Films Further Awaited

The earlier list of the most awaited films on my list seems incomplete, and therefore a few more are added here. There was always the scope for missing one or two movies in the middle because we never really calculate one year full of interesting films completely. We never have the complete update on the list of movies either, for we do not follow the cinema industry like full-time work. Therefore, our list keeps having more interesting movies to watch every now and then. When considering movies from other languages, the list might feel to be too much, and keeping the list as purely Hollywood would be a better choice. The following movies have kept me interested in this year too, and I would be glad to watch them in the theatres. After all, the 3D experiences have become even more rare after the corona virus pandemic and we do miss our superheroes and the fear factor of theatres’ dark shadows.

Madame Web
Related to the new Spider-Man in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Madame Web comes up with an interesting concept. This makes the film more interesting than any of the films featuring the new Spider-Man who feels too dumb in comparison with the previous versions. This movie might be the most interesting thing when we consider anything related to the new world of Spider-Man. The cast led by Dakota Johnson seems to be really good, and you know it when Sydney Sweeney is around. Isabela Merced is also there, and the world of spider-related people never gets any better. Then there is the psychological element which seems to be in play here. The action sequences seem to be really well done, and an expansion of the Spidey world was surely required, which was evident in the earlier movie’s addition of earlier versions.

Nosferatu
This is not really a name that happens to be a strange one for us. The 1922 German Expressionist film of the same name which was the unauthorized remake of Bram Stoker’s Dracula never ceased to be part of our literature text books which derived some energy from film studies. The addition of Lily-Rose Depp, the daughter of Johnny Depp, seems to be an interesting appendage to the film. Then there are the names like Nicholas Hoult, Bill Skarsgård, Willem Dafoe and Aaron Taylor-Johnson which seems to power the interest in movie even more. We have Count Orlok returning again after we saw the same person again in 1979. As far as this variation of Count Dracula is concerned, there can always be more to be added, with the newer technology and divergence related to vampires which keep coming with new works which never cease to amaze us.

Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire
This is the kind of name that reminds us of games like Warcraft and a number of other adventures which had the cold associated with demons or other sinister creatures of darkness – most of them are not that changed with the new age of authors in comparison to vampires who became part of common life with some of the recent works. Ghostbusters: Afterlife was one interesting movie, and reminded us of what the whole franchise used to be. The evil forces from the past which comes to take over the land of the living never gets old. On one side, we have the usual kind of demons that have been losing their power to scare people, and on the other side, we have this combination of the supernatural and comedy that seems to work better these days. We hope for the best with this particular sequel too, as there is always the extra mile which can be travelled with relative ease when these two genres are compared with a certain amount of effectiveness.

Terrifier 3
The Terrifier series have managed to be terrifying enough for all with not just the supernatural elements and jump scares, as it had a lot of blood and gore to go with the same. It is the multi-dimensional slasher horror which combines more things than a usual flick of the genre. Art the Clown is the terrifying creature like no other, as he rips his victims apart with no remorse, with no additional elements getting added in between and without purpose – a bigger source of terror than Pennywise of It, considering the river of blood that this one leave behind. For the same, Lauren LaVera served as a legendary scream queen in the last version, and in that angelic costume, made the one true archangel who had no match. It does have the WWE wrestler Chris Jericho, one of those names from the trump card, and the person who made our childhood awesome; the 1990s kid wrestler who battled the big names in style and was even part of those computer games. We await this terrifier with open eyes.

Venom 3
There is something about Venom that keeps us going all the time. He is unlike Deadpool who makes the dumb jokes all the time and have us irritated on many occasions. Even though both are villains turned into semi-heroes rather than anti-heroes, we can only love Venom more because of the idea that lies beneath and Deadpool often making no sense to the intellectual and going completely brainless at times. Considering the current situation with a more childish Spider-Man, one can safely say that this sentient alien symbiote from space could lead the way, and the new generation of weakling Marvel characters can follow. In a new Marvel Cinematic Universe which is full of weakness and dumb characters who are forced into it, Venom is the one true man of heroic valour who can bring the balance. Otherwise, just like The Marvels and Thor: Love and Thunder, nobody around here is going to tolerate the new level of Marvel nonsense anymore, even though we have always loved those older classic flicks with Avenger power.

Alien: Romulus
We feel that there is something great about the Alien franchise all the time. Often, there is greatness written in each movie at some point which keeps us so much interested in possible sequels. Prometheus was one underrated film in this particular franchise with scenes that keep us pinned, with that kind of intensity which has not been seen in any movie featuring aliens in a long time – Alien: Covenant was pretty much a worthy sequel, even though it moved away from the earlier film a little bit more than we had wanted. With another movie coming up in the series, the hopes are sure to be higher than ever. The presence of Isabela Merced and Cailee Spaeny would seem to suggest that there is lot more to come in this universe which we have loved for so long. The director of the new Evil Dead and Don’t Breathe gets his hands on this one, which means that there will be more to this flick than just aliens wandering around to create the known terror carried over.

***The images used on this blog post are the posters of these movies taken from different sources, used to support the movies in this particular blog post only.

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TeNy

In Memoriam: Movie v/s Song

This will not go towards the Victorian Age poetry of In Memoriam A. H. H. by Lord Alfred Tennyson, as this is more about the memories that we have about those beautiful songs which embraced us from those lesser known or less appreciated movies. During these days, people still remember these songs, but not the movies. Some people even have the idea that these songs belong to some other films, and they have visualized them much differently. But we know that these songs had a different feeling during our childhood and youth as we watched and listened to them as if the charm of our lives depended on them like never before. These are the memories that keeps us alive while listening to these songs in a never-ending loop while traveling to distant places.

Oru Nooraashakal – Ennitum (2006)

Ennittum is one movie which is lesser known than many other films which dealt with a topic which feels modern instead of the usual traditional love stories of its time. The time period was indeed known for such innovation, but as a number of other similar films of the same time, the movie also failed in execution, but the same cannot be said about this song which has stood the test of time. The other song “Pada pedich” also made an impact during its release, but has not come that far against the test of time. The song leaves us in a feeling of love. One of Kaniha’s earlier movies, she leaves a mark in the song, and Dinu Dennis was surely better than many other actors who made their debuts during this period of time, but we did not see much from him after this.

Junile Nilaamazhayil – Nammal Thammil (2009)

This is one of those movies of Prithviraj Sukumaran that came at a time when he was establishing himself quickly in the movie field. He plays the typical toxic boyfriend in this movie with one beautiful song that is to be remembered for long. The film would not be remembered for that long though. With Indrajith Sukumaran also added to the cast, we have the brother power, but not in the song. The song with Prithviraj and Geethu Mohandas is a melody that we would remember for long, and I remember this song during my youth to be a remarkable addiction. There could be many more songs which tried to be like this, but this one will stay. The rain of June might have shifted to other months, but we are here to stay with the song’s idea of June’s monsoon rains.

Maaleyam Maarodalinju – Thacholi Vargheese Chekavar (1995)

This Mohanlal movie is one of the most underrated Malayalam movies ever, and if you ask me, this deserves to be a cult classic. The movie also starred the Bollywood sensation Urmila Matondkar whose work will also be remembered, even though this song does not include her. The other song that includes her, “Soorya Nalam”, is also as good as this one when we listen to both. A comparison would only hurt both, as one is not behind the other in quality. As the movie follows the Keralite tradition of Kalaripayattu, the strength is only increased with twists, turns and suspense in one of the best traditional action movies ever. I would not ask many people about this, as my own opinion would stand tall in the quality of this flick.

Poove Poove Paalapoove – Devadoothan (2000)

This movie has been gaining some positive opinion in the last few years even though not that much of a hit at the box-office. Not that suitable for the audience of the time, this one was far ahead of the time. Still, this song has been a hit from early times itself. The visualization of the song has also been different with special feeling. “Karale Nin” song has also gained a certain amount of fan base among Keralites. There is a certain amount of Gothic that runs through the movie along with the usual supernatural feeling. The twists in the movie have kept us going and the song also nicely adds to the same. We actually require this kind of a movie during our times, and we can only imagine how well it can do. Well, we had Athiran, Ezra and other horror thrillers which deviated with Gothic and more will be fine.

Oru Venal Puzhayil – Pranayakalam (2007)

There are not many songs which created the grand impact like this one, especially among the young lovers of the time. It was the time of the cargo pants, a season which had space for love. All those love stories have had special place among successful films, and that applies to the movies which were made with low budget. Nowadays, the same seems to be replaced with those thrillers with serial killers showing no remorse – interesting change here as serial killers are also lovers and closer to reality than true love which is too difficult to find in a materialistic world like this. Ajmal Ameer, the young man from Aluva had quite the rise then, and should have been on the big screen for more movies. The combination with Vimala Raman felt surprisingly too good.

Onapattil Thalam Thullum – Quotation (2004)

Here we have our official Onam song, and it is something which came out of nowhere – we never really knew more about this particular film, and even the title remains rather unknown. It is that kind of movie which makes us feel strange, as the quality is just too low for a full-length feature film starring a number of pretty good performers. But as far as the song is considered, it remains special. We hear the same thing again and again during different Onam celebrations, and there are so many versions of it. Despite the arrival of new Onam songs, we are never really tired of this one, and it is a sweeter one like the one song from Jacobinte Swargarajyam. For the next Onam too, this song will be the one that gets played the most in more locations.

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TeNy

The Movies Awaited

As the end of another year is almost here, some of the most awaited movies are right around the corner, and there are a few others for which we have to wait for longer. These have not been the best times of the movie lover in me, as the quantity has been less, and quality has not come up by that much. But I did get to watch a few of the films which were considered to be better than others, and there are some which are expected to be watched. There were those days when we would be inside the theatre at all times. But after the corona virus pandemic, those days were soon gone, and now we watch according to the remaining time in our lives. The following movies are going to add to that busy life with something extra.

Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom
Among the superheroes of DC, Aquaman surely has managed my appreciation more than the others. With the fine supporting characters and some great graphics, the movie never ceased to make an impression on the big screen. So, this new movie is expected to be something big yet again. Orm, Mera and Atlanna make that type of characters who support the movie so well. The trailer with the villain returning with the darker powers had our attention, and we await and wonder what would come to bring another visual spectacle. The underwater kingdom is never short of some classic beauty with the support of special effects.

Furiosa
Mad Max: Fury Road was one of those grand big screen experiences which are not easy to forget. The role played by Charlize Theron was something to remember then, and this time Anya Taylor-Joy of The Witch fame is here to go for all the action. Chris Hemsworth is also there, making the feeling better. We also have the former WWE wrestler Nathan Jones in action here. The post-apocalyptic world of this franchise would never cease to amaze us with all the action, and we are continuously aware that the end of the world event is going to happen soon. The post-apocalyptic world feels so real and so much closer these days. When there is such a dark future, you have the right to be furious against all available odds for survival.

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes
War for the Planet of the Apes happened a very long time ago after Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, and here we have a sequel for which the wait has been for about six years. The battle between apes and humans would remain interesting with humanity’s destiny to lose catching our interest even more. Even now, we keep thinking that anyone could make the world better than the human politicians. This was known even during those times when Refugee Blues was written by WH Auden. We do keep wondering if the apes can do better than most of the human politicians, but it seems to be some prophecy by an oracle coming true. Let us watch this movie and find out how well the apes can do.

Speak No Evil
Among the movies in other languages, this Danish film was found to be one Danish psychological thriller that would leave a haunting effect with its depiction of truth like no other. The cast of the English remake seems to suggest a similar experience with another powerful experience. The cautionary tale about accepting the invitation of strangers will surely have us thinking. There has always been the need for doubting people, and it has been reasserted here – you will know that people will never be the same as they look; actually, there should be no doubt about that. Let us see more of the trace of inherent evil in man through this movie. The nightmares like the one this movie displays on the screen are never really far away from us.

Kung Fu Panda 4
We are never really short of interesting movies in this particular franchise. One after the other, all the movies with Kung Fu Panda at the centre continues to impress us – Dragon warrior is never short of the duties in China. The unexpected hero should keep saving the world again, and even though the similarities seem to stay, we enjoy the series of movies. This one would be no exception, as we know that we have waited for so long for this. There can never be an animation franchise which has created so much of impact like this one, even though single animated films have managed differently. Still, in the list, this would be the one movie which has least chance to be watched by me, as I have moved further away from the interest in animated flicks.

The Beekeeper
This one should have Jason Statham as the one grand reason to watch an action thriller, and we remember that we had so much of Fast and Furious series, The Transporter and The Mechanic with him doing what he does the best so well. The star of Crank has never backed down whenever there was action, and there are only a few whom we await to see in an action movie – well, the divergences are would happen with a John Wick or in a Mission Impossible, but we know where this movie could be going – full power action would be an assurance. After all, there is the shade of vengeance running through this movie.

***The images used on this blog post are the posters of these movies taken from different sources, used to support the movies in this particular blog post only.

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TeNy

Waiting for Godot is Real

***A list of Malayalam films we are waiting for, like Vladimir and Estragon waited for Godot!

Thuramukham: Following the much appreciated performance in Moothon, this is another film which has something big to do for Nivin Pauly, as he has moved away from the predictable on only a few occasions. It does remind one of the grandeur that Malik had displayed, and with some of the cast members from that film being present here too, we can surely have a similar experience here. Seemingly a very long movie in comparison to others, and after having its first show at the 2021 International Film Festival Rotterdam, this one will have to wait to have its first show in the theatre, but this is that kind of a movie which should be available for non-Malayalis, and an Amazon Prime release would be the best choice for this one.

Kurup: Based on the life of the most wanted criminal of Kerala in the 1980s, Sukumara Kurup, this one should have something different in store. We do remember the incident, which continued to be popular talk even in the 1990s, and we as children were very much aware of such an incident. As one of the longest standing cases in Kerala history, this one is of significance to many. With Dulquer Salmaan in the leading role, let us hope that there is no glorification of criminal activities, as having a superstar in the lead has that kind of a tendency. Still, if taken well, this has a lot of scope, but it remains to be seen on what element does this particular movie focus on. This is not the first film based on the same though, and I would guess that this is not cent percent connected to it.

Marakkar: Subtitled as Arabikadalinte Simham in Malayalam and as Lion of the Arabian Sea in English, this movie has waited for its release for an eternity, and is still continuing to go through the same trouble in getting the release due to COVID-19 pandemic. It was going to have its grand release in March last year, and had declared the release on August 12th this year, but they seem to have completely avoided the possibility of another wave of the pandemic. They completely neglected the possibility of releasing the same on any OTT platform, maybe because of the high budget and the use of special effects. So, it seems that they are not taking the Drishyam 2 path, and we will have to wait for this one for so long that its graphics might get outdated. Do you think that COVID-19 will end this year? I don’t think so.

Minnal Murali: Tovino Thomas’ superhero film comes as an answer to our requirement to have a superhero film in Malayalam, and even though many other movies seemed to become close to the same, that was never really achieved. Basil Joseph who is best known for two light-hearted entertainers, Godha and Kunjiramayanam has this movie seemingly maintaining the same feeling. Well, we all need our superheroes, and this one should serve really well. We know that Indonesia had a superhero universe with films like Gundala, and I would say that we could have something like this soon enough. After all, we have grown up watching the smart heroes like Shaktimaan, Betaal Pachisi and Captain Vyom, and had the mystery of watching miserable nonsense like Krrish later to move us to disappointment.

Kaaval: This should be the first one among Suresh Gopi’s grand list of films which are to be released soon. It marks the return of the character plays by him in the film, as much as it marks Suresh Gopi’s own return to Malayalam cinema in an action thriller role, the category which suited him the best many years ago. From the trailer, it seems that this could be the one role in which we would love to see him again, even though some people might be doubtful due to the long gap in between. But it is to be noted that we found no such problem when he was there in Varane Aavasyamundu, a family drama film which released just before COVID-19 made its terrifying presence felt. Well, we do know what he is capable of, and I would let him save the day once again in style.

Jana Gana Mana: Prithviraj Sukumaran has already has his time with Kuruthi and Cold Case, two movies I have enjoyed watching on Amazon Prime Video – both of these are also thrillers, and this one also promises to be something similar. The trailer had promised the same earlier and seems to provide a police officer and criminal reasons to go against each other, with Suraj Venjaramoodu seemingly coming up with a role similar to what he did in Driving Licence with the same actor on the other side. I hope that this one would also release on an OTT platform, most probably Amazon Prime Video, like Prithviraj’s earlier movies. Thrillers these days have been best suited for online release, with more audience from outside Kerala giving it a try too. Well, you can’t wait for theatres now, considering the present situation.

Paappan and Ottakkomban: Along with Kaaval which was mentioned earlier, Suresh Gopi has two more movies to bring him to the genre which had suited him very well earlier. In one movie, he plays Mathan a.k.a. Pappan who is a retired police officer trying to solve a case, while the latter film has him as Kuruvachan a.k.a. Ottakkomban, an aging plantation owner trying to fight against influential men trying to destroy his family’s reputation. In both cases, he seems to be playing the roles which suit him very well even at this age. The former also has his son Gokul Suresh, as they will be seen together in a movie for the first time. I would personally love to watch Pappan before the others, but with the theatres to remain closed for long, we cannot be sure which one would be coming to us first on which platform.

***The images used in this blog post were taken from the pages related to these movies and the people associated with them.

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TeNy

The Bollywood of Childhood

You can never forget Bollywood of 1990s. There were some of your childhood movies right there. Those films became your favourites quick enough, and after watching them on a VCP or VCR, you felt so good. To get those video cassettes, you had to wait for such a long time, and once you get the film you have been looking for, it was the best feeling. Finding Hindi movies was a process which was achieved by watching Chitrahaar, just like the Malayalam movies came in Chitrageetham. Those movies with good songs always had an advantage, just like the favourite actors and actresses attract us to the cinema. The following were my favourites of the time.

1. Sabse Bada Khiladi (1995): I had to start with Sabse Bada Khiladi, one of those movies which I watched at the ancestral home. It is to be noted that I never liked those over hyped romantic movies of Bollywood. Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge was never my kind of movie, and Kuch Kuch Hota Hai never came close to being an interesting flick. Akshay Kumar movies were my type then, and this one in particular was always in my mind. It proved to be one effective thriller then, and I wouldn’t think otherwise even now. “Bholi Bhaali Ladki” is a favourite even now, and the action hero whom we knew the best was Akshay Kumar, and this one was a perfect khiladi.

2. Gupt (1997): It took me about two years to watch Gupt, because from the songs, it feels that the movie is a love triangle – one of the best suspense thrillers of all-time was thus misunderstood with its songs. But this turned out to be an all-round film at that time. It was a romantic suspense thriller with comedy also present there. The stylish movie has so many songs which we still listen to, and none of the new Bollywood songs could match this one with music. Bobby Deol was one stylish action star at that time, as we can see from this movie, even though Soldier might be the movie which gave him that title with clarity – that one was also the first movie I watched with him in the lead.

3. Khiladiyon Ka Khiladi (1996): I was a big WWF fan at that time, and when the Undertaker was coming to Bollywood, even though it was the imposter version and nor Mark William Calaway who performed in wrestling as the “dead man walking”, one could only get more interested than ever. Another wrestler, Crush was also features in this movie which had a lot of action going on at all times. Even though it was quite a long movie, it was never boring, and you are always waiting for the Undertaker to come to fight. It was one of those movies which decided to think beyond the usual limitations, and among the Khiladi movies of Akshay Kumar, it does have a special place.

