BEST COMMENTSAND CARTOONS IN THE FORUM - Page 50

Drillu · 07-07-2007, 09:14 PM

Ella quoting virodhikalkkum ippo prasnam manassilayille??

alterlife · 07-10-2007, 08:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Drillyaar Alimaash

Ella quoting virodhikalkkum ippo prasnam manassilayille??

Good one Drilliyar. You took classic example with good humor sense.

Aravind Mohan Krishnan · 07-12-2007, 02:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GuessMe

"Hallo" - Don't miss this call (My Review)

"Hallo" is the call every Lal fan wanted to attend since the release of Udayananu Tharam in 2005. Not forgetting the fact that he had lots of memorable outings like Naran, Thanmathra, Vadakkumnathan, Keerthichakra etc.. during that era, but still the Mohanlal whom we saw in Priyadarshan's slapstick comedies in the late 80s to mid 90s was certainly missing. During this period his detractors rose to form, claiming Lal lost his old comic timing and will never return to that era. Well, "Hallo" will "disconnect" them forever.

Review

A racy first half, soaked in light hearted humour, followed by a mediocre second half with lots of suspense and lack of thrill - that's the best way to describe Hallo with a one-liner. The movie opens with lots of promise showing the ringtone craze of today's mobile user. Jagathy's "Hallelujah" and SI Ganesh Kumar's "Phone Edukkada" ringtones were received by the audience with claps and whistle.

And then the much awaited intro of Mohanlal. The very scene showed Lal didn't loose his comic timing but was simply put on hold for the ideal script to arrive. The man who once used to bring smiles to our faces merely by the movement of his facial muscles has announced his return with a bang. A drunken role is a safe bet when donned by Mohanlal. The latest example is Hallo. Remember we saw another drunken role from the same actor just 3 months back in Chotta Mumbai. But you won't get a monotonous feel one bit. What a treat of a first half it was.

But second half suffers a major course change. Suddenly from humour, you are invited to be part of a murder mystery involving the heroine's family. And in true Agatha Christie style, every member in the family becomes a suspect. This is where the director-duo fails. From the beginning itself, their intention was clear - make a comic entertainer. If only they could extend it to the 2nd half, with mystery coming up at regular intervals, this movie would have had the chance to become a real blockbuster. Instead the movie shifts to a suspense thriller angle with less and less lighter moments. There wasn't much of a drag, but the way the mystery was handled lacked perfection. And finally when the identity of the killer is revealed, you won't feel shocked or surprised as you were more or less expecting one of them to be the culprit. Also the director duo desperately tried to employ visual cheating to try and fool the audience. Visual Cheating has been perfectly executed in movies like Yavanika and Crime File. But here again the directors failed as the cheating only helps to develop more confusion than mystery. All in all a lack luster second half.

Cast performances are top notch. Mohanlal has once again set the benchmark for other "want-to-do-comedy" superstars. Comic timing is a gift of God, which you can't substitute by slang comedy or illiterate role humour. For a practical experience, watch Hallo. Lal looks way younger than his recent outings. Debutant Parvathy Milton looks like a good match for Mohanlal. Though shot in a glamorous fashion, their romance in the rain in the song "Mazhavillin" was well received by the audience. Those who expected a lot from Lal - Jagathy combo would be disappointed. Although few in number, their combo scenes really rocked. When I first read about villain actors Bheeman Raghu, Sphadikam George and Keerikkadan Jose (Mohan Raj) turning into a comic trio, I expected slapstick buffoonery which would ultimately end up boring. But to my surprise, this trio rocked, along with Lal. The fight between the old generation "lungi-cladded" goondas and the new generation "coat-and-tie" cladded goondas was a treat to watch.

Every review I read, there was a much talked about "Ashokan - Hotel" sequence and so while watching the movie I was thinking how this scene would turn out. Believe me, it is the old Lal back in full glory. Ashokan comes back to big screen after a long time and this scene is hilarious from start to finish. Suraj Venjaramoodu's comic polic role was tailor made for him to shine. His encounter with Lal at the station where he asks "Ninakku Prayapoorthiyayo?" and Lal's reply "Randu thavanayayi" really brought the whole house down. Compared to Salim Kumar's previous outings with Rafi-Mec, his role might be short in Hallo. But whatever he got, he did his part well.

Siddique, with his shaven head, had this menacing look which was most suited for the role. The only miscast was Madhu Warrier and luckily he didn't have much of a screen time.

Altogether, Hallo's first half alone was worth the ticket. Second half, though disappointing for a suspense freak like myself, should entertain the more commoner who hardly watches hollywood suspense thrillers.

Verdict :- Don't miss this call

Theater Stats for July 10th

Rocking, Rocking and Rocking. The show started at 2:30 PM, 15 mins before that the theater was housefull. By saying housefull, I mean it in every literal sense, bcoz even the 8 seats which are located right next to the screen at Sreekumar Theater was fully occupied. If there isn't going to be another "Classmates", this season belongs to Hallo.

Aravind Mohan Krishnan · 07-12-2007, 02:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sagar elyas jacky

From Raveendran's swan song in Vadakkumnathan to Johnson's signature comeback through Photographer, 2006 was an enriching experience for music aficionados.

A soothing Kay Niraye Venna Tharaam, romantic Hridayavum and melodious Maanathe Velli formed a fitting finale to the year that also produced memorable albums like Rasathanthram, Keerthichakra, Classmates and Karuthapakshikal.

