Bommalattam Tamil Movie Review

Bommalattam Movie Review from bharatstudent,Indiaglitz,Idlebrain

Ratings at a glance
Bharatstudent - 3/5
behindwoods - 2.5/5
Indiaglitz -
Galatta -

Source:Bharatstudent

Movie Review:Bommalattam Rating :3/5 Banner :Therkathi Kalai Koodam Cast :Arjun, Nana Patekar, Kajal Agarwal, Vivek, Manivannan, Rukmini Vijayakumar Cinematography: B Kannan Music: Himesh Reshammiya Producer: Paul Pandiyan and Raj T Rajan Director: Bharathiraja Released Date: December 12, 2008

Story: An interesting tale, the story begins with the backdrop of the film industry where the noted director Rana(Nana) who is bestowed with scores of awards in the national and international level is a rather moody and eccentric person. Everyone in the unit is aware of his tempers so they keep their best to be on the safe side. Given his tantrums and bouts of temper, things change with the arrival of a new face and who is given the name of Trishna (Rukmini). Unusually, Rana gets quite close to her and would not entertain anyone to get close to her. The unit members are perplexed by this sudden affection and calmness towards Trishna and as expected, gossips run around the two. Meanwhile, those who try to get close to Trishna are being brutally murdered and things go out of hand with the number of victims increasing. In comes CBI officer Vivek (Arjun) who has a strong suspicion towards Rana and he begins his investigation. Much to his annoyance, his lady love Anita (Kajal) is all support for Rana and portrays his poetic brilliance and vouches that he cannot be the killer. However, the suspicions are on and Vivek is keen on nabbing the culprits. Is he successful in this? Is Rana one among the killers? All this forms the rest of the story. Presentation: The director has come out with an interesting plot and given the subject he has woven it with equally good narration and presentation. The script was written well and the screenplay was equally competent. Music has been a total letdown barring a song but the camerawork was brilliant. Editing could have better especially the songs were put in unexpected times. The locations were good and the costumes for Arjun and Kajal have been quite stylish. The pace of the movie was also okay. Arjun fitted well in the role of an investigating officer and this time there is not much of punching and kicking for him. Kajal was her bubbly self and had enough beauty and sex appeal to give visual feast, Rukmini could have been better since she was the focus of the story and the pressure was eased off with some comedy by Vivek and Manivannan. The real show stealer was Nana Patekar who was perfect to the hilt but then his dubbing could have been given to someone more intense. Overall, the acting department was fine. Conclusion: The film has come out with an interestingly woven tale of chilling murders and the exact eccentricities of few brilliant individuals in the film industry. While the first half goes about on the building up of the plot, the second half is engrossing only to give a jolt during the climax. The only drawback to this was the inclusion of songs at unwanted places that disturbed the intensity of the story. Technically and commercially, the film has it all but then there are few loose ends here and there which resulted in some bumps. The film will surely make its money. Bharatstudent Verdict: Gripping and interesting, recommended

Source:Behindwoods

Starring: Nana Patekar, Arjun, Kajal Agarwal Direction: Bharathiraja Music: Himesh Reshammiya Production: Therkathi Kalai Koodam

No white-gowned and winged fairies, no sugary sweet songs posing as interludes, no emotional turmoil of brother-sister or love struck couples. Bharathiraja’s Bommalattam is not what is usually expected out of the legendary director who delivered such fairy tale romances and intense movies with powerhouse performances. Instead, it’s a riveting and fast-paced suspense thriller set in the backdrop of the film industry. Not that the turf is new to Bharathiraja whose thriller Tik Tik Tik is still considered to be one of the most-watched pulp movies of his period.

