Duet Movies/ Radha Mohan / Abhiyum Naanum

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Originally Posted by Prabhu Ram

Mush I am able take nowadays - signs of ageing - I kinda 'liked' Santosh Subramaniam - while many in my settu did not.

But Prakash Raj talking in that soft (I am such a nice guy) voice of his in the trailer kind of put me off.

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PR,
Yes, it's not like I'm averse to mush by principle, but there has to be something to sink one's teeth into. No one can accuse 'Santhosh Subramaniam' of being ambitious, but it did have a few things to talk about (much to my surprise).
On a different note, I must say, my curiosity with respect to the "who is Mani/Ramani?" question took shape when I saw 'veLLiththirai' which oddly had none of the "honey dripping spiel" that one has come to associate with Duet Movies.

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Originally Posted by equanimus

No one can accuse 'Santhosh Subramaniam' of being ambitious, but it did have a few things to talk about (much to my surprise).

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Exactly.

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Originally Posted by equanimus

On a different note, I must say, my curiosity with respect to the "who is Mani/Ramani?" question took shape when I saw 'veLLiththirai' which oddly had none of the "honey dripping spiel" that one has come to associate with Duet Movies.

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But even in veLLiththirai, the being good to Gopika who dumped him, being empathetic to Prakash Raj who stole his life work - all that seem to be more than just his characterization. A typical overflowing milk of human kindness.

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Originally Posted by equanimus

"who is Mani/Ramani?"

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:rotfl: That line is so funny every time i see/read it :lol:

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Originally Posted by Prabhu Ram

But even in veLLiththirai, the being good to Gopika who dumped him, being empathetic to Prakash Raj who stole his life work - all that seem to be more than just his characterization. A typical overflowing milk of human kindness.

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Is he not the one who leaves her first because he's not able to bear living under the overwhelming shadow of his wife? Even with Prakash Raj, it's euphemistic to say that he's empathetic to him. He's just convincing himself that working with Prakash Raj wouldn't be that disastrous an idea. Obviously, it's he who's trying to get a break. My point is not that 'veLLiththirai' isn't feel-good in any sense, but that there's no honey dripping here. (All these could have come directly from the Malayalam original, for all we know.)

All that said, I don't think the film (veLLiththirai) had enough (to use the same expression) to sink one's teeth into. That's the ironic part about my proposition. :)

equanimus: I haven't seen veLLithirai, but what you describe is present in the malayALam original.

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Originally Posted by equanimus

Is he not the one who leaves her first because he's not able to bear living under the overwhelming shadow of his wife?

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:oops: naan avvaLO azhagA paathirukkEn

I vaguely remember he 'descends' to ride a cab etc. She leaves him so he could be independent and chase his dreams etc. Her leaving comes as a blow to him. I was woken up for popcorn somewhere in the middle of all this

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Originally Posted by equanimus

Even with Prakash Raj, it's euphemistic to say that he's empathetic to him. He's just convincing himself that working with Prakash Raj wouldn't be that disastrous an idea.

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No this is even before working with him. When he struggling, feeling down and out he tells Gopika : "indha maadhiri oru nilamaila dhaan kaNnaiyyA thirudittAn-nu ninaikkiREn" (sic)

As one of my friends used to say: "Gandhi peththa piLLai maadhiriyE pesuriyE da dei"

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Originally Posted by Prabhu Ram

I was woken up for popcorn somewhere in the middle of all this

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:lol:

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Originally Posted by Prabhu Ram

I vaguely remember he 'descends' to ride a cab etc. She leaves him so he could be independent and chase his dreams etc. Her leaving comes as a blow to him. I was woken up for popcorn somewhere in the middle of all this

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Yes, that is what happens actually. I was quite confused myself, hence the question. (nAn idha vida azhagA pArththEn. Pirated version downloaded. I even skipped a few sequences the first time, I think.) But I think it's shown that he secludes himself enough from her with the decision to turn a cab driver. Anyway, it's more about the scar in the relationship than about who dumps who. What I'm saying is, yes, he's an idealist, but is far from being perfect. And it was actually refreshing to see someone portray an idealist in flesh and blood. The scene where he confesses that he's not able to live with her overwhelming presence in his life/career etc brings this out well.

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Originally Posted by Prabhu Ram

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Originally Posted by equanimus

Even with Prakash Raj, it's euphemistic to say that he's empathetic to him. He's just convincing himself that working with Prakash Raj wouldn't be that disastrous an idea.

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No this is even before working with him. When he struggling, feeling down and out he tells Gopika : "indha maadhiri oru nilamaila dhaan kaNnaiyyA thirudittAn-nu ninaikkiREn" (sic)

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Oh. Again I don't recall this scene properly. But he's also shown as someone who's so self-conscious as to say things like this -- to see things from KaNNaiyA's POV, etc. His friend Mustafa is someone from whom one can expect less self-conscious tirades against KaNNaiyA, not from Saravanan.

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Originally Posted by complicateur

equanimus: I haven't seen veLLithirai, but what you describe is present in the malayALam original.

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Complicateur,
Thanks. I thought so. Have to see that film. Heard many good things about it, especially about Sreenivasan's act.

have seen abhiyum naanum...

despite all the not so nice reviews, i was impressed with the movie...

it is a sweet movie, almost a parenting manual, you come back out of the theatre with lots of memories....

first half is almost perfect, second half drags a bit, but you can tolerate it..

one thing i must mention here is ... Radha mohan is a slick movie maker fully adept at handling emotions.... he has used his own daughter in few of the scenes (as baby trisha and in the subham card)... he probably made it with her in his mind.. :D