Though the void left behind by Ravindran's demise remained, year 2006 ended with a lot of promise.

Cut to 2007 and those hopes and anticipation were strengthened upfront by Alex Paul and Vayalar Sharath who continued their dream run through Mayavi. Muttathe Mulle Chollu sung by maestro Yesudas had the right rhythm and the precise mood to make it an instant winner. Sneham Thenalla rendered by M.G Sreekumar and G.Venugopal was a Johnson-like melody on steroids! The song was as much appealing for its brisk-yet-controlled pace, as it was for the beauty of the lyrics.

However, subsequent albums dampened the spirits a bit. Director Ranjith, who has a keen ear for soulful melodies, took something of a left turn and avoided songs in his otherwise landmark film Kayyoppu. All he did was to include the S.D Burman classic hindi number Jalte Hain Jiske Liye, leaving us wondering whether the ghosts of Prajapathy (which too was musically impoverished) were still haunting him.

Crass songs in films like Inspector Garud, Changathipoocha, and The Speed Track did little to invigorate our spirits.
Deepak Dev was a shadow of his former self in The Speed Track and Udit Narayan, pronouncing Malayalam like Chinese, made a mess of the number Oru Kinnara Gaanam.
Can somebody spell good wisdom to our music directors and ask them to utilize domestic talent rather than importing singers alien to the language?
Pattum Paadi, sung by Yesudas was the only saving grace in the album.

The euphoria of 2006 had died down quite fast and all hope now rested on the festival releases lined up for Vishu.
Mohanlal's Anwar Rasheed directed youth-hotchpotch Chotta Mumbai marked the debut of composer Rahul Raj, who unfortunately did little more than to create a pandemonium of loud jarring noises.
The album also featured a remix version of Chettikulangara, a hit song from the 70s that like most other remixes failed to impress.
That said, few numbers did climb the charts riding on the current generation's tastes (or the lack of it).
Many upcoming composers have a penchant to imitate A.R Rahman and I'm afraid Rahul Raj is no different.

Ilayaraja has been a mainstay in Sathyan Anthikkad movies for the last several years constantly churning out melodious songs, and therefore, expectations were sky-high when they reunited yet again for Vinodayathra. The combo did not disappoint, with the romantic melody Mandaarapoo Mooli standing out for the richness in the tune and the versatility in singing. Sujatha's daughter Shwetha who sung it with Madhu Balakrishnan was a revelation. Her sweet voice imparted the right feeling to the number.
Manjari, who was the star of Ilayaraja's previous album Rasathanthram, could not maintain the standards in the solo Kayyetha Kombatho Kannethannam. She spoiled a good tune by singing it carelessly. The same song repeated in the voice of Yesudas made the shortcomings in Manjari's version glaringly obvious.

Alphonse had proved what an exceptional talent he is through the sheer variety in his compositions. Keranirakalaadum (Jalolsavam) and Ithile Nee (Manjupoloru Penkutty) were compositions that stood poles apart, yet both songs bore the stamp of his ability. The songs in Big B came as a pleasant surprise - they were hip, trendy and blended nicely with the techno savvy makeup of the film. Vidaparayukayano was a melody soaked with emotion and had a heavy and mysterious hangover to it. Muthumazha Konchal Pole stood out for the rocking rhythm and the chorus that reaches a crescendo. Oru Vakkum Mindathe was special for the ambience it created and the fantastic use of guitars in the orchestra-laden backdrop.

The Vishu season was indeed musically fulfilling.
More pleasant notes were in store as Vidyasagar returned after a brief hiatus through the Kamal film Goal. Vidyasagar has this uncanny knack of lifting a song to the heights of romanticism.
He did it again in the love duet Enthaninnennodonnum Chodikkalle. The song, arguably the best melody of 2007 so far, also had lyricist Vayalar Sharath and singer Shwetha at their expressive best.
Manam Thelinja Raavum was a trademark Vidyasagar melody interlaced with the right beats and rhythm making for a pleasant listening expereince. Another hit song to Vineeth Sreenivasan's credit.
The foot-tapping, hip hop number O Maria that became an instant chartbuster, showed how Vidyasagar is equally at ease composing fast numbers.

As the half year drew to a close, came more musical surprises. Debutant Biji Bal traversed a gamut of tunes in the Lal Jose film Arabikatha producing a bunch of feel-good songs.
Lal Jose, a product of the Kamal-school of film making, has traditionally paid serious attention to the music in his films.

Mohanlal who wasn't having the best of years musically, came up with his second film Hallo with Alex Paul and Vayalar Sharath teaming up for the umpteenth time. The duo didn't disappoint with Chella Thaamare being the pick of the lot. Chithra, who is only being heard rarely these days, sung the song with religious elan thereby lifting it to another level. The title song Hallo Hallo rendered by Vidhu Prathap and Shwetha was appealing, although it had shades of Bharathamuniyoru Kalam Varachu (Yavanika). Manjari, who was having a disappointing year, got some respite through the song Mazhavillin which she sung quite well along with Afsal.

In conclusion, the first half of 2007 gives us enough reason to ramble about the lack of stuff in Malayalam music. Novelty and innovation have made way for trends. At the same time, a handful of good songs remind us that there's still scope for optimism. So here we are listening with sharpened ears for music that transcends time.