Bharathiraja’s skill at crafting watertight screenplay is evident as the movie travels at jet pace without a moment of sluggishness in the narrative. Besides, the narrative is smart that is capable of holding the suspense quotient until the truth is unfurled on its own during the course of the movie. Much can’t be revealed about the movie’s plot as it would be unfair; since the movie’s watching pleasure largely lies on the idea that the viewer is not informed beforehand – as is the case with most of the suspense thrillers. The movie follows the murder and investigation of Nana Patekar’s crew members. Nana plays a renowned film director whose crew members are murdered in immediate succession. CBI is summoned for investigation and the truth unravels revealing the identity of the murderer – in the due course scoring out the prime suspects one by one.

Bommalattam also provides an insider’s look into the world of cinema. Nana asks the female lead of his movie for an ‘emerging out of the sea’ scene. However she refuses reasoning that her pedicure was done recently and the salt water could damage her cuticles. After much prodding she agrees but with a condition – she will wet her feet only in bottled mineral water. Same way, Vivek and Manivannan’s characters also tell a lot about the menaces a crew has to face during outdoor shoots. Nana’s acting needs no elucidation – he fits perfectly into the shoes of a patient director, who is exasperated at the snootiness of his film’s lead and devastated at the murder of his allies. Arjun plays an intelligent and neat CBI officer and delivers a subtle performance, quite atypical of his usual deliver-a-kick-and-leap-into-the-air roles. The songs Va Va Thalaiva and Check Check proclaims Himesh’s prowess in tuning catchy numbers. Mandy’s background score deserves a special mention, especially for its subtlety. Kannan’s camera captures the proceedings in perfect angles and assists in enhancing the movie’s flow. On the downside, the movie largely seems to cater to the Hindi speaking audience – given the locale and the milieu in which it is set. Irregular lip-sync of actors also reveal that the movie is in fact dubbed into Tamil after having been shot in Hindi directly. All said and done, Bommalattam is a perfectly crafted and executed investigative thriller. The surprise factor being Bharathiraja’s tautly woven screenplay – it negates the chance of tedium, even for a fraction of a second. Verdict – Bommalattam – Hold on to your seats!

Source:Indiaglitz

Banner: Therkathi Kalai Koodam Cast: Arjun, Nana Patekar, Kajal Agarwal Direction: Bharathirajaa Music: Himesh Reshammiya
Bommalattam Movie Review

Bommalattam - Creative angst vs perceived thought

IndiaGlitz [Friday, December 12, 2008]

After watching Bommalattam, Bharathiraja's bilingual venture, one cannot help being overawed by the excellence of Nana Patekar – easily one of the best actors India has ever produced. Designed as a film within a film the movie explores the quintessential life of a talented film director viewed as an eccentric from time to time. Bharathiraja is a name known for bringing rural India to life with scripts that are highly metaphorical in nature. The director who had also rendered an exquisite film noir in 'Sigappu Rojakkal' decades ago is back with a film that treads along the lines of murder under vicious circumstances. The fallacies of a world that fails to recognize creative angst has been captured on celluloid rather effectively. Arjun plays a CBI officer (Vivek) thirsting after the truth while Rukmini Vijayakumar plays the heroine of the film that is shot by Rana (Nana Patekar). The life of Rana (at the work place and at home) is shrouded by his eccentric nature that keeps all people around him not knowing what to expect….and yet a girl (Kajal Agarwal) who has a penchant for poetry admires him for his creative genius. From Rana's viewpoint she comes across as a breath of fresh air who even succeeds in revealing a pleasant side. Filmmaking is tough work with provocation coming in as distraction all the time. This obviously irritates Rana….to boot there are dead bodies that are discovered. The CBI investigates the film director on suspicion of multiple murders. Flashes of the director's life are showcased and the audience do get engulfed with the suspense element from time to time. Why does the director have such an affinity for his heroine? How can a man who loses his temper at the drop of a hat be calm and even sweet to some people? Who is responsible for the murders? These are the questions that are answered as the film unfolds. Comic relief is provided by Vivek and Manivannan. Although funny at times their interludes derail the intensity of the story big time. Compared to the brilliance of Nana Patekar, every other actor appears ordinary except Rukmini Vijayakumar who has done justice to her role. Cinematography is brilliant and the background score is passable. None of the songs impress. Though nowhere in the vicinity of Sigappu Rojakkal's brilliance, Bommalattam does succeed in arresting audiences' attentions during a major twist in the story which in actuality is the very crux of the film. Nana Patekar's brilliance has been watered down considerably with an inappropriate voice (Nizhalgal Ravi). The Bommalattam think-tank could have had second thoughts on this and probably introduced a voice that goes with the intensity of the lead character.

