didnt sent shivers down my spine even though the theater was with Atmos Audio. Have a pretty good sound system at home?, that would do).

+1 to that.

Watched Ezra with some level of expectation after reading this review and saw a 2.75 rating. But being a horror movie buff, I would not give it anything more than a 1.5.. maybe 1 would be more apt. Felt it was a souped up version of one of the best horror movie in Indian Cinema - Manichitrathazhu... A fairly well off socially active mumbai couple moves to cochin and one of them has all the characteristics Dr. Sunny found in Ganga .And this is totally mashed up with all the usual scare elements seen in various hollywood horror movies - Conjuring, Rosemarys baby etc.

The usual scare elements thrown in - ghost in mirror, ghost in wardrobe, a creepy dark and gloomy run down villa (more like a govt guesthouse) with antique furniture, surrounded by fog in the afternoon (like in ooty or kodai - though the house is located in the heart of cochin ), an attic for the ghost to run around, a maid who's only role is to keep giving scary looks and watches... (ok, dont want to give away one of the scare elements), rain and wind at the crucial horror scenarios, a namesake neighbour character to bring in a dog element, hebrew speaking ghost who spoke fluent malayalam when alive, a hot heroine who keeps flaunting her curves everytime before the ghost shows itself, blah blah blah blah blah....

Finally, when the movie got over, I was confused as to where did the ghost that was seen and heard in the house, actually go.

The only good part was there was a twist. Which I expected would turn out into a unexpected climax that gave my moneys worth. But alas it ended with that twist and nothing more.

FundaG

[pramodpk]

Originally Posted by fundagenie

+1 to that.

Watched Ezra with some level of expectation after reading this review and saw a 2.75 rating. But being a horror movie buff, I would not give it anything more than a 1.5.. maybe 1 would be more apt. Felt it was a souped up version of one of the best horror movie in Indian Cinema - Manichitrathazhu... A fairly well off socially active mumbai couple moves to cochin and one of them has all the characteristics Dr. Sunny found in Ganga .And this is totally mashed up with all the usual scare elements seen in various hollywood horror movies - Conjuring, Rosemarys baby etc.

The usual scare elements thrown in - ghost in mirror, ghost in wardrobe, a creepy dark and gloomy run down villa (more like a govt guesthouse) with antique furniture, surrounded by fog in the afternoon (like in ooty or kodai - though the house is located in the heart of cochin ), an attic for the ghost to run around, a maid who keeps giving scary looks and watches... (ok, dont want to give away one of the scare elements), rain and wind at the crucial horror scenarios, a namesake neighbour character to bring in a dog element, hebrew speaking ghost, a hot heroine who keeps flaunting her curves everytime before the ghost shows itself, blah blah blah blah blah....

Finally, when the movie got over, I was confused as to where did the ghost that was seen and heard in the initial half, actually go.

FundaG

Completely agree with you. In fact people sitting next to me were laughing during the so called "Horror" scenes. Completely over hyped movie.

[abhinav.s]

Originally Posted by naveenroy

Dhuruvangal Pathinaaru - 9/10

Watched the movie online. Very good movie and did not even realise the movie had reached the "Intermission". Tight script, good acting kept us hooked to the movie. The best part about the movie - once it is over, you realise there wasn't much to the story at all. But that is what good story telling is about! Great work by the director.

Watched this after reading your review. Totally agree with the 9/10 rating. Superb movie making skills depicted in the entire run time of 1 hour 44 mins only!! The plot twists are good and saying anything more will be giving away much of it in terms of the narration etc. But totally enjoyed watching the movie. Rahaman has done a stellar job and adapted very well to the role of Inspector Deepak. Fine performances by most of the cast.

[King_pin09]

Originally Posted by TorqueyTechie

Kirik Party : 4/5

I had been hearing very good reviews about this movie and since even my wife was pestering me to take her , booked tickets for this show and off we went. The actor even though relatively new, has built up quite a repertoire of movies and is known for his different movies. And this didn't disappoint as well. A very well entertaining movie all the way through with the main theme being college life having a right mix of comedy, emotion and fights.

All the actors have done their job right upto mark. Editing could have been a little tight and also second half could have been reduced by 20 mins.

P.S : Liked the modified contessa car in the movie. A very clean one IMO. Adding couple of pics taken from google. All rights of images to the respective owner/team.

Watched this one at PVR here in Mumbai. The lead actor Rakshit Shetty performs well and he is well supported by others such as Samyukta Hegde, Achyuth Kumar and Pramod shetty. The movie which its sweet blend of comedy and comic blunders made by agressive teenagers, makes us nostalgic.

