sharjah – Movies of the Soul

Vampire Owl :: Quite a lot of things happened this year, you know; with the Malayalam movies.

Vampire Bat :: Only a few months have passed, and so you can’t really say a lot!

Vampire Owl :: Well, Darwin completed his evolution and Mahesh had his vengeance. Now, Jacob wants his kingdom of heaven.

Vampire Bat :: Yes, Darwinte Parinamam and Maheshinte Prathikaram; now Jacobinte Swargarajyam – note the “NTE” sound in the middle of the title of every movie.

Vampire Owl :: I am sure that this one has worked so well too. I couldn’t get tickets for the movie at the multiplexes.

Vampire Bat :: Well, it is Vishu. Theatres were supposed to be full.

Vampire Owl :: Is that the same reason why we are here so early?

Vampire Bat :: Yes, you see the large number of people in the queue behind us.

Vampire Owl :: And I am glad that we parked our car early.

Vampire Bat :: This one should work for us too.

[Gets the tickets with cheese popcorn].

What is it about? :: Jacob (Renji Panicker) is a successful businessman who made Dubai his home after striving hard to reach his current position. With his wife Sherly (Lakshmy Ramakrishnan) and four children, Jerry (Nivin Pauly), Abin (Sreenath Bhasi), Ammu (Aima Sebastian) and Chris (Stacen), they go through some of the happiest times of their life. Jerry is in love with Chippy (Reba Monica John), a medical student, and Ammu leaves to study the same course. Abin spends his time with music. But as Jacob is cheated by one of his trusted people, he is left in a lot of trouble and also in dire need of money, disturbing the momentum of the family. With consistent threats from Murali Menon (Ashwin Kumar) and others who had invested in his venture, he decides to travel to Liberia to find bring a deal and come up with a solution to his present problem.

What is it actually about? :: The absence of his father required the rise of Jerry to the vacant position, and it is what the movie is really about. It is about Jerry trying to bring things back together with the help of his family of his brothers and his mother. With his father stuck in Liberia, he will find new ideas and will bring new plans to minimize and later get rid of the damage completely. With the help of the old friends of his father, Unni (T.G. Ravi) and Philip (Sai Kumar), and also the newly found people in his life, Yousuf (Vineeth Sreenivasan), he will rise to the occasion, and with the help of the situation and fate, shall go on to become the person whom he never thought he would be. But the question remains about the timing – with time running out so fast, will he really be able to do that when needed? Can he be the saviour for his family when it matters the most?

The defence of Jacobinte Swargarajyam :: Clean, and staying close to the realities of life, this movie makes a good use of its cast which has come up with some natural performances. The scenes which depict the relationship between the members of the family gives that special and yet beautiful feeling – it provides anyone who values family with that special reflection to life. The funny scenes are simple and from everyday life, but working very well. The emotional scenes are very much touching, but still kept in control. There is so much positivity in this movie even when facing lots of trouble, and the feel-good factor here is rather tremendous. There are also some very nice visuals; the songs are interesting, and “Ee Shishirakaalam” is the pick of them all. The messages left here are also beautiful, of working hard without any shortcuts, supporting one’s family and being there for the ones you love the most.

Claws of flaw :: Yes, undoubtedly, this movie could have been better; the scope was there, and such a wonderful cast was present. This emotional family story goes through a little bit too much of a predictable path too. We can guess a lot of things around here easily. A story at the Middle East and the tale of a family facing financial crisis – these are two things that can appeal to the Malayali audience so well, which is why a better story with a rather slower transformation of the protagonist would have done better for the movie. The film is also a little bit too much focused on money, and it is the capital, the profit and the money that drives too many things in this movie – well, it is still not the primary focus, but the fingers are often pointed towards that, even though not many people might see that. Well, capitalism was always supposed to be there, considering the setting.

Performers of the soul :: Nivin Pauly requirest a lot of appreciation here – for he surely knows how to become the hero, and otherwise stay there waiting for the opportunity; it has been the case with his character here. Renji Panicker takes the glory in the beginning stages, and Lakshmy Ramakrishnan dominates at times, and Nivin is there exactly as his character demands, and I consider that a wonderful thing here. After Action Hero Biju, he once again has a realistic portrayal of his character here, and it only gets better. Meanwhile, Aima Sebastian has a small but amazingly cute presence in this movie, and Reba Monica John leaves a mark even with her shorter presence – that could have been explored further. Renji Panicker does his job with ease, and Lakshmy Ramakrishnan has her character becoming one of the best strong mother/wife characters that we have seen for a long time. The other most notable person here is Sreenath Bhasi who is a lot likable.

How it finishes :: Do note that Vineeth Sreenivasan and Aju Varghese make notable cameos here, the former making a bigger impact in the story. The child artist Stacen also does a good job. This movie could have been stronger with its story, but the feeling that it provides is really good. It is something that is perfect for a family watch for the weekend, as it is a movie with faith, hope and values. It is a movie that reminds the viewers of their family and how much the blood keeps us together, binding us. The significance of the family is something that has been part of our movie industry for a long time, and this one becomes a welcome addition to the same. Vineeth Sreenivasan does four in a row, after Malarvadi Arts Club, Thattathin Marayathu and Thira. The Thira sequel won’t be here soon though, I guess.