4. Soldier (1998): Preity Zinta had already made her film debut in a supporting role in Dil Se, and “Jiya Jale Jaan Jale” was one of the most popular songs with its Malayalam words. But Soldier was her debut as the leading actress, and this heroine was one which everybody loved from this action thriller. Bobby Deol further established him as the action hero, and the film had so many lovely songs. There was no part of this music which we didn’t love. This movie was also remade into different languages, and a Tamil version actually released more than ten years later, asserting the film’s worthiness. The song “Soldier soldier” still remains in the USB in my car.

5. Khiladi (1992): From this movie onwards, we have known Akshay Kumar with the film’s title, and so many movies with the name “khiladi” in the title have followed, but nothing after Khiladiyon Ka Khiladi maintained that quality and essence. Still, Khiladi was one of the real thrillers of the time. There were some good songs, and even though a thriller, there was a funny side, with Johny Lever coming out of nowhere to deliver the best of them. There is also a fine twist coming in the end, and you need to be ready for the same. Even if you watch this movie now, it can still make that fine impact. If a good movie can be made with the name “khiladi” in the title, it would be an interesting watch.

6. Baazi (1995), Damini (1993) and Angrakshak (1995): Aamir Khan takes us into the action thriller genre nicely with Baazi, and Mamta Kulkarni is once again in one, like in Sabse Bada Khiladi which released in the same year. It does have elements from Die Hard, but it was indeed working very well. At the same time, Damini is one of the best movies with the leading actress having the much needed significance. Meenakshi Seshadri does a perfect job there, and the dialogues of Sunny Deol in the courtroom are to be remembered. Angrakshak is another movie that comes to the mind, and the political side of this particular film with Sunny Deol in the lead, is relevant even today.

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***The images used in the blog post are from the respective films on bookmyshow and youtube used for supporting this particular post on the blog only.

***These are taken from childhood memory, and therefore, none of these films might feel the same if I watch them again now.

TeNy

Marvel’s Marvel and DC

***Following is the list of Marvel and DC movies I wouldn’t miss after COVID-19 is over.

Suicide Squad 2: Suicide Squad is one of the most underrated superhero or rather the supervillain movies of all-time, and it has always deserved to be considered a classic. It was strange that it wasn’t that big a hit, and people were not intelligent or creative enough to immerse themselves in the beauty of that flick. Now, with the second part of this movie coming up for release, one can be sure that the aesthetic beauty on the screen can only get better, and there is the certainty of those anti-heroes whom we are going to love more than anything else. There is nothing better to watch than Margot Robbie as the psychotic Harley Quinn. Then we have John Cena here too, and we know that this is going to be big. We will still miss Cara Delevingne as the Enchantress.

Morbius: Jared Leto who was the Joker in Suicide Squad is now Morbius, the man who gains the superhuman abilities with a thirst of blood to go with it, making him a vampire hero with a dark side. This one can make one fine anti-hero movie which can go through the same seriously, without having the dumb side like Deadpool did. These are the times when vampires have the advantage over others, and with the releasing date shifting to 2021 from 2020, this one can be the lesser known superhero making it big after COVID-19. Yet, the thing about vampires is that you have to make it good, and there is the change that some unnecessary elements can come in, like we had seen in Twilight and its sequels. If done well, this one from Marvel can be one fantastic work with this man in the lead.

Black Widow and Doctor Strange 2: Scarlett Johansson’s Natasha Romanoff is one of the best female superheroes, and is clearly a step ahead of the overpowered superheroes like Captain Marvel. The same more or less reminds us of Batman who also thrives so well without the superpowers. A movie focusing completely on Black Widow was something much needed. At the same time, Doctor Strange is one character that goes beyond all superheroes, having a special place among the Avengers. He has also required a sequel, and with the sequel to Black Panther not really seeming to be a reality during these days, it is the sorcerer who can keep this franchise more interesting – no more Captain America and Iron Man demands that for most of the fans.

Eternals and The New Mutants: The tale of these creatures from outer space living on Earth and trying to defend them makes us interested in Eternals. To add to the same, most of us don’t have any idea about what the film is about, as they are not the usual superheroes whom we know about. The New Mutants is supposed to have released already, but the movie didn’t reach here as our theatres are still closed – it is a really a disappointing thing because a lot of people would have wanted to watch it on the big screen when COVID-19 was over. All those powers coming together would have been a treat on the big screen in 3D, but we will miss that. Even though the rating are not that great, we know that our audience have appreciated certain movies better than the North American movies.

Thor 4: Among the Avengers, there is no superhero who can have so many tales like Thor, as Asgard and the other worlds have so many things in store for sure. Thor: Ragnarok might have been the best the superhero movie featuring one hero from Marvel, just like Aquaman can boast of having a similar status from DC, as far as the last few years are concerned. With the turn of events happening related to these superheroes, there can be some interesting events related to this particular immortal. We can also be certain about the fact that we will have more visual splendour in store here. After all, the world is not the same after what Thanos did, and Asgard has also changed its place. Even the hammer has made way for the axe, and you know that innovation is to come up here.

Venom 2: The present version of Venom is actually better than Spider-Man, when we have a closer look at the characters, their quality and maturity. As the COVID-19 pandemic has changed the date of this one’s release to 2021 too, we can’t wait to see the next symbiotic human, Carnage, unleashing himself against Venom. It is always good to have an anti-hero who is not foolish and ridiculous as Deadpool. And in working with that role, Venom is a successful work. Unless we have more mutants from X-Men becoming anti-heroes in their own style, Venom will remain Marvel’s classic anti-hero, with further additions in this version which could connect nicely to other superhero tales from Marvel.

The Flash and Wonder Woman 84: The two movies from DC are of much interest, as the latter has us waiting for Cheetah, a lady villain suitable for Wonder Woman. We can only hope that the character as well as the costume provides what we need to see on the screen. Meanwhile, The Flash has always required a movie, and with that speed, one needs to see what all can be done, different from the limited idea which we had in the television series. As one feels that Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman have been stealing the show a little too much, and only Aquaman has stood in the way against the same, we need the fastest human on Earth to make an impact.

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***The images used in this blog post are from the Facebook Pages of these movies.

TeNy

Movies in More Languages

This has been the time of sadness, depression, fear and many other things with the Corona virus making its move everywhere, and we were left to spend time in the lock-down. Even though there were many relaxations provided, we didn’t have many changes in our life beyond lock-down. The situation doesn’t seem to be getting any better, and we surely need that vaccine sooner or later. Until then, we can go on with what we have, and watch more movies. There are so many movies coming up in different languages, and they are often better than what we usually watch, and some of them are really divergent, along with providing us the wonderful view of another land which we would also love to watch. The following is the list of languages in which I have watched movies and reviewed them for the first time during the Corona virus pandemic.

1. Romanian: As this post talks about movies in some new languages which I have come across only now, the first one is indeed Romanian. The case of Korean, Spanish, French, German and Chinese were already there, and I really wanted to watch a Romanian movie when I came across The Whistlers, a divergent crime thriller which took its deviation quite seriously, and ending up as an efficient one. One of the best foreign movies which I have watched in a long time, this one surely is a silent killer. From the land which we have known for being the setting for the home of Bram Stoker’s Dracula, it is only a matter of time before we wish to get more of the world in Romania.

Click here for The Whistlers Review

2. Vietnamese: The movie Furie, is a marital arts movie which makes us very much interested in a mother’s search for her daughter, reminding us of Taken, but providing an entirely different feeling. There are so many action sequences in this movie involving some on the top of a train, as we go with the mother to see her fight the criminals while making her way to the daughter. A movie from the beautiful nation in East Asia which could have been our destination, also has such wonderful visuals, not just of nature, but also of the city area. Earlier, we had come across Thai and Chinese movies which focused so much on martial arts, and this one will bring another level to the same.

Click here for Furie review

3. Latin: We haven’t heard much about Latin movies around here, and the only time when we hear about them is in some of the language related papers or when referring to the church. The First King is a movie that surely changes the same, because it takes you on a journey through the times just before the establishment of Ancient Rome which would go on to become a republic and later an empire which would control major areas of Europe and parts of Asia and Africa for centuries, and will have its legacy living on through the Byzantine Empire even though not based on Rome. The tale of two brother who were believed to have found Rome is told in a realistic way without exaggerations.

Click here for The First King review

4: Italian: The only Italian movie with colour I had watched before Piranhas was Life is Beautiful, an Oscar winning film with the setting of Second World War and the Jewish holocaust. Otherwise, I had watched Bicycle Thieves, the movie which was part of the Italian neo-realism. Piranhas deals with the youth taking these weapons into their hands, and leading gang wars in the streets there. You see the Italian streets, as beautiful as they are, and there is also a reflection of a violent new generation which is looking for easy money, and the lack of interest in education. This Italian movie did seem to have some elements from the past films being maintained around here too.

Click here for Piranhas Review

5. Russian and Polish: The first Russian movie on Movies of the Soul was Abigail, which was quickly followed by The Iron Mask: Mystery of the Dragon Seal. Both are some interesting fantasy movies, and the second one with a Chinese touch looks even more different. It was amazing to see the quality maintained there, and the movie Guests followed with some horror. The Balkan Line, a Serbian-Russian collaboration movie was also in the picture, and in that case too, we could feel the ability of Russian movies to rise up to Hollywood. There are actually some more Russian movies coming up from my side to prove the same. The Polish movie Diablo pretty good, but not that much as we had expected with a racing flick trying to be Fast and Furious.

Click here for The Iron Mask review

6. Dutch and Portuguese: The first movie I watched in Dutch language is Torpedo U-235, a movie set during the Second World War, as a group of unexpected soldiers move on to deliver uranium to the United States in a German u-boat. It has an interesting premise, and is entertaining, even though it could have been even better with better focus. The Portuguese movie from Brazil, Bacurau is a very divergent movie, which is not for everyone, but makes a special flick with the way it deals with its main idea. I will be coming with more movies in different languages, which are watched and reviewed less in this part of the world, because there are so many of them which need the opinions.

Click here for Bacurau review

***All the images used on this blog post were taken from the official Facebook pages of the movies and the actors or actresses performing in them.

