SivakumarBalachandran

My take on Vikram - 1st half - An engaging Investigative crime thriller drama 2nd half - A fully pumped up action thriller

Vikram was a pure labor of passion and a 100% directorial venture of Lokesh so far in his filmography. I loved "Kaithi" movie but when I compare it with Vikram the daughter sentiment portion that Kaithi had was taking a bit more space or like mellowing down the screen play where as in Vikram we see a husband trying to save his wife , a grand father trying to save his grand son, drug lord trying to save his empire but these where handled with a subtle note such a way it didn't spoil the thriller that was unfolding in front of us. Some brilliant screen play out here.

There were moments in the film which audience were so invested and engrossed clapping their ways as the story unfolds.

Every Technical aspect fell in place perfectly for this movie. There wasn't anything that was underwhelming for me throughout the crazy ride.

For me I found this movie thoroughly engaging start to finish with the stellar cast including three mammoths of south cinematic talents whose craft speaks for itself.

Ok Surya was supposed to be a surprise but boom as the spoilers went out in advance before the movie git released his character appearing wasn't having that wow factor but nevertheless he gives us a promising glimpse of the next season.

Can't wait for the next instalment to see what's there in Lokesh's vision.

My take on Hridayam translates as "Heart" - Though it's a simple title but sometimes they say Simple is more powerful, I guess that's what has worked for this magical masterpiece on screen.

This is a romantic coming of age story of Arun Neelakandan (beautifully essayed by Pranav Mohanlal) and how his life transpires through various People he meets, incidents that happened in his life and off course his love interest shape him as a person.

Ok I know it's a regular coming of age story we have seen in so many movies of similar genre, that's easy and said but Director Vineeth Sreenivasan makes sure he delivers his mark in this soulful tale that unfolds on big screen leaves all your emotions turned.

This close to 3 hours long movie might sound like a long affair to sit and watch but a quirky and engaging screenplay makes sure mostly you don't get that thought.

Performances - All three leads deliver what's exactly needed for the role they look naturally the character which is a testimony to their craft. Pranav Mohanlal as Arun emoted almost every node of the emotional graph and gave his character life. Darshana Rajendran plays Darshana a beautiful curly haired girl next door seemed effortless in her role delivers strong with her subtle emotions. Kalyani Priyadarshan as Nithya is your cute software angel will make sure boys go crazy with her cuteness but that doesn't shy away her acting skills equally shows all range of expressions especially when showing the sense of insecurity in loosing your loved one to another person. I have to say if these main characters must live and shine the support should be strong and that's what we get from the supporting cast characters Antony Thadikaran, Jimmy, Maya, Lachu Patti, Selva, Ironing girl Selvi, Kedar. Everyone did their role with full justice.

Music - Lets talk about the elephant in the room, yes songs and BGM from this movie makes the Music director the real hero of the film. Hesham Abdul Wahab on his Debut as music director his soundscape gives the life to the story. I cannot think of this movie without the songs and BGM which were soul stirring. Lyrics by Arun Aalat were so powerful and beautiful that connects to your heart.

Cinematography - May it be the college life or the city scape Viswajith the cinematographer transfers the viewers to their world for a subtle yet immersive experience. Make sure to catch this move on big screens it's not always the Avatar's that need big screen sometimes as simple as our day-to-day life story can do magic on screen.

Overall a definite solid coming of age story with lots of fun, sadness, anger, betrayal, passion, love, friendship, and Romance at its heart Vineeth Srinivasan's Hridayam makes sure it touches the viewers Hridayam.

An easy 8.5 on 10 movie.

NB: I watched it twice before reviewing 😊

-Reviewed by Sivakumar Balachandran.

My take on Laabam : Such a let down by director SP Jananathan & team The movie wants to deliver so much in the likes of economy, agricultural crops pricing mafia, depletion of natural resource, labor exploitation etc. But the whole idea goes for a toss when the screenplay is super lousy and marred by disaster editing. Character sketching was very weak. Summing all these negatives it becomes un bearable in so many stages and we get some amateur vibes in terms of execution. In terms of casting wasn't impressed by VJS, I have no idea why would Shruthi Hassan or Sai Dhanshika would even accept roles which have literally zero impact.

Verdict: Total disaster VJS star power couldn't save this sinking ship.