Here is a song from the movie; you should love it 🙂

Release date: 8th April 2016
Running time: 145 minutes
Directed by: Vineeth Sreenivasan
Starring: Nivin Pauly, Reba Monica John, Renji Panicker, Aima Sebastian, Lakshmy Ramakrishnan, Sreenath Bhasi, Stacen, Sai Kumar, Ashwin Kumar, T. G. Ravi, Dinesh Prabhakar, Vineeth Sreenivasan (cameo), Aju Varghese (cameo)

@ Cemetery Watch
✠ The Vampire Bat.

Vampire Owl :: Do you know that there are three other Malayalam movies to watch as interesting choices are there?

Vampire Bat :: Yes, it is why we are standing here in the queue from the morning itself.

Vampire Owl :: Tough times, isn’t it? Malayalam movies haven’t been doing well enough since that big Premam and Ivide weekend.

Vampire Bat :: Yes, non-Malayalam movies are taking away all the glory. But this might be the weekend on which we fight back.

Vampire Owl :: But are you sure about this choice?

Vampire Bat :: Yes, even if this movie is not good enough, we will watch another movie after this and make sure that we leave for home as happy vampires.

Vampire Owl :: If the second movie is not goo too, then what will we do?

Vampire Bat :: We will watch another one. Actually there are four shows at the theatres here; 11:30, 2:30, 6:15, 9:15. We can always try four different movies today. If you are ready to go to a mall with multiplex, we can do even better.

Vampire Owl :: You are seriously trying to feed me brain damage in the form of too many movies on a day.

Vampire Bat :: I have come very close so far, haven’t I?

[Gets the tickets].

What is it about? :: After a few early minutes in Sri Lanka, the movie takes a flashback to Sharjah. Jeevan (Kunchako Boban), Salim (Biju Menon) and Kumar (Neeraj Madhav) are just three among the large number of Malayalis working in the UAE and are sharing a house. One day, as Jeevan driving his cab, he finds a girl in trouble and brings her home. The girl is Thamara (Parvathy Ratheesh), a Sri Lankan Tamil who has escaped after being trafficked from her home country. Even though she has almost killed someone while trying to escape, Jeevan is attracted to her, and decides not to let her go in spite of being aware of the consequences. They hope to arrange a fake passport and get her back to Sri Lanka, but things were only going to get further complicated.

The defence of Madhura Naranga :: There is an interesting mix of comedy, romance and drama in this one without having any overdose. The fun mostly rests with the middle part of the movie. The presence of a humane touch in the movie is interesting. The ending scenes are touching and performances are of good quality. The beauty of UAE and also Sri Lanka up-to an extent are nicely captured – I would have wished for more shots in the island country. It is also fair not to have an India-Pakistan love story here because it has been used to death in Bollywood and was also used before in Malayalam movie industry to not that much effect. There were a few claps in the end; it asserts that the ending was effective.

The claws of flaw :: This might not be exactly the kind of movie which most of the audience would be expecting. There is no full comedy movie for which our heroes here are specialized in. There are just too many songs too than needed, and there is no improvement in quality over that quantity. The basic plot could have been better developed if it had gone on among the migrant workers, and if the focus was more on the problems which they faced. Instead, they have taken the easy way out in introducing the girl. There is also no real cinematic beauty in the romance; it progresses okay, but it begins in a weak manner. May be some thrills could have been added here and there too; it is too predictable in the current form. The medium could have been better used to bring a message.

Performers of the soul :: Kunchako Boban once again plays a role which is not new to him, and his team with Biju Menon does show signs of former glory even as it is not completely there. It is not fair to expect something like Ordinary which had a full half of comedy or Seniors which was just a complete comedy movie. Biju Menon has some nice comic dialogues, and Neeraj Madhav has a few interesting ones even though not many. Parvathy Ratheesh is a good addition to the Malayalam movie industry. Even as she doesn’t have to speak even one Malayalam word in this movie, she is right there with the emotions and expressions. It will be nice to see her in roles with more variety. Suraj Venjaramoodu has a smaller, but funny character which he manages with ease. There is no struggle there.

How it finishes :: The movie which deviates from a usual Kunchako Boban-Biju Menon comedy entertainer has its biggest enemy as the rain. It has been heavy downpour throughout the day, and the audience presence was quite low. Even though they might feel strange about not getting exactly what they wanted, they can be satisfied with how the movie ends and how it manages to be emotionally strong with some fine performances, even from Parvathy Ratheesh who doesn’t really show the signs of a newcomer. The performance of this movie should depend on how the other flicks work. They could have sacrificed the overall clean stuff and the songs here for some twists and some extra comedy. They have said that this is based on a true story, but little liberties would have only made this one more engaging.

Theatre situation :: There are three other Malayalam movies challenging this one – Dileep’s Love 24X7 seems to have the crowd favourite star in a different role, and Acha Din will have Mammootty trying to work in a movie which has its own difference. KL.10 Pathu has Unni Mukundan in his own new style, and he also has a new face accompanying him as the leading actress just like the other movies. All four of these movies have female faces new to Malayalam movie industry, and even though the promotions have been less, the competition is going to be very high. Baahubali stays and so does Premam. It will be a big task to battle these two movies, and the continuing presence of Minions in the multiplexes will take a portion of the family audience with them and the new Salman Khan starrer also got the high capability to attract.

Release date: 17th July 2015
Running time: 144 minutes
Directed by: Sugeeth
Starring: Kunchacko Boban, Parvathy Ratheesh, Biju Menon, Neeraj Madhav, Aparna Nair, Suraj Venjaramoodu, Niyaz Becker, Saddique