Ranam

I heard people say that this wasn't good so I watched it. And I found it great. It is a good film and you should watch it if you are an action fan. Performances by all actors was great. Prithviraj and Isha Talwar have a good chemistry and both have done their roles very nicely, especially in the emotional scenes. Prithviraj has done great in both action and emotional scenes. Isha has also done very good, I don't know why critics are attacking her performance (maybe the age factor that they are not able to imagine her as mother of a child or what? If so, it is their issue). Nandu and Rahman have done very well. Mathew Arun has done a good job but Celine Joseph falters at places. Ashwin Kumar has done fine. In the scenes with Isha, Shivajith Padmanabhan (Rajan, Seema's husband) falters at a few places and fails to put the force in his dialogues, but Isha's reactions make up for it. Giju John has done a commendable job as the no-nonsense cop and good friend as well. Action and script is great. The only factor that caused the film to not do great at the box office is the hype surrounding it. People put too many expectations in the film, and despite all the actors and crew putting their best, they could not fulfill the wishes of the audience. They felt that Prithviraj had not put enough effort. Half the people think Isha is a miscast age-wise (actors play roles double their age, so as far as performance is good, it shouldn't matter what your age is.)

Verdict: Must watch, but do not take a preconceived notion on what you will see.

Really a good movie to watch Nothing extra ordinary,an old story converted into a good script and excellent direction,great camera work... Really a good experience The movie really gives the mood Still not a super film But a good movie to watch. Hatsoff the team for a good work

'Ranam' is a technically sound film. Jigme Tenzing captures the ugly, dreary side of the 'American dream' pretty well. The music and background score by Jakes Bejoy is splendid (especially the title track and the 'Ayudhameduda' bits). Frankly, the first half of the film builds up well (with a few nods to Nicolas Winding Refn's 'Drive' - a movie I honestly did not fancy but apparently, the world loved it. The characters of Adhi (Prithvi), Damodar (Rahman), Bhaskaran (Nandu), and Seema (Isha Talwar) are slowly yet steadily developed. The interval block sets us up for a thrilling second half.

But the film goes downhill from there. Scenes appear contrived and rushed. Even the love-track between Adhi and Seema doesn't come across as too convincing. The 'Damodar' character is said to be a vicious gangster but the intensity is barely felt. Prithvi can pull off characters such as Adhi with ease, as this is his forte - a brooding, straight-faced hunk, with little to zero sense of humour. Nandu, as expected, manages to keep his struggling NRI character grounded and believable.

A gangster-drama cannot always stick to logic but the manner in which the cops take so long to come to conclusions about the death of a particular character is appalling. In fact, the cops do not really have a say in proceedings at all, other than making them look more sophisticated to the audience. There's a party drug at play, there's money-laundering, there's betrayal, and there's a 'master-plan' - it's precisely these gangster-movie elements that do not seem compellingly incorporated.

A few characters also needed better writing. Adhi's backstory is said in flashback vignettes, but we need more than that to connect to his inner struggles. Seema too could have had more emphasis in the screenplay. It is almost as if Nirmal started off his script with an action-heavy crime thriller in mind and midway, decided to turn it to a more character-driven drama. Hence, neither genre particularly came full circle.

Perhaps, it could also be Prithvi's recent choice of moping characters that act as a deterrent from enjoying an experiment like 'Ranam' to the fullest. It is a well-made, almost well-written film that terribly lacks good direction.

Ranam is an intriguing tale of 'that vital man in the gang' who wants to leave his gang forever for a new life .The crime drama directed by the newbie Nirmal Sahdev has more than enough to hook the audience on it ,eventhough at some places we can feel a tad bit lag and cliche ---------- Its basically the tale of a person who wants to get rid of his current life as a gangster/drug peddler . Prithviraj as Aadhi ,the vital man of the gang,as usual does a brilliant job in his acting, the attitude and in his well nuanced dialogue delivery. Speaking about the villian,Rahaman as Damodar Ratnam, the head of the gang, also puts up a good act on par with the hero .Other actors also puts up good convincing acts except Isha Talwar which at some points falls flat. ----------- The strong points of the movie are its brilliant cinematography(the lighting is perfect) along with the music that hits the bullseye(Jakes Bejoy is going to stay here and compose a lot of music in the near future...!).These two combined with the editing(which is also excellent) makes this movie standout from all the gangstermovies that we have seen in Malayalam industry and is seemingly comparable with dark urban mafia dramas of the West..! --------------- The only weak point seem to be the (a little bit) cliched story line of gangster rivarly..! ------------- And also as a rule of thumb for me.. if a movie portrays original action scenes without the usual dishkoomm..!..it is highly watchable..!! ------------- Ranam should be watched in theatres for its brilliant making ,cinematography, music and for the story to an extent.The great American dream has another side to it..!!!

Nowadays malayalam cinema is following the trend of giving "over hype" to it's upcoming big films! This over hype involves things like a massy trailer, first looks, actors and technicians' reaction towards their product, etc. Such methods at the end gives a disappointing watch for everyone even if the film is a good one! Kammarasambhavam, the dileep starrer vishu release and the mohanlal starrer villain, are the biggest examples of how wrong promotional methods can spoil a good film! Now coming to Ranam - Detroit Crossing, it's a damn bloody brilliant film having it's emotions and craft at the right place. And what went wrong? Again, the wrong promotions which gave the audience a completely different imagery of the film! The negative reviews the film is facing currently is mainly because of the "not up to the expectation" comments from the masses as they expected a "mass action film" from the team. Ranam tells the story of Detroit, once the economic capital of the United States that gave employment to many, which turned into the hub of drugs and guns and Aadhi (Prithviraj Sukumaran) the "Loyal and Expert" malayali gang member of the gang lead by Damodar Ratnam (Rahman) a Sri Lankan Tamilian gaangster and his brother Selvam (Ashwin Kumar). The film also tells the life of how circumstances and situations makes a person to take decisions which can turn their life completely upside down, as sometimes they don't have a choice in front of them! The film was perfect in its technical side, and yea except for a lag in the middle of the second half, the film is moving in a proper pace throughout. The film is an emotional crime drama, and is not an action thriller! Other notable performances include Isha Talwar, Nandu and a few unknown debutants who have effortlessly done a brilliant job throughout the film. The debutant director Nirmal Sahadevan has undoubtedly made an impressive debut through the film as he crafted the film in a proper way! Definitely not everyone's cup of tea, but the film would have done bit more well if the team gave the film the promotion it deserved. Hope malayalam cinema tries to soo this "over the top" promotion tactics!