கேளடி கண்மணி

The movie portrays a few individuals who are accomodative to keep the values intact and get on with their lives. The father - daughter relationship takes the front seat as the movie tries to dispel itself away from the initial glamorous start.

Plus Points:

SPB and the little Neena steal the limelight with impressive performances. Vasanth, in his directorial venture, was identified as a great prospect to the Tamil cinema with this film.

Minus Points:

The last half hour hinges on a loose script unfortunatley. At times, one would feel that there is a big X factor missing in the movie though it is compensated by the Arokiyaraj character to an extent - played by Janakraj.

Nevertheless, this is a film worth watching as it thrives more on the family values than the glamorous love portion.

Gladiator

A fiction based on some true characters and events, has indeed created a lasting impression with an energetic performance and storyline. Set in the Marcus Aurelius era, the movie captures the basic ingredients of the Roman empire - valor, loyalty, treachery, honor and faith in a commendable style.

Plus Points:

Russel Crowe who carries the movie all through with his solid performance sets the tone for the movie. The settings, music, the storyline all add to an entertaining gripping plot that carries the movie watcher into the Roman era. Everything is set to relive the glory and the faultless storyline make the film watch it more than once.

The Hours

The Pulitzer winner made into a movie has a unique way of storytelling. The three distinct lives interconnected by a subtle thread has been shot brilliantly by the director. The impressive performances by the three female leads move the film amidst the tragic events of the plot.

Plus Points:
1) Mrs.Dollaway and the characters: The extremely behaving Mrs.Dollaway and the cast of the characters set the tone for the movie across the ages.

2) Storyline: The storyline has been impressive and the hopping between the state of mind of the three ladies across the geographies and the time zones keep the audiences engrossed and the writer takes credit for scripting a plot which maintains its identity amidst the traditional monotonous jazzy films.

Minus Points:
1) The slowness of the movie and the adult contents of the story may not enthuse an active movie watcher.

The movie with an outlook of a 'serious' film, is worth watching for its ability to keep the audiences glued and guessing till the climactic end of its own. The true original script definitely deserves an ovation!

உன்னால் முடியும் தம்பி

This is the story of an individual who chooses to serve the weaker section of the society over being an apt successor to great classical music champion. Storyteller Balachander takes up the cause and moves the film in an interesting manner to bring up the climactic end to the duel.

Plus Points:

1) Balachander and his storyline: The storyline is the key to the success of the film and Balachander puts forth a lively and powerful script in a likeable fashion.

2) Kamal Hassan: Kamal carries the script in his shoulders matching the brilliance of the script with his lively performance

3) Ilayaraja’s music: Ilayaraja, as ever has scored the BGM music to naturally fit into the moods of the scenes and the characters.

Minus Points:

1) The first half brilliance of the movie is little matched with the second half. The scriptwriter has struggled to create the intensity and is a disappointing affair.

Definitely, the movie is worth watching for its strong characters and sound performances from the individuals.

சலங்கை ஒலி/Sagara Sangamam

Viswanath and Kamal Hassan combine has been a successful one in general. This movie is a testimonial to it and is based on a generally accepted hypothesis that great technicians fail to live with the general population, has its roots to Bharathanatyam and tied on a delicate love story.

Plus Points:

1) Original Storyline: The movie moves on a strong storyline delicately put forth with the mix of emotions and values. Viswanath has taken care of the importance of the characters and their roles in moving the story forward with thoughtful sequencing and subtle story telling.

2) Ilayaraja's Music: Ilayaraja has scored the music weighing the importance of classical music against a glamorous and commercial outlook of the movie in a balanced manner to give the audiences a taste of great classical music alongwith the melodious tunes.

Minus Points:

1) Loose Last hour: The movie takes a hit in the last hour with the script writer struggling to pen down a suitable ending to a brilliant first half.

It's the director's knack to produce a great movie which can reach out to the common man and appreciate its worth. Definitely, the movie has more positives than the negatives to be rated as one of the best movies in the decade.

அவன் இவன்

As before, Bala comes up with a performance that stands tall amidst the usual love stories in the industry and stands up to the fans expectations in his latest adventure - Avan Ivan. The movie distinguishes itself with its storyline, settings and flavor.

Plus Points:

1) Bala and his script: Truly, Bala has penned down a script which keeps the audiences engaged and interested in the movie for the 120+ minutes. The script captures the minute details and presents the broader picture in a likeable way which is missing in many of the recent films in the industry.

2) Yuvan's music: With limited songs, Yuvan could concentrate more on the BGM, which adds commendable strength to the movie.

3) Star cast: The star cast led by Vishal has been carefully chosen and the characters are portrayed in a real fashion. Bala scores marks in the front too.

Minus Points:

1) Shorter movie: The movie could have had another 20 minutes to its credit, especially in the later half. It had the scope but the director has decided to keep it short and simple.

Bala's ruthless depiction of the Kamudikottai Zamin life in its true form with a little commercial flavor to it, is a welcome addition to the list of best Tamil movies of the decade.

இருவர்

This is my choice for the best of Maniratnam's works till date. Complex in content and arguably derived from true events, this is a story of two great individuals - artists who befriended each other in their youth, corrupted by the lust for power leading to power struggle ending in opposite chairs. They had the same passion, same principles and took the same route to power. This is a realistic movie set in the 1950s, traverses through ages to culminate in the lates 80s when Anandan bids adieu to the world leaving no clear successor leading to another power struggle.

Plus Points:

1) Mohan Lal and Prakash Raj: The duo live up to the characters thrown at them and deliver a majestic performance fitting to the roles. Mohanlal, with his natural knack sometimes outwits the taskmater PrakshRaj, it must be admitted.

2) Maniratnam and Suhassini: The couple should be congratulated for their guts to film the story which is highly politically sensitive and in its true natural style with impressive dialogues. Mani has perfected a movie which needed the elements of emotions, seriousness, political sattire and glamour.

3) Rehman: As usual, Rehman stands out with a quiet and standing performance. The BGM looks really fitting and great.

A good recipe for the serious - realistic movie lovers.