Rated 4.5/5.

[naveen.raju]

Aby

A good movie let down by poor direction. The trailer looked promising but wasnt reflected in the movie. I felt that Vineeth's acting was a bit artificial but the kid (shown during his early days in the movie) acted pretty well. The second half starts off from a different place (will totally think it's some other movie. Felt the director wanted to finish the movie fast. It does feel that way).The first half was a drag and they squeezed in all the exciting bit into that final 1 hour. Overall, a good and potential movie spoiled by poor direction, screenplay, cinematography and music/BGM.

Rating - 2.5/5 (DVD watch. Wont recommend theater)

[raghu.t.k]

Angamaly diaries

Generally not a movie buff, but given that it was a long time, since we saw a film, decided to go for this. The last film we saw was Premam, and before that Amen. Checked the story line, and found it similar to many films, and then there was appreciation from Mohan Lal as well!! Apparently showing the life around Angamally.

Gosh it was a terrible mistake. While I am so much out of touch with the current generation cinemas these these guys goofed it up so much. Anything and everything, they had to show Pigs and piglets being butchered (glad they do not show the actual massacre but right upto lifting the iron bar and knife followed by the screams). The violence was totally "funny" and gross, be it the bar/street brawls, for the fist fights.

Spoilt my weekend. I found that tamil film Nayagan, had much more gross subjects, but the film never made you regret your decision!!

Rating - 0/5

[sukhoi30]

Angamaly Diaries (Malayalam)

Initially I planned to watch this movie with my family (including my 10 yrs old) ... but for some divine reason, they could not make it to the movie. So I watched it alone and I was totally glad that my family didn't watch. The movie is full of violent and gross scenes especially the butchering scenes. DO NOT take your young ones to this movie. The extreme close-up scenes of food and meat could make some people cringe.
Now, if I review this movie from a director's perspective, it is a well made movie with a different style of story telling. But as a spectator, I would avoid watching it in a theater for entertainment.
Good thing about this movie, almost all actors (including supporting actors, extras etc.) are new. All of them have performed really well and looking at the movie one cannot say it is their debut movie.
Story is not very compelling. It is an average revenge drama presented in a different package. Daily life of Angamaly town (for that matter any town in Kerala) is captured very well. I liked the music. It has lot of local folk song flavor in them especially the maplah (christian) songs. The entire movie showcases the life and culture of the Syrian-Catholic Christian community of Kerala.

Rating : 1/5

[rohitoasis]

Maanagaram

The moment when you go to the movies thinking why you are going to a movie with rather unknown actors and a new director when the screens next to you are running movies like Logan and Kong but 15 minutes into the movie get entwined in the tight screenplay of the movie and consider the ticket money well spent.

A fast paced movie where you blink and you miss an important link in the story. Decent acting by youngsters as well as seasoned veterans like Charlie.
The moment the movie gets intense, a small pocket of comic relief is introduced. Have to appreciate the effort by this inexperienced team.


Rating 4/5 at least. Typical target audience seems to be people in 20s and 30s and not everyone. 1 point taken away for that reason. Would recommend this movie to anyone in this age group.

[ventoman]

Originally Posted by rohitoasis

Maanagaram

The moment when you go to the movies thinking why you are going to a movie with rather unknown actors and a new director when the screens next to you are running movies like Logan and Kong but 15 minutes into the movie get entwined in the tight screenplay of the movie and consider the ticket money well spent.

A fast paced movie where you blink and you miss an important link in the story. Decent acting by youngsters as well as seasoned veterans like Charlie.
The moment the movie gets intense, a small pocket of comic relief is introduced. Have to appreciate the effort by this inexperienced team.


Rating 4/5 at least. Typical target audience seems to be people in 20s and 30s and not everyone. 1 point taken away for that reason. Would recommend this movie to anyone in this age group.

+ 1 to that.
Slick screenplay and well put together package. Didn't expect the movie to be this good! Charlie and Ramdoss (Muniskanth) deserve special praise for living the characters.

[deetjohn]

Originally Posted by sukhoi30

Angamaly Diaries (Malayalam)

Saw it today and I quite liked it. Casting and music is simply brilliant!

Yes, it is brutal, but that was kind of evident from the promotions.

[Rajeevraj]

Almara- Malayalam- Sunny Wayne: Did not think I will see a Sunny Wayne movie first day first show. The trailer looked interesting and since it was directed by Midhun Manuel who wrote the delightful Om Shanti Oshana.

