Enna Vilai Movie Review: When the Case Becomes Bigger than the Man

You know, I really, really dug the first half of Enna Vilai. I enjoyed how lived-in everything feels, how its characters seem to have lived long before the movie began and will continue to live long after it ends. We just happen to catch them during a particular time in their lives… especially Thavasi (Karunas),…

Mandaadi Movie Review: A Spectacle Effort that Forgets to Breathe

There are interesting things happening in Mandaadi. Like the grace with which the protagonist, Kaali (Soori), and his former girlfriend, Angel (Mahima Nambiar), have moved on with their lives. Like the wonderfully easy relationship Kaali is able to have with her husband, Singaram (Ravindra Vijay), with no hint of any masculine insecurity from either man….

Toxic Movie Review: What Happened to a Man for Him to Become This?

What might happen when a woman filmmaker gets the opportunity to make a film about violence and sex? What might happen when she gets access to all the familiar toys of the male-star vehicle: the punch dialogues, the star, the swagger, the slow-motion sequences, the sex, the violence… What might she bring to this cinema…

Bethlehem Kudumba Unit Movie Review: The Forgotten Plains of Beauty

While watching Bethlehem Kudumba Unit, I kept thinking about one of my favourite quotes about love, by Victor Hugo: “The first symptom of true love in a young man is timidity; in a young girl, it is boldness.” You see the timidity when Justin (Nivin Pauly, who seems perfect for these characters) is entertaining feelings…