Producer : Ranjith
Director : Ranjith
Music : Bijibal
Cinematography : Manoj Pillai
Banner : Black Water Media Entertainment

Seeing ‘Kerala Café’ was like reading an anthology of short stories, ten short stories written by ten different writers. ‘Kerala Café’ presents a compilation of ten different short films directed by ten different directors. For those who like short stories, the film is a treat to watch; for the people of Kerala, this is a new kind of film-viewing experience. Of course anthology movies from Bollywood, like ‘Dus Kahaniyan’, ‘Darna Zaroori Hai’ etc have come to theatres here and our own Adoor Gopalakrishnan has given us anthologies of short films in ‘Naalu Pennungal’ and ‘Oru Pennum Randaanum’ (and the IFFK has had anthology films from different countries being showcased), but these films have all had limited viewing in Kerala. This is the first time an anthology kind of movie is being attempted as part of mainstream film making in Malayalam, with popular stars being in the cast.

‘Kerala Café’ begins and ends in Kerala Café, which functions in a railway station. It is from here that we move on to the first story, and it’s here that it all ends, thus weaving a connection of sorts between the ten shorties. ‘Kerala Café’ comprises of the following ten short-films:

Nostalgia: Directed by Padmakumar, ‘Nostalgia’ has Dileep, Navya Nair, Babu Namboothiri, Sreelatha and Sudheesh in key roles. This is about Johnny (Dileep), who works in the Gulf and who loves to wallow in nostalgic memories about his homeland. But when he reached homeland with his wife (Navya) and daughters, he is a totally different man, behaving contrary to what his words have been suggesting.

Island Express: Directed by Shankar Ramakrishnan, ‘Island Express’ has Prithviraj, Jayasurya, Sukumari, Rahman etc in key roles and tells about these people traveling from different places to one common point. The film is all about life and death- death giving a new meaning to life itself and life going on despite death taking away near and dear ones.

Lalitham Hiranmayam: Directed by Shaji Kailas and with Suresh Gopi and Jyothirmayi in key roles, the film is all about the web of complex human relationships focusing on a man and two women in his life.

Mrithyunjayam: ‘Mrithyunjayam’, directed by Uday Ananthan, is about a young media guy (Fahad Fazil aka Shanu) who ventures to unearth the mysteries surrounding an old, desolate house that’s ominous and from where no one has come back alive. Thilakan and Rima Kallingal too play key roles.

Happy Journey: Directed by Anjali Menon, ‘Happy Journey’ is about J.K (Jagathy Sreekumar) and his meeting a mysterious young girl (Nitya Menon) in a bus-journey.

Aviraamam: Directed by B.Unnikrishnan, ‘Aviraamam’ has Siddique and Shwetha Menon in key roles and tells the story of Ravi (Siddique) and his wife Devi (Shwetha). Ravi, who runs his own IT business, is in a hurry to send off his wife and kids to his wife’s place. He has got some plans to carry out once they are gone.

Off Season: Set against the famous Kovalam beach and directed by Shyamaprasad, ‘Off Season’ tells about the friendship developed between a tourist guide (Suraaj Venjaramoodu) and a Portuguese couple.

Bridge: Directed by Anwar Rasheed, ‘Bridge’ has Shanta Devi, Salim Kumar and Kalpana in key roles and tells about the complexities of human relationships and the plight of the aged and the unwanted.

Makal: Directed by Revathy, ‘Makal’ tells the story of what happens when the young daughter of a poor Tamil couple is adopted by a rich couple with no children. It’s a story of our times.

Puramkaazhchakal: Directed by Lal Jose and with Sreenivasan, Mammootty and Manikantan in key roles, ‘Puramkaazhchakal’ is all about a bus journey and what happens when a rather unfriendly guy (Mammootty), who tends to quarrel with almost everyone clambers into the bus.

These ten stories have a culmination at the Kerala Café, an ending that speaks of life going on and on despite all odds and also about those who are destined to be left behind with no one to care for them.

A main highlight of ‘Kerala Café’ is that the film tells stories of our times. The numbness that has crept into our relationships as we go on with the rat race for money and material pleasures, the way the recession has affected lives, the warmth of human relationships and friendship, the shams, hypocrisies and betrayals surrounding relationships, the understanding that we develop with fellow human beings and with those whom we love and also with those whom we meet maybe once in a lifetime- all these and much more get discussed in the movie, or rather the compilation of short films that stands apart from what we get to watch in the name of cinema.