Overall an average one time watch. Old as the hills story about a young couple and the troubles between them post marriage due to ego and interfering in laws. The unique thing is that core root cause of all the troubles is a big cupboard gifted by the girls family voiced by Salim Kumar.

Well acted with some good one liners and laugh aloud moments thanks to Aju Varghese and Saiju Kurup. But the humor is uneven and forced in a lot of places. Overall a decent watch on TV on a lazy holiday.

Rating:2/5

Angamaly Diaries: Knew from the reports and trailer and tag line that it was a 'Katta Local' film. Hence did not go with family. Since the expectation was well set, was able to appreciate the film. The fact that a major production house like 'Friday Film House' backed a film with not one known face is a good sign for the Malayalam film industry.

Fully based in Angamaly and its culture, traces the life of a group of youngsters as they fight through life. Although I appreciated the way the film was taken and the excellent performances, the heavy focus on drinking/drugs quotation stuff definitely made me uneasy.

In summary a film to be appreciated for the quality of the cinematic craft it showcased, as for the content, well...

Rating:2.5/5

[naveen.raju]

C/O Saira Banu

It's a typical single mom-son relationship sort of movie and how she handles the situation when it turns for the worse. But the way they have captured this is really good. All the actors (especially Manju and Amala) have done a great job. I really dont fancy Shayne's acting though. Amala was just perfect for this role and her dialogue delivery (both Malayalam and English) was great. A good comeback for her. The climax was the icing on the cake. Very well delivered with good BGM to match the situation.

Rating - 4/5 (Recommended watch)

[hamster]

+1 to Managaram.
The connecting dots in the movie are woven simply great. After a long time, the comedy track in a movie is very well embedded to the story line and also especially in a thriller subject.
Worth a watch every penny.

[Rajeevraj]

Take-Off- Malayalam- Parvathy, Fahad Fazil, Kunchako, Asif Ali

A fictional story woven around a real set of events that happened in 2014 where 40 odd Indian nurses working in the city of Tikrit in Iraq were held hostage when ISIS stormed the city. The details of the real events can be read at the following links

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/i...w/37845071.cms

http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/i.../1/370837.html

On how exactly the government managed to secure the release is not in public domain. But the rumors indicate the involvement of prominent gulf based Kerala Businessmen and the Indian Ambassador to Iraq along with the External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Kerala CM at that time Oomen Chandy.

Based on what is known and with some elements of fiction thrown in, director Mahesh Narayan has crafted an absolutely brilliant film. The story is told from the angle of one of the nurses-Sameera (played by Parvathy). The first half is spent in establishing the framework about her family and a set of other nurses who decide to go to Iraq as the pay is 4 times higher and hope that they can take care of the family liabilities.

The story kicks into high gear in the 2nd half with the ISIS capture of first Mosul- where Parvathy's husband Kunchako gets stuck and captured and then the seige of the hospital itself. With the humanitarian agencies like Red Cross unable to rescue the nurses, the Indian Ambassador (played by Fahad Fazil) takes it upon himself to formulate a plan and rescue the nurses.

The theme is a little similar to the hindi film 'Airlift' where Indians were rescued during the Gulf War.

Performances are absolutely stunning. Parvathy, who has already set her standards high with roles like Sarah in Bangalore Days, Kanchana in Moideen and Tessa in Charlie takes the bar higher with this performance. Kunchako Boban is effortless and Fahad-who comes in only in the 2nd half, lights the screen up with his performance.

The camera work and direction is top notch- Captures the landscape and the conflict brilliantly. At no time does any of it look artificial or made up. Great achievement considering the budget involved.

The film is subtitled and definitely worth a watch for all. Many of these rescue missions, we just read a story in the papers and the effort of what has gone behind it never comes out. Such films help us understand that perspective and effort.

Only downside I felt is that the first half was a little slow.

Rating:4/5

[TorqueyTechie]

Watched the kannada movie, Rajakumara yesterday. Went with lot of hope as some of the earlier movies of the lead actor, Puneeth Rajkumar were good. Also it was an ensemble cast and thought that that much talent would make the movie good. Boy was I in for a big disappointment! First half editing is so bad there is no connection between scenes. Most of the comedy scenes are forced as do the songs. Actor or Ananth Nag's calibre is wasted big time. I think the movie is not even for Puneeth's die hard fans.

I would rate it 2/5. Giving it a 2 just because of couple of good songs and the comedy in the first half

P.S : I forgot to mention that I had dozed off for ten-fifteen mins during the show and my wife had to poke me to wake up! Nice A/c along with good seats and a full stomach. Bad combo!