TeNy

Waiting More For Movies

As Corona Virus has continued to keep us in the lock-down, there is not much happening around here. I have been coming up with some foreign movie reviews including Korean, Spanish, French, Japanese, Italian, Polish, Portuguese, Latin and Chinese, and you can look at them if you want. You can check the review of The Divine Fury with which the process began, going through First Love, and more movies which are to follow. Limiting the reviews to just one or two languages was not going to be the right thing to do, as I wanted to explore the flicks in other languages from other nations further. The result has been the increase in the frequency of film reviews, which was rather expected during the time of lock-down. After all, this is a situation which none of us had expected, and clearly, nobody was prepared for it. We are all locked into ourselves these days.

It is to be noted that in the last year and the year before that, April-May season was a time of foreign trips. We had one to Indonesia‘s Bali last year, and to Thailand’s Pattaya and Bangkok before that. It makes one wonder about how much the world has changed so quickly. Kerala has had its own problems in the last two years with the floods coming through, and the year before that, there was the Cyclone Ockhi. Well, the world doesn’t seem to be anywhere close to being the one we knew before, as we look at what has happened in those nations which reported the most cases, United States of America, Russia, Germany, Spain, Italy, France, United Kingdom, Brazil, Iran and Turkey registering over one lakh cases – are we safe anymore? Will everything return to normal on any day? We ponder over that, and also look at what I look forward to, if the cinema theatres open any time soon.

1. Kunjeldho: Starring Asif Ali after the much appreciated Kettyolaanu Ente Malakha and the cute newcomer Gopika Udayan, this movie seems to have all that is needed for a campus movie. It began with a beautiful song from the plus two days which has us immersed in it, and then it has one of the most beautiful green campuses you might ever know. The movie seems to have been mostly shot in UC College campus, Aluva, the exact place where the middle part of the movie Premam was shot, as Nivin Pauly was the student in the college, finding his love in the inappropriate places. But it has to be noted that the movie had failed to capture the beauty of the college in the best possible manner, as UCC was always more than that. But when it was there, they could manage to do justice to the central area. Uyare also had a little bit of the college when Parvathy was dancing and talking later.

Kunjeldho can do much more, or rather a lot more than what has been done so far in the college campus. Premam could never absorb the spirit of the college, and as we look into the glimpse of Kunjeldho, it might have done that with clarity. This movie is directed by RJ Mathukkutty, different from the director of Helen, even though the names can have you confused. It seems that he has captured the campus life as it is, with its feel-good factor and happiness rather than those negative factors which often get the focus. He is someone who did study BA Malayalam from the same college, and that also adds to the understanding of the spirit and soul of the college. The feeling has to be different when you are shooting a movie at the place where you studied at college level, and it is up to him to bring full justice to the location this time.

It is to be noted that the plus two moments of the movie were also shot in a famous Jayakeralam school, this time near Perumbavoor, another town near the town of Aluva where UC College is located. This proximity makes one have the realistic factor closer than ever, within a distance of twenty something kilometres – this increase in distance is due to the fact that the college is located about three kilometres from Aluva town centre on the road to Paravoor, and the school is located about four kilometres from Perumbavoor town centre, on the road to Muvattupuzha. I had also seen the shooting progressing at Jayakeralam, and when things get close to reality, and what you know, you feel it to be part of your life, lile Kunjeldho can do. But we have to wait and see how much of that is seen on the big screen when it releases.

2. The Priest: The first collaboration of Mammootty and Manju Warrier in their long careers is here in the form of this movie, which reminds one of the 2011 movie with the same name, which had priests as elite warriors against vampires, sent by the church. When we look back, that was quite a strange movie, and here, we have a horror mystery with Mammootty in the lead, and playing a priest. We were eagerly waiting for it, and it became another film which was postponed due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. These are not the best times for a movie lover, as he can no longer watch movies in the theatres, and as he keeps reviewing those older movies, not many people want to support him by reading those opinions, as they are not about movies which are at the theatres where people wish to visit with the family.

3. Meppadiyan: There has always been something about this movie. It is a crime thriller with Unni Mukundan in the lead, and it was always going to be good, as he has been into crime on the big screen in Mikhael, even though that was just a shadow – we know what he is capable of playing a man into crime. This movie could bring him back to his original form, as he hasn’t had many movies these days, and none to test his caliber at all. Let us hope that this is the one movie which does trick in style. Among those other movies which people keep waiting for, like Marakkar: Arabikadalinte Simham, something which is supposed to be the grand film like Mamangam – you know what expectations can do to you, as proven by that Mammootty movie, and much earlier with the Mohanlal starrer, Odiyan. Let us hope, and not think about this one too much, as the risk factor is certainly there.

***All the images used on this blog post were taken from the official Facebook pages of the movies and the actors or actresses performing in them.

TeNy

Movies for the Year: Level II

We have some more of the movies which we are waiting for this year. Along with that, also check the special reviews at Movies of the Soul. Ten of them are given below, and the much awaited movies of the year follows after them.
1. The Divine Fury.
2. Polaroid.
3. Brightburn.
4. In the Tall Grass.
5. 47 Meters Down: Uncaged.
6. Doctor Sleep.
7. The Prodigy.
8. Girl on the Third Floor.
9. Pet Sematary.
10. Child’s Play.

1. Eternals: There was always the need for something for the Marvel fans after Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame took away all those loved Avengers away from the fans. Now we will have Eternals, an immortal alien race who have secretly lived on Earth for over 7000 years, and has now decided to save the world from a huge threat. This seems to be much larger in scope, but there will be the question if they can create that much of an influence and impact on the audience as Avengers could – for they are not established superheroes like Captain America, Thor, Iron Man and Hulk, but lets hope for the best, as the grandeur could easily be there.

2. Venom 2: There is further representation of Marvel with another anti-hero Venom getting the sequel. As Venom is an anti-hero who doesn’t go full dumb like Deadpool, we are always looking for sequel from this side. Being the symbiote infested anti-hero creature, lets have some more fun with this one. After all, the end of Avengers should mean more for Marvel – just like heroism never ends, the anti-hero stuff also would continue to make an impact. More of Venom means more of Spider-Man indirectly, and the Marvel fans have this as a requirement rather than anything else. Lets call for more of alien symbiotic stuff rather than some silly pool dead anti-hero.

3. The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It: A few years ago, The Conjuring had set things in motion for the horror genre, and it has continued the same with The Conjuring 2; this one will be The Conjuring 3, with Annabelle and The Nun spin-offs looking on from a distance. Claiming demonic possession as a defence in the court, this one would be something that could go far beyond. There could be those areas which are not explored before, being a part of this particular horror movie, and lets see how far this can go. There can be an extra dose of fear and mystery running through The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It. New faces of terror are ready to be unleashed.

4. The Purge 5: The Purge has been one franchise which fed on our fears, and there has been a certain amount of realization related to it, as in a future dystopian United States of America had an annual national holiday known as the Purge, all crimes, including murder are legal for a time period of twelve hours. It regularly reminds us of the harthal and bandh which we have here, and there is the feeling of a great amount of truth associated with this, and our future. Purge has always been there, and one day, it could be more clearly visible, and another movie in the franchise can only do good as it follows The First Purge and The Purge: Election Year. Lets look forward to what more it can bring to the idea.

5. Morbius: A long time after we loved the Blade movie series, there is this superhero vampire for us, from the Marvel universe itself, as we ponder over the loss of most of the much loved Avengers. With vampirism on one side, he could be one tragically flawed anti-hero rising far above Venom and Deadpool. Jared Leto playing the character would make things even more interesting. Rising as a superhero out of a failed biochemical experiment which was supposed to cure his rare blood disorder, the living vampire could be a fan favourite or end up being the exact opposite, and we can hope that the character can be given justice through this movie.

6. Candyman: Who can avoid horror during times like these? There is enough scares all around, and let Candyman bring more. A direct sequel to the 1992 film of the same name and the fourth film in the Candyman franchise, it is based on the short story, The Forbidden by Clive Barker, the master of horror. Candyman franchise has always been there to keep us in the horror genre, and lets hope that this movie too adds to the group positively. After all, only a regular dose of horror can keep us going during these days. Desperate times need great horror, and it is the realization of the existence of such horror that will inspire us to keep our lives moving forward.

***All the images used on this blog post were taken from the official Facebook pages of the movies and the actors or actresses performing in them.

<— Click here to go to the previous post.

TeNy

Movies for Holidays

As the season of holidays is coming up during April and May after the early lockdown for Corona virus pandemic, there are a few movies which we can look forward to. Even though the theatres are closed for now along with the schools and colleges, we can be sure that we will go past the epidemic and come strong during the next month, or maybe even earlier. Some movie releases might be missed in the mean time, but as we follow the instructions of the health department and come back stronger, there will be more movies for us to watch in the theatres. The summer holidays will have a lot of these, are some might even have a late release to go with it.

1. Black Widow: Marvel might have lost some of its greatest heroes in the form of Avengers, but it is not yet over for them, as this time we go back and follow the events of Captain America: Civil War, with Natasha Romanoff finding herself against a conspiracy. Well, we never really had enough of Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow, and she was surely the one superhero who needed a solo movie over the much overrated Captain Marvel. The potential for a character like this is so much, and it could rise above the usual superhero stuff with ease. Whatever those people with superpowers could do, Black Widow can surely do better and in a smarter way, and you no longer miss all Avengers.

2. The Personal History of David Copperfield: We are never really short of watching the novels of Charles Dickens on the big screen. Coming from the greatest novelist of Victorian Age dealing with the common man, all these novels make great impact on the big screen. Even though my favourite novel remains A Christmas Carol and The Great Expectations has been one novel which works really well on the big screen along with Oliver Twist, this one also would have enough for us. It is never too late to go through Dickens’ most autobiographical novel even when not on the pages.

