Lagaan

One of the biggest blockbusters of Indian cinema, this movie has broken the traditional beliefs and commercial movie formula in many ways.

Plus Points:

1) Original Script: This is a movie that stands out from the rest in the fact that it rides on an original script by Ashutosh. The storyline is quite unusual for it became the first big star Indian movie based on a sport. The movie set in 1800's adds difference to the movie and makes it more interesting.

2) Aamir Khan: Aamir plays two different roles here - as a Producer and as a Hero. He deserves great applause for playing the role of a Producer. Since he has accepted this role after the script was rejected by major production companies, it shows his willingness to experiment. As an actor, he is the only known star in the movie and that makes it easy for a watcher to enjoy the storyline but tough for Aamir to carry the responsibilities and live upto the expectations of the people. But he has done it wonderfully as Bhuvan, a young, shrewd, talent fighting for his rights.

3) Rehman: Rehman's enchanting music to match the script and the background score are especially notable and he has improvised in many places.

4) Simplicity: The story is very straight forward and the success of the movie lies in delivering it very simply and with the required thrills of a cricket test match.

The movie was fortunate to have a release date just after the historic India Australia test series. Its big time commercial success was also boosted by the series for its similarity. Nevertheless, this is very good watch for any movie fan.

ஹே ராம்

Every time I watch a Kamal movie, I would wonder if that's his best performance. The thought was epitomised at watching this movie. I still regard this as his best performance till date for his choice of storyline, acting and direction. It's tough for an artist to base a story on any important national event. Kamal has toiled himself while letting his imagination grow and then comes the storyline which keeps us spellbound.

Plus Points:

1) Original Script: The film is charismatically resting on the strength of an original script. Characterisation of Saket Ram as a confused, angry, adamant personality has been fantastic. Connecting the various historic events, Kamal has invented minute details to base the story in the four major provinces of the nation. This has been one of the foremost achievements of Kamal as a scriptwriter.

2) Kamal Hassan: Being the scriptwriter, lead actor and director of the movie, he is the face of the movie. Shouldering various responsibilities, he has been firm on his targets. Hats off to you, Kamal!

Minus Points:

1) Picturisation: Thoughit has been good for most pat of the movie, some of the scenes come under parental guidance, especially the baby delivery scene and the violent and ruthless nature of the world has been expressed as such. Subtlety could have come to the fore.

Nevertheless, it's too good a movie for someone to miss out! Kamal's brilliance and the refreshing storyline are a treat to watch out for.

It's a wonderful Life

It takes a decade to create a movie which would go closer to a common man and encourage him to believe in ethics and make him feel better. This is one such movie and will remain an evergreen movie for decades to come. I've heard of a few Indian movies based out of this storyline and have become blockbusters.

Plus Points:

1) The Feel Good Factor: Whatever you do, however industrious you are, how hard you've struggled to care for your family and the society, finally at the end of the day, if you are told, "Great my son, you are finished. You get the hell out of here" without a teardrop from the eyes of those whom you've toiled for, the heart would stop for a moment searching for the Almighty in this world. An Angel would, at the moment peep into your eyes and tell you a story that's worth listening.

2) James Stewart: James gives a notable performance as George Bailey who lives a life for others. He dons the role of a man selfish in nature, but gives himself in when it comes to society's benefit. The performance couldn't have been better without James.

When you feel dejected and angered by someone, think of someone living in the corner of the world called George Bailey. You will feel Good.

வாரணம் ஆயிரம்

I found myself at a very odd position when most of the guys surrounding me gave a very negative review and I was the only one who found it to be a very good creation from Gautham. This is a movie very close to my heart and I could feel the movie and appreciate the course of the flow.

Plus Points:

1) Gautham's Original Inspiration: The movie looks to have original inspiration and it's the biggest strength of the movie. The scenes formulated reflect realism and focus on minute details. The natural and undisturbed flow adds beauty in many places as required.

2) Harris Jeyaraj: He seems to have great liking for Gautham's movies and this is a standout performance leading to the biggest blockbuster of the year.

3) Surya: Surya, captured as a growing man who evolves by learning from his mistakes and as a father who is a friendly figure to his son, strengthens a smooth flowing storyline at large. This movie will go down as one of his best performances in his book.

The movie is a good entertainer and Gautham's reliance on his unique way of love-story telling has more audiences to his name now. This is a big milestone in his career and should try to deliver movies with different themes from time to time.

Swades

This is one of the best Hindi movies I've watched in a long time and so it requires a special mention here. Ashutosh, following his blockbuster with Aamir, has teamed up with Shah Rukh and delivered a movie very emotional to his fellow countrymen.

Plus Points:

1) Simplicity and Sharpness: The movie carries with it a heavyweight theme of Braindrain and the message is very clear right from the word "Go" till the end. Simple in its formulation and delivery, every scene emphasises on theme and forces the audiences to take a look the society with a broad and open mind rather than getting carried away with their ambitions and daily comforts.

2) Subtlety: This is the biggest plus of the movie as we see the patience and industry of the director in revealing the some of the shameful and intolerable problems of the society.

3) Shah Rukh Khan: He carries the movie in his shoulders all the way and delivers a superb performance. He matches the role and charisma expected of Mohan and is unrelenting till the end.