Source:Galatta

Cast	Arjun, Nana Patekar, Kajal Aggarwal, Vivek, Manivannan
Banner	Therkathi Kalaikoodam
Story, screenplay, direction	Bharathiraja
Music	Himesh Reshammiya
Camera	B.Kannan
Art	Sabu Syril
Producer	Paul Pndiyan & Raj T.Rajan
Review
Bommalattam (Puppet show) - the title calls to mind one of the oldest animated storytelling methods worldwide. Even today, this enjoyable and creative art form is practiced in some parts of rural India and provides livelihood to many traditional artists. However, Bommalattam the film displays life's unpredictability; all people are mere puppets dancing under the control of the master puppeteer. Director Rana (Nana Patekar) is one of the most acclaimed directors in Kollywood. Recipient of many national and international awards, Rana's creativity is brilliant and unparalleled. However, he also displays violent mood swings. Actors who do not behave and perform to his exacting standards have to face his temper and ill-treatment. A heroine who displays fussy star-airs while on his sets is summarily dismissed. Rana then calmly finds a suitable newcomer (Rukmini Vijayakumar), renames her Trishna, casts her as his heroine and continues the shoot. But, unlike his earlier behaviour of staying aloof from his cast, Rana moves very closely with Trishna and fiercely protects her from anybody who tries to harm her. The whole unit is shocked at the director's weird behaviour and begins to spin stories about them. Shockingly, anyone who tries to get close to Trishna gets murdered brutally. As a result, his fans, followers and the general public, point an accusing finger at Rana. Media persons hound him for explanations and fill their gossip columns with spicy, fabricated stories about the talented director. Reacting to the public outcry over these murders seemingly linked to Rana, the Intelligence department orders a detailed investigation. Vivek (Arjun) arrives to interrogate the prime suspect, director Rana. Only Rana's girlfriend, screen poet Anitha (Kajal Aggarwal) believes he is innocent. Anitha states that the supremely talented and dedicated director is incapable of committing murders. The investigation pulls Vivek into a huge web of deceit, at the centre of which lies the harrowing tale of a budding starlet. So, what are Vivek's findings? Who are the prime suspects? Is Rana one of the prime suspects? Watch Bommalattam to know! Bommalattam's story is created around the movie industry. Each scene and character in highlights that the roads leading to showbiz success are danger-ridden and frequently misleading. Those who rise as top stars in the field must learn the tough art of survival. The movie is unlike director Bharathi Raja's usual style (revolving around the serenity and beauty of villages and villagers). Bommalattam has a lot of mystery and thrill in it, yet it also carries the director's signature imprint. In fact, audiences see a lot of Bharathi Raja in the ill-tempered perfectionist Rana; the character gels well with Nana Patekar's looks and personality. Most of the time, the scorching fury and the disappointment get communicated through this supreme performer's eyes. For Arjun too, this is a different role. All his blazing stunts and punches are absent in Bommalattam. Yet the depth of his portrayal and the way he underplays his role suffice to provide some impressive fireworks. Kajal Aggarwal, the bubbly, emotional heroine, gives her best performances in the scenes where she defends her favourite and skilled creator, ridiculing all notoriety surrounding him. Vivek's comedy in the movie also has a filmy link. B. Kannan, one of Bharathi Raja's camp constants, impresses with his camerawork. Himesh Reshammiya's music is another plus point in the movie. Through his close-to-life portrayals, the legendary director has showcased the truths that rule the world of glitz and the travails faced. Above all, it is truly heart-warming to see such a powerful movie from one of the top-notch creators of Kollywood.