3. The Green Knight: Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is a tale from English medieval period which gave its poet the name, Gawain Poet. One of the best known tales about King Arthur, and the version known to us being written in Middle English, the movie takes us back to the Arthurian Legend. The movie has Alicia Vikander, and that is a name we would love to have in a medieval setting. The legend of King Arthur, his knights, queen, the sword in the stone Excalibur and the final resting place Avalon have always inspired literature lovers, and may this movie also do the same.

4. Marakkar: Lion of the Arabian Sea: The Malayalam movie with Mohanlal in the titular leading role is also something much awaited, even more than the overrated Bollywood movies – it has made that kind of an impact already, and even though a similar movie out of history Mamangam didn’t receive that much of an appreciation, one can only keep waiting for this one considering the grandeur and the effort. I also have my own doubts about it, but I am also hoping for the best – it should release next month itself, as the theatres here have closed due to Corona virus this month.

5. Artemis Fowl: Somewhat taken from Eoin Colfer’s works of the same name, the movie takes one back to the world of a twelve year old criminal mastermind. A much known book here is not something that we have followed much at this part of the world, even though it has been well known. The movie becomes an opportunity to get back to this. A thriller fairy tale and the conflict between good and evil never gets old. The whole setup leading to the movie does look good. Now, it is to be seen how well the movie turn out to be – it also needs to be seen if this is released here.

6. Spiral and Run: We also need the regular dose of horror movies and thrillers, and these two seem to come up with some of it. Both movies seem to have something grand in store, with very much sinister secrets out there. It seems that we will know very less about these, but sometimes, it is the beauty of the same. Lets have more of similar movies, as long as they release here – we are surely going to have a rush of movies as the theatres come back to life next month, and we can hope that these would also join in between all the rush which has been happening.

***All the images used on this blog post were taken from the official Facebook pages of the movies and the actors or actresses performing in them.

**And belated happy birthday to me.

<— Click here to go to the previous post.

TeNy

Age of Thrillers: Death Trail

As the year began, it became clear that the Malayalam movie industry was attempting to go through a path which it had earlier tried and succeeded, but later left behind – creating an age of thrillers around a death or a few murders. The success of the Kunchacko Boban starrer Anjaam Pathira might have set the thriller wagon moving, as Anveshanam is also on the trail, even though not becoming that much of a success both commercially and critically with a slow moving drama side keeping it away. Now, what the audience is waiting for happens to be Forensic, the Tovino-Mamta starrer with a well accepted trailer.

Anjaam Pathira made the impact with a series of murders happening, and policemen getting murdered one after the other. It used the darkness effectively, and the suspense was nicely maintained, even though it gave away its strength a little too early in the second half, making it a revenge drama too easily. But Anjaam Pathira found it easy to make the impact that Memories did a long time ago, even though not that much in quality – it has set the wheels of the thriller wagon moving. There was something about Anjaam Pathira in the trailer itself, and it is still running strong in the theatres even with some movies with bigger stars also showing presence there.

At the same, Anveshanam‘s journey could only make itself a pretender to the thriller genre, as it became more drama and less thriller, struggling to create the suspense and thrills, with audience not taken into account as it goes through a slow journey. Set in a hospital, it tests the patience of the audience a little too much that at some point, most of the people would stop caring about the main characters. It also doesn’t end with the right points in the best way, as the struggle continues. Pretending to be a thriller is one of the worst things that a movie can do to its fans, especially with such a talented cast doing so well. Thriller movies not done well make rather too negative impact.

The case of serial killers has always impressed the audience, and Anjaam Pathira is something which couldn’t use its ripper well enough, with Forensic, one can be sure that there is something bigger coming up. The trailer seems to promise a lot more than the usual investigation thriller in Malayalam. There is the extra expectation coming up from the writers of 7th Day. Tovino Thomas in such a role was always going to be interesting. Along with the same, we have Mamta Mohandas and Reba Monica John in the leading female roles. The premise looks too good to avoid, and this is the kind of movie that the thriller fans would be looking forward to on any day.

We await the release of Forensic this March, hoping for the best, with scope for bringing thrillers to the next level. With the number of Hollywood movies getting released here on the decrease, the need for thrillers can only be met by movies like these. Horror hasn’t been getting its due, and it becomes a necessity for thrillers to step up and take the spotlight. It might not be that easy a task, but the audience deserve more from an industry which has evolved so much over the years, and has a the talent and realism which Bollywood never really had with its mass masala and the eternal love for sons and daughters of superstars being the actors who get all the big movies.

Watch the trailers of the three thrillers below:

Forensic

Anjaam Pathira

Anveshanam

 

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TeNy

2020: What Awaits the Cinephile

With the biggest releases of the year already done, having Avengers: Endgame breaking a record which was supposed to be there for a long time, we are almost there at the end of the year as far as big Hollywood movies are concerned. The year 2019 will be known for having the highest grossing movie of all-time, as Avengers finally did what was considered to be impossible except for Avatar‘s own sequel which is to come two years later. Well, we have had another interesting year for the movie lovers, and Hollywood has played its part – now, we can see what is to be expected from the next year.

The Grudge: There is the need to begin well, whether it is related to a battle, a trip or a course – the same is the case of an year of movies, as this movie returns to bring the horror of our past yet again, as just like The Ring, this one has that kind of an impact which is there to stay, and another movie with the same theme can set things right in January 2020 itself. The return of the vengeful spirit will make sure that there is more movement under the bed and on the walls leading to the roof, along with a lot of hair. When the bathroom itself gets the worst of it, the need for a shower might not be that much.

Wonder Woman 1984: We have had Gal Gadot as the Wonder Woman whom we loved, and the movie had set DC Universe back in motion earlier, and DC has been just holding on these days, thanks to some occasional wonderful movies like Aquaman. So, this sequel to Wonder Woman attempts to repeat the same success story, and with Cheetah as the villain, things are only going to get better. This antagonist can be a heavy improvement from the first movie, and also from Justice League, which had a villain which was too weak in the end, something which Marvel’s Avengers would never have. So, we have another movie to take DC back.

Godzilla vs Kong: One day after my birthday next year, this movie is going to be released. I don’t find a better way to celebrate my next birthday, as these two monsters coming right out of Godzilla: King of the Monsters and Kong: Skull Island are going to be too big for the screens, with a lot of action expected. The strength of the two monsters is already established, and when these two would finally collide, there is going to be more. This is the path which was not meant to be crossed, but when they do cross, we can be sure about the best which is to follow in the coming days. The monster battle is going to go a long way here.

The Conjuring 3: A few years ago, The Conjuring redefined the horror genre once again, and brought the falling genre back to life. It was the time of those horror movies which didn’t mind coming up with some low level work even though it was not going to be appreciated. From there, The Conjuring lifted the horror world to a level which brought some of the more creative and innovative horror movies like Don’t Breathe, Lights Out and It Follows, lighting the terror with grace. The eighth installment in the Conjuring Universe franchise will be arriving next year, and we can be sure about the darkness which is to be unleashed here.

Gretel and Hansel: This is another horror movie which comes early next year, and the elements of fantasy are there to be taken, as it is once again based on the German folklore tale of Hansel and Gretel. We had another movie with the same name with the kids getting older, and with witch-hunting all around. The trailer surely gives the feeling that this is going to be dark and different, more divergent than any other versions which have come before. We are never short of love for some dark fairy-tale, and Maleficent was just one of those which used only some part of the dark power.

Halloween Kills: Here is another slasher horror movie coming back to us, and with none of the slashers really making it to the theatres here, one can expect this to be here. Supposed to release just before Halloween, this film can set the mood right for next year’s Halloween. It will be followed by a sequel Halloween Ends, exactly one year after that. Well, Halloween, My Bloody Valentine, Friday the 13th and Nightmare on Elm Street are the kind of slashers that we never want to end. So, lets hope for another fine slasher with Halloween Kills, and the genre needs the same these days.

*Special mention for the Margot Robbie starrer superhero movie from DC, Birds of Prey. It is the one unpredictable flick which I can’t afford to miss, but is also something I have my doubts about – there is certain chaotic beauty which can go either way.

*All images used here are from the Facebook Pages of these movies.

TeNy

2019: Songs for the Soul

There are those songs which are there to stay. This year, we have many more of similar songs, some of them raising the level like never before. Some of those songs are close to the themes of the movie, and the rest can stand alone, making an impact separately. Well, we can be sure that these songs are ahead of the ones from last year, those which had released at the same initial period of time. Talking about this year’s songs, we can also be certain that there is more to come, especially with some big releases coming up including Mamangam already having one hit song in the bag.

6. Nee Hima Mazhayayi (Edakkad Battalion 06)
This movie is known the best for this wonderful song rather than anything else. The flick which is centered on an army officer played by Tovino Thomas also made sure that the successful Theevandi pair of him and Samyuktha Menon came together again. The film might not have managed to get the same appreciation that the song got, but it could manage that fine opening, and some reviews which could support it. Also, there is no question about the grand feeling that this movie songs, with the visuals and the words used. Nithya Mammen’s voice has caught a lot of attention with it.

5. Pavizha Mazha (Athiran)
The Fahadh Faasil – Sai Pallavi starrer was something that caught attention through days and week, reminding one of A Cure for Wellness and Shutter Island. Athiran was one movie which came to the theatre without much hype, and refused to go, even after the flicks which released after it had gone early. Along with Uyare, this became one of the longest running movies of the year, and in malls, it never really stopped having the interested audience. The song is also nicely visualized, and it gives a great feeling while driving through the rain and listening to the song on a starry night.

4. Aalolam (Love Action Drama)
This movie had marked the return of Nayanthara to Malayalam cinema after a very long time, under the direction of Dhyan Sreenivasan. Even though the movie did make one feel strange with its treatment of the subject, and the humour was rather too stupid, this song does give a nice feeling – maybe could have worked even better if it was in a serious feel-good romantic flick. This one might have been missed if it was seen in the movie, as such beauty often gets hidden in the foolishness and strange behaviour of the main character – but we can always take it out and enjoy.