4) Rehman: Rehman's music contributes heavily to the success of the movie. He holds the movie firmly with his enchanting melodies throughout the drama and hence deserves a great applause.

Minus Points:

1) Slowness: The movie is very slow and hence boredom can creep up half way through the story. The story relies heavily on Rehman's music and the sweet little romances between the Leads in those times and so for an impatient moviewatcher this can very well end up as an annoying movie all the way.

It's a good watch if one has the patience to listen to subtle voices of the director and it's worth being patient.

Avatar

The biggest blockbuster of all time carries an Indian name as its title. This is especially heartening to see when the Hindi movies of late, have submitted themselves to the fantasy of carrying English titles. James Cameron has delivered a performance to satisfy his audiences who he disappointed for more than a decade by not directing a feature film for them. The movie has characters more like in a video game on Xbox and so opens up a huge commercial potential on that front too.

Plus Points:

1) Screenplay: The storyline isn't great but the amazing screenplay keeps even the Indian audiences stick to their seats throughout the movie - the full 3 hours. Indian filmmakers can take lessons from James on how to move a story without songs and irritating comedy and still deliver a scintillating performance.

2) Animation: The movie is about 40% animation and it has been handled in a very controlled and beautiful manner.

One has to watch it more than once as it requires time to understand Pandora and the indigenous Navis. The 3D presentation of the movies makes one to watch it the third time just to get a feel of it and cherish the viewing experience.

The movie with a theme similar to the US attack on Iraq for oil - widely acclaimed by critics - sends a strong political message across the world. It will take more than a decade for someone to forget the Avatar experience. Hats off to you James!

Apur Sansar

An all time classic in Indian cinema, this movie corners out the amazing touches of the two prequels. Satyajit Ray proves himself as a legend in the Indian cinema with his charismatic, simple and straight way of story telling.

Plus Points:

1) Ray: The storyline is of a common man and relevant in today's world across all the geographies - Ambition, disappointments, halluncination, negligence and awakening are beautifully captured in this classic. Ray has picturised the acclaimed Bhusan's novel with a good screenplay and enchanting music.

2) Soumitro: One of his earliest films, but Soumitro, like in every other Ray movie gives an outstanding performance with his charming face. Be it with his friends, or wife, or in laws and finally his son, Soumitro enlivens the Apu character at ease.

This is a winner and can easily outsmart any other movie that has the ambitions of being classified as the best Indian movie for years to come.

Jurassic Park

Steven Spielberg and Micheal Crichton team up together to give life to the Jurassic dinosaurs and make them walk on this earth after billions of years. Spielberg has come out of the ordinary commercial cinema to showcase science in a technology filled drama.

Plus Points:

1) Fantastic storyline: The story revolves around a scientific discussion on the attempts of genetic re engineering and cloning for commercial purposes. The usual fight between a scientist and a businessman has been captured brilliantly and the commercialisation of the technology has been questioned in a shrewd and emphatic way.

2) Well adapted script: Normally it takes a lot to visualise and deliver a movie which matches the brilliance of a widely acclaimed novel. Spielberg and Crichton have done it at quite ease taking it closer to a common man who is not a science savvy. The thrilling moments of the movie keeping the viewer spellbound for more than 2 hours make the movie exciting and likable.

3) Graphics: Amazing graphics and animatronics lab work show the strength of Hollywood to be used in a controlled and brilliant manner

Minus Points:

1) Genre change: I am disappointed at the science portions being cornered. For example, in the original novel, the chaos theory is explained in a very beautiful manner but I understand that it has to take a beating here since the audiences are not exactly same between novel and the movie.

This is a must watch movie for all the cinema lovers. In effect, this will go down as one of the greatest and evergreen movies of the 90's.

எந்திரன்

After 3 years of long wait, Rajni and Shankar have delivered an entertainer in a very different way. This is Shankar's spectacular attempt to introduce a science laden robot to a common man.

Let me talk about the plus points of the movie:

1) Original script by Shankar: The storyline is tremendous and is very new to Indian cinema. Shankar has put in a lot of thoughts on the script and delivered his "Dream Project" commercially. His diligence to make it scientific as much as possible -- examples "Peripheral Troubleshooting", "Robosapiens" and "Memory 1 GB" kinda dialogues - is laudable. The plot is very constructive unlike the ones in his previous movies Anniyan and Indian. This reminds me of his other movies Gentleman and Mudhalvan where the Hero constructively perspires for the welfare of the society within his limits.

2) Superstar Rajnikant: Superstar at the age of 60, has done wonderfully well and deserves equal credit to the success along with Shankar. His patience and willingness to different roles proves his humbleness and hunger for success.

3) Animation: Amazing graphics work, which is again new to Indian cinema. We can realise the diligence of Shankar in taking Indian cinema to great heights.

Minus Points:

1) Loose script: It's the only but the biggest minus of the movie. Some of the unwanted scenes spoil the trail of the storyline. Train scene in the first half is one example. It could have been avoided giving those 15 minutes to the villain chitti. The villain chitti suffocates and makes the audiences boring. The second half could have been better with more delicious substance and plot.

Rajni has been a great superstar in Indian cinema and the movie is yet another evidence in a different way - No punch dialogues and unusual style and so is lovable for that. It's an overall nice experience to watch it once. Hope Shankar reassembles the chitti to take us through some amazing magic in a sequel.