A peep into the songs of Enthiran!

I run the risk of giving out a review on an album of Rahman on the very day of its release. A few days might be all that would take for my own self to contradict with whatever I feel now. Still I am continuing with it for two reasons:
1. I have got nothing else worthwhile to do at this time of the day.
2. I somehow feel this is one album which wouldn’t grow on the listener as well as the past ones as there is not much mesmerising/creative stuff which has the tendency to grow on the listener. The first impression would stay for Enthiran.

Off to the review after a look at the spiked-wig!

Pudhiya Manidhaa (SPB,AR Rahman)
This one begins slowly , gains tempo and some beats on the way and the ritual of SPB singing for Rajni happens – Only this time in a song that isn’t to appeal to the senses of the masses. The initial part of the song has all robot / machine sounds sprinkled all over it. You almost get to hear all sounds that are part of the Science Desktop theme of Windows 98! It gets better when SPB starts his show. He shows why he is still the Boss managing high pitch & low pitch stuff with absolute ease. There are a lot of filler lines though, and the lines go astray with respect to the tune – The song just passes muster. I can’t help thinking how so much of sophistication can still not win over Ilaiyaraja’s simple Vikram..Vikram which falls in the same category.

Kadhal Anukkal (Vijay Prakash,Shreya Ghoshal)
The guitar bit & organ have unmistakable resemblance to Rang De Basanti’s Luka Chuppi & Yuvvraaj’s Zindagi respectively. This kind of repetition is something I have not observed much with Rahman and it was disappointing. Some novel interludes and lively renditions from Vijay Prakash and Shreya Ghoshal save this song to make it fall in the ‘listenable’ category.

Irumbile Or Irudhayam (AR Rahman,Kash n Krissy)
This song falls in the genre of songs you get to listen to when you do shopping in one of those posh cloth stores! It is definitely a new kind for tamil songs and Rahman has pulled it off decently. Still, that kind of music doesn’t seem to go well with Tamil lyrics and there surely is a disconnect even though Rahman gives an invigorating rendition. I wish he doesn’t repeat attempts of this type.

Arima Arima (Hariharan, Sadhana Sargam)
My pick of this album. This song has grandeur written all over it. One could imagine how huge Shankar would have picturised this song singing praises of the hero. Hariharan’s vigorous singing, ably supported by Sadhana Sargam helps the song’s cause. The chorus portions add oomph to the minutes. This probably is the ‘Mudhalvane..vane’ of Enthiran.

Boom Boom Robo Da (Pradeep Vijay,Pravin Mani, Yogi B)
This is THAT song in the album where Rahman rules with his techno stuff. A rap, interspersed with violin & piano orchestrations and if that is not enough to bowl you over, there is a good dose of Jathis sung in Slumdog Millionaire’s Liquid Planes style.Thumbs high up! Credits to Pravin Mani as he is accredited to the additional arrangements in the album cover.

Boom Boom Robo Da (Yogi B, Keerthi,Swetha,Tanvi)
This one is distinct from the the other version of Boom Boom Robo. With some stylish beats, santour , latino sounds and heavy metal for support, the crooner carries the main portion in style. The sudden change in ragam in both the stanzas is a pleasing shocker. Yogi B does the rapping. I am not a big fan of his. He brings déjà vu and I would have preferred to listen to Blazee’s crooning of the rap anyday.

Kilimanjaro (Javed Ali,Chinmayi)
This one is a run-of-the-mill Rahman duet but the fact that an ordinary Rahman duet can be as enticing as the best of others stands testimony to the heights the man has scaled. One interesting thing in this song is the smartly rhymed verses. The humming is typical Psycho stuff Rahman brings now and again – the choice of hums being enjoyable & puzzling at the same time.