3. Parakkam Parakkam (Finals)
In one of the greatest sports drama movies of all time in Malayalam or maybe even South India, there are two beautiful songs, both in the first half of the movie. There is the absence of the terrible melodrama that are common in most of similar movies. The usual routes taken by sports drama are also avoided. If this going to be the usual stuff, that would have been very disappointing, but with Rajisha Vijayan around, who is well supported by Suraj Venjaramoodu and Niranj Maniyanpillai Raju, the movie gets its wings with ease. There is no usual greatness of the protagonist being shown with a thrilling match in the end – this movie is much more.

2. Uyiril Thodum (Kumbalangi Nights)
The best of the year came early with Kumbalangi Nights, and its song also gets the best out of the mood. Set in the island village of Kumbalangi, the movie is as close to a realistic world as it can get, and we have the feeling of seeing real people in realistic circumstances. It is the kind of movie that is not usually seen, but this one finds it easy to capture the attention and love of people. The beauty of visuals can also be seen in the movie as well as this song in particular. Kumbalangi is a place to look out for, as beautiful island near Cochin, and this movie makes things even better – the numbr of tourists visiting the place should have seen a rise.

1. Parayuvan (Ishq)
This movie provides the best feeling when we are traveling in a car at night, like the protagonists themselves do. The music and the voice in the song comes up with a feeling out of this world with ease. The movie is surely not something great, as it often goes some other way, but it is another song which touches soul – this is something completely different from what we have heard, it feels new, but feels perfect for the old soul. Try listening to this one while traveling in car on a rainy day; maybe even a KSRTC bus would do. This also feels closer to the music of Ranam.

*See the year’s best movies.

TeNy

2019 and its Movies

This year surely has been an interesting one for Malayalam movie industry. There are movies like Mamangam and Edakkad Battalion coming up, and there could be a great change to the list, but we already have some highly appreciated movies on the top. The next three months are going to be crucial with some very interesting titles getting ready to be released. We also have had some nice songs this year, but we will talk about them later. The following are the movies which have created great impact in Malayalam movie industry, and I would consider them to be among the best, rising above the level created by the movies last year.

5. Uyare: Parvathy leads another movie to positive criticism as well as positive word of mouth, as both the critics and the commoners approved of this movie as among the best. Telling the tale of an aspiring pilot who became a victim of acid attack, Parvathy excels in this role, as she did another real-life inspired movie, Take Off. There is fine support from Tovino Thomas, and Asif Ali is also there along with Anarkali Marakar. This inspirational story was one flick which couldn’t take any negative opinions, and ran in the theatres for a very long time, gaining more and more audience as time passed.
Read review: https://moviesofthesoul.com/2019/05/26/uyare/

4. Virus: The medical thriller is a step forward for Malayalam cinema, as this movie provides a fictionalized account of how the state of Kerala valiantly dealt with the Nipah Virus outbreak which claimed the lives of a number of people in the North of Kerala, especially Malappuram and Kozhikode. A huge number of leading actors including Tovino Thomas, Kunchacko Boban, Indrajith Sukumaran, Asif Ali, Joju George, Parvathy, Poornima Indrajith, Rima Kallingal, Sreenath Bhasi and others. The movie is an emotional and thrilling ride, as well as a tribute to those who suffered and lost their lives while trying to save the Nipah infected patients. It is a welcome experiment like never before.
Read review: https://moviesofthesoul.com/2019/06/08/virus/

3. Unda: This Mammootty starrer was made fun of due to its simple and yet strange title, something which the film makers wouldn’t have thought about on another day, related to another movie with the same theme. Dealing with the problems faced by cops who travel to a Naxal infested area, the movie doesn’t take sides, but satirizes the situation really well. Mammootty stays strong in this movie, and plays the vulnerable cop and leader nicely, and there is a lot of support here, starting from Shine Tom Chacko. The way in which the movie deals with its situation is worth one’s attention. It is that kind of a movie which could have a sequel with another mission for the police force.
Read review: https://moviesofthesoul.com/2019/06/16/unda/

2. Finals: Rajisha Vijayan already had another movie centered on her, June – she had also won the Best Actress Award from the State Government in her first movie itself. Finals is a step forward for her, even though it is not fully centered on her character. The other two giving her support are Niranj Maniyanpillai Raju and Suraaj Venjaramoodu, both also coming up with some fantastic performances. The former surely has a long way ahead for him after this emotionally strong performance, and the latter is once again a revelation in this kind of role – we saw him providing such emotional performances in Action Hero Biju and Thondimuthalum Driksakshiyum, and here we are even more glad to have him here.
Read review: https://moviesofthesoul.com/2019/09/14/finals/

1. Kumbalangi Nights: The best movie of this year won’t have the haters that the top ten movies usually have from the mindless fan boys who decide to have their part. Taking a perfect setting of the model tourism village Kumbalangi, and thriving through its beauty, this one comes up with a beautiful tale of the common man, powered by some fantastic performances lead by Fahadh Faasil, Shane Nigam, Soubin Shahir and the rest of the perfectly chosen cast. Unlike some of those movies with place names in their titles, this one is very much close to perfection – it has the spirit of its surrounding, and the people who live there. It is a tale of redemption and hope like no other.
Read review: https://moviesofthesoul.com/2019/02/09/kumbalangi-nights/

It would be nice to know your choices for the best Malayalam movies of the year so far. Even though there have been these brilliant movies, there was no shortage of some terrible movies, which would be nice to know about too. The hope once again is to move away from those usual terrible movies starring superstars without any content. We are always looking forward to experimentation, and lets hope that such experiments prove to be interesting, and inspire many more of such movies.

***Click here to go to the most recent movie review.

TeNy

Best of 2018 in a Moment

2018 had some interesting movies, and 2019 might be having even better ones. Until then, lets look at the best of last year. The Malayalam movies of the year had its highs and lows, and had no movie that would go on to break the Pulimurugan box-office record, even though at least two movies were expected to come close, but they didn’t. Still, these six movies are surely the kind of flicks that you can choose to watch without second thoughts. You have to give them a try, because they deserve it. We appreciate the efforts in creating the same. At the same time, we wait further glory in 2019 even though Kumbalangi Nights already brought a good amount of awesomeness already.

1. Joseph :: This is one big, pleasant surprise like no other movie. When it was said that Joju Joseph was going to be the protagonist of a thriller, people had their doubts. But with this movie, we understand that he is one great actor who was restricted to comedy as well as those certain police and thug roles. He has brought to us the best movie of the year with an investigative thriller which is also a highly emotional family drama, a combination which worked so well for everyone, and even scored further with its beautiful songs which we can’t watch without tears in our eyes. The whole movie itself has that sad feeling going right through, and it even comes home with us.
Read review at: https://moviesofthesoul.com/2018/11/18/joseph/

2. Kayamkulam Kochunni :: The tale of the thief who steals from the rich and gives to the poor is something that has stayed with us for a very long time. It is that story that we have heard since childhood and had so many adaptations in different fields. It might not be the one which everyone wanted, but the age has been nicely recreated and there are some moments of glory in there. It also rises above the other movie about the thief who helps the poor and the subaltern, Robin Hood, which struggled to do well, especially with its dumb portrayal of Little John and the wastage of its premise with silliness. Our thief here becomes a symbol of more than one thing, and we have to appreciate this effort.
Read review at: https://moviesofthesoul.com/2018/10/13/kayamkulam-kochunni/

3. Hey Jude :: This is the movie in which Nivin Pauly plays a character which is divergent from all those which he played until then, and it also has Trisha Krishnan in her Malayalam debut. Here, we can see that both have played the youngsters with certain not so normal side to perfection. Set in the beautiful Goa premises, this is the kind of movie that the so called superstars of next generation would hesitate to play, but it is not the case of Nivin Pauly who makes sure that Jude is one character who is there to stay.The songs are also very nice, and after Mili, here is one movie which shows a fine transformation of the main character who seemed like a misfit, but is actually more.
Read review at: https://moviesofthesoul.com/2018/02/03/hey-jude/

4. Oru Kuprasidha Payyan :: Tovino Thomas is one superstar who is one among us, and the same was proved during the Kerala Floods, as he was in the front for everything, among the crowd. He is also the one star who could rise to prominence by playing secondary roles like those in Ennu Ninte Moideen and the villain in Style. But here he is now, playing some roles which we are to remember, and this is one of them. He plays the outsider who has nobody to help him when facing trouble, and Nimisha Sajayan nicely plays the saviour. In a world of heroism, this one chooses another path, and it is that kind of a journey which is admirable and will stay with us for a long time.
Read review at: https://moviesofthesoul.com/2018/11/09/oru-kuprasidha-payyan/

5. Pretham 2 :: There are only a few movies which could claim improvement over its predecessors. Punyalan Agarbathis 2 and Aadu 2 starring the same leading actor failed to do so, but it is not the case of this particular sequel. It raises the level above the first movie, not just with its subject matter and setting, but also with the jokes which are used here – there were too many low level comedies in the first movie, but that has been solved effectively here. The young cast nicely contributes to the same while Jayasurya leads the way. There is mystery and suspense along with the horror that is present. It easily became the best movie of the Christmas season, and it deserves a sequel more than those other overrated ones.
Read review at: https://moviesofthesoul.com/2018/12/25/pretham-2/

6. Njan Prakashan :: As this one brings the usual tale of our new generation youngsters who are looking for easy money, we can see the characters here reflecting in our daily lives. Fahadh Faasil’s excellence on the lines of Maheshinte Prathikaaram helps the movie further, even though that level in totality is not to be expected. There is fun and there is the presence of emotions, as we see the change coming in the protagonist as he moves towards the final realization. With its fine messages and by quickly going on to become a favourite of the family audience, this one had a great run during the Christmas season and vacations, especially there was no real Onam vacations and celebrations due to the Kerala Floods.
Read review at: https://moviesofthesoul.com/2018/12/26/njan-prakashan/

***All images used in this blog post are from the Facebook pages of the movies or the actors performing in the same.

*Click here to go to the previous post.