Of course, just as in any anthology, not all stories are equally good. ‘Bridge’, ‘Puramkaazhchakal’, ‘Island Express’, ‘Lalitham Hiranmayam’ and ‘Makal’ stand out as the best. ‘Aviraamam’ too is good. ‘Mrithyunjayam’ may not be liked much, but still, as said earlier, it’s an anthology and hence it’s OK for an anthology.

Performances

The directors have managed to get their key players give the best of performances. There is no point in mentioning names specifically as almost everyone has done his or her job convincingly.

Technical aspects

Coming to the technical aspects, it’s all top-notch. Of course the respective directors take the credits for bringing in the best of technicians for their short-films, but Ranjith too has to be given the credit for ensuring that the over-all quality of ‘Kerala Café’ is maintained on the technical side.

Music

Music plays an important role in the film. The background score has been worked out well.

Script

The script writers, ranging from B.Unnikrishnan to Joshua Newtonn to Didi Damodaran have all done a good work of their respective scripts, paying attention to all details and taking care that the essence of the stories are all retained.

Direction

The ten directors and Ranjith too have to be appreciated for having come up with such a different and marvelous kind of film. Hope ‘Kerala Café’ contributes its share towards changing the face of Malayalam Cinema.

Overall verdict- Short stories on celluloid; excellent.

Rating: 4/5

Write your own Kerala Cafe review now.Click Here >>>>
Kerala Cafe More Details and Photos . Click Here >>>

Cast : Mohanlal,Santhanu Bhagyaraj,Nitya Menon,Mamta Mohandas
Banner : Creative Team Productions
Director : S.L. Jayasurya
Producer : K. K. Narayanan
Music Director : Ouseppachan
Lyricist : Subhash and Saseendra Varma

Someone told me, after seeing ‘Angel John’, that the problem was with the story, the concept of the angel coming to help the young chap. But that seemed no problem at all for me. There was nothing wrong with the story, the concept. But it was the scripting, the direction, the over-all treatment and the packaging that has gone all wrong, eventually making ‘Angel John’ a mess of a movie.

The plot of ‘Angel John’ is simple. A spoilt youngster Maradonna (Shanthanu Bhagyaraj), who never pays heeds to the words of his father Joseph (Laloo Aalex) and whose mother Mary (Ambika) pampers him like anything, creates all kinds of troubles for his loving parents. And then one day, when things cross all reasonable limits and Joseph ends up in the hospital following a minor heart attack, all because of Maradonna, Mary gets irked and asks him to get lost. Maradonna gets drunk and climbs on to a lighthouse, all decided to end his life. As he gets ready to take plunge to death, there appears an angel, who introduces himself as Angel John (Mohanlal), who not only saves the young chap from committing suicide, but gets ready to give him two choices. He tells Maradonna that he is destined to live a normal life till the age of 66, with all the fortunes and woes that are part of human life. But at the same time, he is ready to give him a life of happiness alone, sans all woes, but he would be able to live only one-third of what is destined for him. So, if he chooses the second option, he will have to bid adieu to the world at the age of 22. Maradonna chooses the second option and wants to live a life of joys and blessings till the age of 22. So, the angel, Angel John, stays with Maradonna, all set to grant his wishes. (Hey, does that remind you of Dr. Faustus and Mephistopheles?). What follows forms the rest of the plot.

Till half-time ‘Angel John’ goes on, like a mediocre flick that can be tolerated; and then, just before interval, as the angel comes in, things start getting out of control. It all seems ridiculous and rather poorly executed. Even ardent fans, who give out a loud applause as the superstar makes his entry, tend to stand up and boo loudly the very next minute. And post-interval, it all turns into a dull affair, with people even getting impatient and some even on the verge of murmurs and yawns. The climax, which is treated shoddily, kills it all.

Performances

Shanthanu Bhagyaraj, who makes his debut in Malayalam playing Maradonna, is just about OK with the role and doesn’t do anything spectacular. Mohanlal seems to be doing the angel part in a rather detached and disinterested manner, for there seems to be something rather cold, rather uncomfortable about his performance. The others in the cast- Laloo Aalex, Ambika, Jagathy Sreekumar, Vijayaraghavan etc are all just so so. Nithya Menon impresses us as Sophie, the girl next door to Maradonna whose heart is full of love for him.