TeNy

Best of 2017 in a Flash

2017 had its own interesting flicks to make things better, and among them, here are those which I found to be the best Malayalam movies of the year. Even though there might not have been a movie which would break all records, or would be considered as one of the greatest of them all, we surely had some excellent works. We all need more movies to be released so that the choices increase, but it is up to us to make sure that most of them will be watched, and will not get the negative result that they don’t deserve. These six are surely the kind of flicks that you can choose to watch without second thoughts.

1. Take Off :: Quoting from my own earlier post here: “This one is Malayalam movie industry’s answer to Airlift, but takes the time to get more out of the emotional side with a first half which establishes the main characters and the situation of the protagonist really well. Taking a page out of a real incident and adding the needed creativity, Take Off becomes the movie that is not easy to find fault with. There is Parvathy as the protagonist doing an excellent job, and there is Fahadh Faasil who gets things to be more intense in the second half. Kunchacko Boban remains serene with his act. The positive opinions received are all deserving.”
Read review at: http://moviesofthesoul.com/2017/03/26/take-off/

2. C/O Saira Banu :: Quoting from my own earlier post here: “This one is an interesting movie which moves from family drama to its twists after the half time. It deals with some interesting incidents which have happened in our society, and also leaves with a message along with an ending which comes as a pleasant surprise with a nice turn of events. It questions not only a past, but also the present and the future in a prejudiced society that we live in. Manju Warrier and Amala Akkineni are the ones who shine in this movie which will work for not just one category of viewers. Along with Rani Padmini and How Old Are You?, this one will be on the list of the best works of Manju Warrier after her grand return.”
Read review at: http://moviesofthesoul.com/2017/03/18/co-saira-banu/

3. Sakhavu :: There is the strength of ideology behind this movie, and it goes towards taking a righteous stand, especially when a political leader is concerned – on what the left ideals really mean, if they are implemented in the right way. The message is strong, and there is the presence of feel-good elements. Here, Nivin Pauly comes in two roles, and among the two, it is the new-age role that suits the best for him – the other role also demands him to play the elder version of the character, which also leaves a mark. There is the new generation social worker portrayed nicely with all the shortcuts of life which are taken, and there is the maturity of the old generation comrade, who has struggled so hard with everything in life for the party as well as the society.
Read review at: https://moviesofthesoul.com/2017/04/15/sakhavu/

4. Godha :: One quality that Godha has retained from the same director’s Kunjiramayanam is its quality in simplicity; as we look through these two movies, we see simple things made beautiful or memorable. The latter was all about making its comic side more and more effective while the former here works on delivering the inspiration on the big screen. In a world which is being swallowed by those sporting events which has more money and bigger heroes, there are the sports other than cricket which struggles to find a path towards attention, and Godha has certainly caught your eyes. Tovino has another big movie with Wamiqa debuting great in Malayalam.
Read review at: https://moviesofthesoul.com/2017/05/19/godha/

5. Tiyaan :: The thought-provoking moments of Tiyaan are intense, with that intensity like never before. The dialogues are stronger than ever, and we feel all the correct emotions in each of them, whether it is anger, hate, fear or grief. There are signs of what is to come from the beginning itself, and we feel how this is going to be something different, and it is. The whole thing remains a thought-provoking saga, and we are left with hope in a world which doesn’t have much of the same with almost everyone being hypocrites. There might be complexity within, but the final message is rather too simple, with all religions leading to one God, and love being the path.
Read review at: https://moviesofthesoul.com/2017/07/08/tiyaan/

6 Mayaanadhi :: As this one brings a new love story of this age, the melodrama never finds a seat. There is a realistic approach in this movie, and we never really gets tired of the same, even when the movie seems to get slow in between. We see how much people need each other, when things get better, or when they get terrible. The protagonists are two people who have struggled with their lives, and their world is something which is not difficult to relate as we understand their circumstances. There is the overall sadness in this movie, which seems to reflect on the depressing human condition which remains the same, no matter how the world changes. There are also some harsh realities reflected too, with either fate being so cruel, or the society being against the individual. Tovino and Aishwarya makes a wonderful pair.
Read review at: https://moviesofthesoul.com/2017/12/23/mayaanadhi/

***The images used in this blog post are from the official Facebook pages of these movies. Also read about this years movies, Hey Jude, Aadhi, Street Lights and Shikkari Shambhu. Also read about the best of music.

<— Click here to read the previous post.

TeNy

2017: Flashback with Music

*Here is the list of those which I consider to be the ten best songs in Malayalam from the year 2017.

10. Entammede Jimikki Kammal – Velipadinte Pusthakam
There is no need for an introduction to this song, and there is also no need to describe this one, as this particular song had risen above the movie itself. Then there was the performance by the students of the Indian School of Commerce at Kakkanad, who were dancing to this song, ‘Jimikki Kammal’ and it was one of the most watched videos on the site. The leading performers in the video, Sheril and Anna, had also become popular, with so many trolls following the same. The song was so popular that you just kept hearing it wherever you went, and schools and colleges were just full of dance performances with this song.

9. Thechille Penne – Role Models
This one might have been one movie which caught our attention in all those music channels, with that newly found evergreen “theppu” idea. The song was going to be instant hit for the youth, who have been looking for trolls to be added with this theme. The song, even though not that much suitable to the situation in the movie, looked well and sounded nice, staying in the playlist for long. The movie was kind of confused about its conent and about where to go, but managed enough to be there as mostly a fun movie, which wouldn’t justify its title except for being the name of a college group within the flick’s flashback.

8. Vaaniluyare – Vimaanam
Vimaanam is a sincere effort with noble intentions, and the same can be seen reflected in this song. Prithviraj Sukumaran – Durga Krishna pair is perfectly suited for this particular setting of this song, and the cuteness factor related to this one is rather high. With some wonderful visuals, watching this song with video transports us to that mood which is reflected the best in the video even better than the movie. Coming after Aby which dealt with the same theme, and with the youth’s attraction towards Aadu Oru Bheekara Jeeviyaanu 2, this one might not become that huge a hit as we had expected when it was first announced, but it is good, as is the music.

7. Ozhukiyozhuki – Oru Cinemakkaran
There was the certainty of confusion regarding this movie, which kept wandering through the genres, as romance, drama, thriller and murder mystery, mixing things up so much that it kept losing its essence here and there. But this particular video with Vineeth Sreenivasan and Rajisha Vijayan has no trouble, and it can be one of those factors which seemed to have attracted the audience to this which was not that much far away in quality from the rest of the movies which released at the same time, Avarude Raavukal and Role Models, all three of these movies having songs becoming part of this list.

6. Minnunnunde Mullapole – Tharangam
There are two songs with Tovino in this list, and the other song comes at the second spot, with “Ivalaaro” song from Oru Mexican Aparatha just missing the chance to be here on this list, dropping out of top ten with Maayanadhi and Vimaanam getting in there this week. This song was one of the reasons why this movie became the first preference to watch even with bigger movies releasing at the same time. One can even say that this song itself is a level above the movie itself. Tovino Thomas and Santhy Balachandran make a wonderful combination in this particular song, as you will notice early.

5. Ethetho Swapnamo – Avarude Raavukal
Taking us directly into that mood of the 1980s and 1990s which had some of those slow and beautiful – then there is Vinay Forrt who surprises with a different avatar than what we have been seeing from him. When you first hear it, you would feel that it is from the last century, and what a lot of people have felt was that new generation of movies will not have songs which have that special, slow, feeling, but they are proven to be wrong again with this song. Malayalam movie songs are not about the party music, and it is not about the pub culture which has people jumping and dancing with alcohol – our music is divergent in traditional mode too, as it is here.

4. The WOW song – Godha
Godha might be more or less the Dangal in the Malayalam movie industry, even though the mood here is not that serious, and is not that close to real events. As it dealt with wrestling, one might not have been expecting this kind of a song in between, but we have it, and just ahead of the other song in the same movie, “Aaro Nenjil”, this one with Wamiqa Gabbi at the centre of everything, was quick to steal many hearts. Battling and winning against an experimental movie Adventures of Omanakkuttan, Godha was a movie to look out for, not just with its content, but also with the music.

3. Uyirin Nadhiye – Mayaanadhi
Maayanadhi is one movie with a different feeling, and its divergent ways in portraying a love story is nicely reflected in this song itself. In rising about the fake love stories with claim to be real, like Annayum Rasoolum, and exaggerated tales of love based on real life incidents like Ennu Ninte Moideen, Mayaanadhi‘s success in doing the same is due to its music too, and this song is just one of them. With the whole movie being something like a river flowing smoothly, music like this, nicely contributes to the same. After you watch the movie, you will feel the strength of the song even more.

2. Arikil Ini Njan Varaam – Adam Joan
Along with this song and the one from Vimaanam, there are two other songs featuring Prithviraj Sukumaran which deserves to be somewhere in the list, which are “Lailakame” from Ezra, and “Eee Kaattu” from this movie itself, but sung by the star himself, this song gets the edge, as does “Entammede Jimikki Kammal” with its popularity. The song video becomes the reflection of the whole movie itself, with its visuals as well as the mood. Everything in the movie provides us with an idea of what is to come in the movie, and you can choose to watch this one with the flick itself, with those events.

1. Njan Varumee Paathayilaayi – Theeram
There has been a number of movies which didn’t get the attention, but managed to have some superhit songs in there, and along with this song, we also have “Njaanum Neeyum”, another delightful work which stayed on the top of the playlists for long. This Pranav Ratheesh – Maria Yohannan starrer has some amazing visuals to go with these songs, which if a reflection of the romantic movie, could mean a lot. But the movie disappeared from the theatres rather too fast with shows gone missing, and we had to wait for the DVD to release. This is my favourite song of the year and my ringtone on the mobile phone too.