Technical aspects

Nothing in fact is there to mention about the technical aspects of ‘Angel John’. Of course the subject, if handled well, had enough scope for all kinds of technical brilliance, including graphic work, which however hasn’t been made use of. The talent of Ajayan Vincent, the cinematographer who gave us dazzling frames in ‘Bhramaram’, seems all wasted here in a ‘neither here neither there’ kind of film.

Music

The background score by Ouseppachan is not bad, but the songs are very much unimpressive.

Script

It’s the script and the dialogues that play the villain in ‘Angel John’. The scenes are conceived in the least convincing of manners. The problem is that even kids won’t like to suffer such a badly written movie these days.

Direction

S.L.Puram Jayasurya, the son of noted theatre-personality and scenarist, the late S.L.Puram Sadanandan, had made a rather impressive debut with ‘The Speed Track’. The film was rather well-made and that justified expectations about ‘Angel John’. But it seems Jayasurya had got carried away with the presence of a super-star and presumed that things would be OK and in place with Mohanlal playing the angel. He could have made it into an enjoyable movie if he had done it all in a better manner. Of course the film has messages to deliver, but the sad part of it all is that there are not many takers for the messages, as the poor turn-out at the box office at all centres indicate. The director has to take the blame, since the movie becomes rather insufferable and the messages thus remain undelivered. Poor show, Jayasurya. And better luck next time!

Overall verdict- Poor scripting and inept direction kills the fun.

Rating: 2/5

Write your own review now.Click Here >>>>

See Angel John Photo Gallery >>>>>
See Angel John Trailers >>>>

Doing full justice to all the hype, ‘Pazhassi Raja’ turns out to be a well-made film, one that satisfies all those who had been waiting to get something from the team that had earlier come together twenty years ago to deliver ‘Oru Vadakkan Veeragatha’. A film of real epic proportions, ‘Pazhassi Raja’ is a real brilliant work, one that would appeal to average film-goers as well as to critics.

‘Pazhassi Raja’, which presents on screen the war that Pazhassi Raja of Thalassery in Kerala fought with the British about half a century before the Sepoy Mutiny, begins from where the British government decides to levy heavy taxes on local rulers and begins seizure and annexation related procedures. Pazhassi Raja, his queen Kaitheri Manickam, his commander Edachena Kunkan and his lieutenant Kaitheri Ambu are forced to flee and take refuge elsewhere. And then, with the help of the tribal warriors, led by Thalackal Chanthu and Neeli, the begin a war against the British, who of course has the support of some traitors too, including Pazhayamveedan Chanthu, who had in fact got trained in martial arts under Pazhassi Raja. It’s this and the consequent happenings that the film endeavours to trace, in a very spectacular manner.

Hariharan, MT Vasudevan Nair and Mammootty coming together after twenty long years has of course been big news for Malayalam Cinema. Those who had liked ‘Oru Vadakkan Veeragatha’, one of the best movies ever made in Malayalam, were awaiting the film with all eagerness, of course doubting at the same time whether the film viewers of today, who were not so particular or fascinated about the MT factor (MT no doubt is the best scenarist that Malayalam Cinema has ever had and attracted youngsters too to the box office at one time. But times and preferences have changed and hence the doubt). But it’s heartening to see large crowds thronging to see ‘Pazhassi Raja’ and all shows going house-full, everywhere. Of course you may tend to say that it’s more due to the hype surrounding the movie and the fact that it’s also a multi-starrer of sorts. Maybe yes, but it’s indeed heartening to see that the film has got a real great opening. Hope it does get to revive the costs incurred in the making of the movie, a budget never heard before in Malayalam Cinema. And hope the film does well in other parts of India too, because it’s going to be released in other languages too.