+Merry Christmas and Happy New Year 🙂

Also read about the best of movies.

TeNy

The Ten Movie Commandments

It is during these times when there are more fans with hate than true lovers of movies, which has made me come up with the Ten Commandments for true movie lovers, that I had earlier posted on Facebook. We have had fans of actors and actresses spreading hatred all over the internet earlier, and now it has been replaced by the fans of movies, which is clearly reflected in the abuse which the Baahubali fans have been producing all over. This makes one wonder if they actually get paid for abusing others by someone related to the movie, and only God knows why they are feeling so insecure to bring those sexist and racist comments even with such huge box-office collections. So, here are the commandments which will be helpful in finding the original movie lovers among us, and all statements will start with “Will” in honour of Will Smith 😛

1. Will have more than one all-time favourite movie different from the crowd: Well, it is not necessary to love a movie just because it comes from your language, your state, your country or religion, and most brainless people are to feel that one movie is the best because a lot of people are saying that, but it is not, for things are rather subjective.

2. Will appreciate the choice of others not to watch a movie, or not to like one particular popular movie: You will surely have to get rid of these people who keep forcing you to watch a movie or to tell someone else that you like this movie so much, when you don’t. They are playing with your free will, and just ban them from your lives.

3. Will feel no need to watch a movie just due to everyone else watching it: Okay, so everyone says that this movie is so great, and that if you don’t watch it, you will miss something great in your life. Well, this is pathetic thinking, and a third rate way of making others watch a movie – these people are mostly fakes, as one movie is certainly not life.

4. Will not like a movie just because it has his/her favourite actor/actress: Some actors feel the need to be treated as VIPs and sometimes, they just say that they are also common man. Then there are those fans which are so dumb that they keep on believing all those lies which are thrown at them. Movies make stars, and not the other way around.

5. Will not keep talking for about 100 times on how great a movie is: Yes, this movie is the greatest movie of all-time and you need to watch it – they will keep saying all the time, not just by mouth, but also on different posts for no reason. They need to be sent to Antarctica immediately, because there are more significant things in life.

6. Will not reveal the big suspense of a movie publicly: Some people are just too much into revealing the suspense of a movie for no reason; maybe they like some other actor who hasn’t acted in that particular movie. But this selfish act has no explanation; it is nothing that a true movie fan should do.

7. Will not abuse or support abuse of other movie fans: You have no right to abuse people for not liking the movie which you feel is the greatest – maybe you are just dumb that you liked that movie; it doesn’t matter if you have a whole nation liking the same movie, because the whole world can be wrong. Abusing and supporting the same is just pure evil.

8. Will support the other viewers’ right to have opinions: Why is that you want everyone to accept that your favourite movie as the greatest movie of all-time? Instead, it will be nice to grow up and not keep showing up on others’ posts to say that, especially on those strangers’ profiles as if the director or producer of a movie is paying you to overrate a movie.

9. Will not pretend to like a movie just to seem cool: People who likes this movie is cool, so thinks your friends. But you don’t need to be dumb and like the movie just for that reason. You just need to like the movie if you like it. Otherwise, you are just being an idiot with no real opinion about the movie or anything in life.

10. Will be a good boy/girl at the theatre causing no disturbance: There are people in those movie halls who are just nuisance and nothing else. There are those who howl, clap or make other noises in the halls – there are others who just abuse, and we also have those who talk loudly along with the ones who spit, put the legs on front seats etc – all need to be expelled.

TeNy

Of More Love or Half of It

The sixth novel from Chetan Bhagat has its movie adaptation all set to release on 19th of May 2017, and the social media has been talking about it all the time. What it has done to our world is to provide the idea of a “half girlfriend”, or “half relationship”, which is expected to become an even more common term with the release of the movie starring Arjun Kapoor and Shraddha Kapoor. Even though the term feels new, the basic idea of being more than friends, but not a girlfriend is not something new in an Indian scenario with the lack of clarity over the relationships between boys and girls.

It is even possible with the love stories that stand the test of time, as the same begins as something insignificant, becomes a relationship which can’t be named, and then goes on to become something more interesting. It is during this phase during which it becomes something that can’t be named, that we have the case of a half relationship, and it was always there with no name attributed to it. I remember more than one case with such a situation, related to friends, cousins, neighbours and from parts of those tales from schools and colleges which are told by someone we know.

Long ago, there were these two people, this boy and girl who competed for the first rank in the class. These two have been so strong with the evil subjects like Mathematics that one case of full marks in it pushed me directly to the third. I had always found them united in Mathematics, a quality which they had carried over to the higher classes. For me, Mathematics was a dangerous thing, and being united in it felt strange; there was no Romeo and Juliet in Mathematics, I had thought. But the way in which they competed and helped each other in the subject meant that they were so good in the subject and complimented one another.

I wished that I could score better in the languages, but the highest one could score for English was about five marks less than hundred, and a higher level of marks was not yet invented for Malayalam – my Hindi was only at the developing stage with new Bollywood movies being watched; so they held the top two positions for very long. By the time we were about to leave the school, all the students in the class were certain that there was something between them, a force which couldn’t be named, as the term “half relationship” was not invented yet – but the news just spread across the school, and everyone seemed to be confident that they were more than just friends.

Both of them found it quite easy to deny the same, and the girl could actually deny such an allegation with more ease – maybe the boy would have accepted it as truth if forced to, but the exams were approaching quickly and people went on with it. The two possible half lovers were not seen together much after that though, and some other girl who had half love for Physics and Chemistry had topped the class. There was not much heard about the Mathematics couple after that, and they finished further down in the ranks; most people blamed it on the tough Mathematics paper and the rest on a half relationship which was rumoured to be there.

Then, many years later, one day, while having Vegetable Puffs and Blackcurrant Shake at Navya Bakers which has been my favourite bakers for quite some time, someone called me by my name. The stranger told me that I hadn’t changed a bit from school, and I said to him that it is because I had shaved, and otherwise he would have to search for my face inside the beard. I also told him that whoever he is, has really changed, and I won’t be recognizing him without help. He introduced himself with a Mathematics problem, and even though I wanted to run away with the evil subject beginning to attacking me again, recognized him easily.

He was talking a lot about balancing the equation, and when the girl with him joined the conversation, I understood the fact – the Mathematical couple was together again; what was a half a relationship had become full in marriage. Well, that would solve their life’s equations with ease, I thought. They had found each other again while doing MTech again, and with her repeating for engineering twice, he had two extra years to get settled in life and ask for her and in marriage; the community and religion being the same, and the half equation had become full. I ordered one pista shake as his treat and wished them best of luck, and hoped that all which were half, would become full again – half girlfriend to full girlfriend, half lover to full lover, and all things finally complete with marriage. Even now, when I see the equations of Mathematics, I remember two special equations which went on to solve the problem themselves.

I am sharing a Half relationship story at BlogAdda in association with #HalfGirlfriend.

TeNy

Half and Quarter Relationships

The college days have so many things happening out there. Well, it is the nature of the campus to keep something or the other happening all the time, ensuring that there is no dull moment. There are so many stories that the classrooms, the trees and even the library and the canteen will have to tell. Some people try hard to create something, and sometimes these stories just take birth out of nowhere. By the end of your time at the college, you think that you have heard and witnessed them all, but that is neither end or the beginning of the end, as the tales shall continue.

The stories of girls who elope with someone working at the canteen, the driver of the auto-rickshaw bringing vegetables to the canteen, or the security guard might come quite natural, but that would make the tale that of full girlfriends and wives. There are also so many love stories that learning about the love stories in just one department will need a lot of energy and concentration. A very few get married later, and the rest will have love disappearing. Then there are those half relationships – they should considered a separate section, and could be part of a deeper study, and even between them, there are so many sub-sections.

Among all the half girlfriends, let us focus on one, which can be termed as a quarter relationship at times, but it more half, if we join the two quarters together. It never really reached the three quarters, and so we can take it as the half relationship. It was those times when I considered myself too good to fall in love, and it was a reputation that I wanted to maintain, being on good terms with everyone, with the students, teachers, books, and even those trees which gave some nice shades to sit under them. There were quiz programmes, seminars and the rest, but for some others, there were more to do which included not much of these mentioned.

There were my juniors whom I had met due to a seminar being conducted under our department – otherwise, I was not that much into meeting new people unless they were characters part of the curriculum. They were the kind of people whom you would see everywhere, and they were also the type that you would only see together. They were people transformed into siamese twins by whatever was termed as love by every common student that was witness to this togetherness. The list of places which they were only seen with each other and nobody else was getting longer.

I also met them together, on the steps, and so not inside the building or outside it. I had already seen them multiple times in the canteen, but as I had dedicated that time to my special cup of tea, it never counted. As I approached to meet them, they increased the distance between them by a few centimeters, and they introduced each other as random classmates working together for the seminar. In a seminar with Shakespeare related topics including Romeo and Juliet, they were going to procrastinate things like in Hamlet, and seemed to be in the half relationship in a state of “to be or not to be”.

I think that they were pretty much confident about where this was heading, and they always had the backup plan, to deny that this was ever going to proceed further than a half relationship. It was more like taking the safe way out, as even though they were united with one religion, they were divided by community. They were caught in between, and being at the safe zone meant being in the half relationship. The half girlfriend proved to be the right choice for him with only a few days to go before the classes ended, project and exams followed, and they went separate ways.

Years have passed now, and maybe they have realized that having a half girlfriend or half boyfriend was not the way to go, just in the name of satisfying society. Maybe they are just happy that this half relationship is gone, and parents and relatives know better. We can’t be sure about that, as only time and fate and tell these stories better than us. We just play along, and hope that all things happen for the best reasons. I couldn’t find either of the two in Facebook, Twitter or Instagram, and I wish that they found the best partners, and none of them was another half or quarter relationship after marriage. I am pretty sure that these two are not going to miss Half Girlfriend when it releases.

I am sharing a Half relationship story at BlogAdda in association with #HalfGirlfriend

TeNy