Performances

A young chap was heard saying, outside a theatre showing ‘Pazhassi Raja’, “No one else can do this role”. A very precise observation indeed, though not coming from an ‘erudite’ critic. The character of Pazhassi Raja seems to have been made for Mammootty and Mammootty alone. He fits into the role with all ease and looks handsome and majestic as the Raja. He does full justice to the role. Anyway, on the down side, it has to be mentioned that the character of Pazhassi Raja has been done in such a manner that in the first half Mammootty seems to be playing it down to a great extent. In fact it could even be said that the scenarist has not cared to make the characters, including that of Pazhassi Raja, multidimensional and hence there are scenes where Mammootty gets to do or perform nothing. He even seems to be a rather mute spectator to the proceedings and then takes over in the latter half of the film only. Thus Mammootty doesn’t get to perform or emote much in the first half, but does that brilliantly towards the end of the movie. Sharath Kumar as Edachena Kunkan is simply mesmerizing. You may even tend to see this as his career best. He has done a great job of the role and has proved that he is much more than a star, a real good actor indeed. Padmapriya has done a great work of the character of Neeli and she needs to be appreciated for the pains she had taken for the role. Manoj.K.Jayan as Thalackal Chanthu is equally good. Suresh Krishna impresses as Kaitheri Ambu while Suman is good as Pazhayamveedan Chanthu. Kaniha as Kaitheri Manickam looks good and fits into the character perfectly, though she doesn’t have much to do, performance-wise. Thilakan, who appears in a couple of scenes, is his very usual, impressive self. Jagathy Sreekumar’s performance is in his usual style and doesn’t stand out as did his character and performance in the Hariharan- M.T film ‘Parinayam’. The others are all OK.

Technical aspects

Cinematography for ‘Pazhassi Raja’ is excellent, simply splendid. The frames are all composed brilliantly. Editing and art-direction are among the other highlights. Of course sound recording by Resul Pookutty is good and syncs well with the whole of the movie. But we often tend to wonder if we would have taken note of his work or for that matter sound-recording in any movie, hadn’t Resul bagged the Oscar!

Music

The music scored by Illayaraja may not seem outstanding, but is good nevertheless. But it could have been bettered, a lot. Of the songs, the patriotic song rendered by Yesudas, beginning “Aadhiyushassandhya…” has come out really well and has a patriotic fervour to it. The other song, sung by Chithra, beginning ‘Kunnaththe…” is equally good and has been filmed well.

Script

Jnanpith recipient writer M.T.Vasudevan Nair, who has given us so many brilliant scripts as well as first rate films, has no doubt done an enormous amount of research for the film and has done a good work of the script. He has taken special care of the characterization aspect too. It’s to be noted that he had taken care not to make it all romantic and had made the treatment thoroughly realistic, as the subject of course demands. At the same time, it seems he had forgotten that people are often many personalities rolled into one and that characters should be multi-dimensional or multi-faceted, something which is lacking as far as the characters in ‘Pazhassi Raja’ are concerned. Let’s not forget the scene where we come to adore Aromal Chekavar, in ‘Oru Vadakkan Veeragatha’, for criticizing those who had stood up as a mark of respect on seeing him and at the same time hadn’t cared to respect his father. That makes the character stand out. It’s that streak that’s not to be seen in ‘Pazhassi Raja’. There isn’t the kind of dialogues in ‘Pazhassi Raja’ that you still like to remember about ‘Oru Vadakkan Veeragatha’ or most MT films. Anyway for die-hard admirers of MT scripts, there may be a word of caution to put across. This of course may not be his best; and hence don’t try to compare ‘Pazhassi Raja’ with any of MT’s earlier ventures. See it for what it is; it is a good work from MT indeed.

Direction

Director Hariharan, who has always taken special care to make the best out of MT’s scripts, has done a good job here too. And he needs to be appreciated for having been in total control and taking good care of the characters. Hats off to the director for having done a really brilliant movie.

As a postscript, let me add this. Well, if you stop and wonder, after seeing the movie as to whose movie it was, you will perhaps be surprised. It’s definitely not MT’s, in the usual sense, because every film scripted by MT has some trademark qualities that make it stand out as an MT film on the whole. The script scores the most and the film remains etched on our memory as an MT film. But here, with ‘Pazhassi Raja’, this is not the case. MT has done a brilliant job, but let us better not call it an MT film. It’s definitely not a Hariharan movie too. And neither is it Mammootty’s. It’s everyone’s movie. It belongs to all those who have come together to make it and becomes much more than an MT film or a Hariharan film or a Mammootty film.

Overall verdict- Excellent. Worth the wait.

Rating: 4/5

Write your own review now.Click Here>>>>

Mammootty speaks on ‘Pazhassi Raja’ – Exclusive Interview >>>