Rahman started 2010 stretching the limits of the romance genre like only he can with insanely versatile songs in Vinnai Thaandi Varuvaaya. He followed that up with a woods-centric album in Raavanan/Raavan that suited the film’s needs to a T. He is probably signing off the year with Enthiran and I can’t help feeling that he is doing it on a low considering the quality of the other two albums. Make no mistake, the tunes are commercially viable and will definitely be a rage among the audience.
While fans of Rajnikanth can rejoice, Rahmaniacs would be left wanting more!

Two line Reviews - #64

Movie: Sunset Boulevard (1950)



Claps:

• The narrative style employed.
• Gloria Swanson’s show as the insanely self-obsessive actress Norma Desmond.
• The elegance of Holden as the failed script-writer Joe Gillis & the supporting role of Max.

Blips:

• Gillis gets into Norma’s house easily, so easily even for an accident.
• The film is a bit over-dramatic - as much as its lead role player Norma is.

Overall Score – 9.1/10

Two line Reviews - #63

Movie: Little Miss Sunshine (2006)



Claps:

• A beauty pageant contestant kid,a dad who can't take failure, an hen-pecked mom,a brother who vows silence for his aspiration, a 'suicide-attempt case' uncle & a drug-addict grandfather on a ROAD TRIP to a beauty contest! That cannot be anything but interesting.
• The intermittent fun in the proceedings.
• Dwayne's dream-crash & the scene that ensues.

Blips:

• The climax, though it tries to make a mockery of the significance of such shows in the midst of harsh realities of life, looks unconvincing.

Overall Score - 9.2/10

Two line Reviews - #62

Movie: Marley & Me (2008)



Claps:

• I've not raised a pet dog,yet, this film shook me. I can only imagine how great an experience would this film be for someone who has raised a pet.
• The little one, the grown-up version & the old sick one - The dogs that play Marley-the labrador through all its stages.
• Owen Wilson - Marley bonding. Connects us to the film.
• The shattering yet poetic climax.
• The way the John family adores their prized possession - First the couple & then the kids.

Blips:

• It needed more than a change in hairstyle to show the Owen-Aniston couple grow older as the film progresses.

Overall Score - 9.3/10

Two line Reviews - #61

I'm back!
Movie: It's a Wonderful Life (1946)



Claps:

• It is a wonderful film; The fact that it released in 1946 makes me wonder if it were the inspiration for all those 'hero sacrifices his dreams for the good of ppl around him'films in all languages. But that story has been told beautifully - A shot of positive current is injected into the viewer when the film ends.
• The angel A C-2 connects with us instantly and that causes the impact when the screen shows "Remember,No man is a failure who has friends.Thanks for the wings!"
• The unusual turn-around after Bailey wishes to commit suicide.
• James Stewart's performance - That too when he vents his frustrations after breaking down.

Blips:

• Harry & Potter characters get hyped up and fall flat.

Overall Score - 9.4/10

That little tribute Muralitharan deserves!

The hustling run-up, inquisitive eyes, peculiar release, innumerable revolutions on the red cherry ,the crazy turn it undergoes on the pitch, the shake of the timber, a baffled batsman and an everlasting grin on the face of the architect will all be missed now that Muttiah Muralitharan has bid adieu to Test Cricket.

To be honest I was of the opinion that he would make the same mistake Kapil Dev did – Prolong his career for the sake of a record and get banged by debutants and lose the command over a glittering career. But that was not to be. Murali made a very good decision to quit setting an 800 in mind , an 8 in mind for his final test and conquering the frontier in fairytale style.

It made me feel happy to read the heaps of praises & tributes from the likes of Shane Warne, Wasim Akram, Arjuna Ranatunga – The man who stood by Murali in the toughest of times. If there was only one guy who deserved all the praise – it was Muralitharan. To be the most prolific bowler in Test and ODI history is no mean feat. But he has bettered that reaching a tally that nobody feels would ever be conquered. So his records would stay for an eternity – atleast the tally of 800 in tests.

I have to agree that I have been a bigger fan of Warne than of Murali and have always chosen the Warne side of the Murali-Warne lunchtime debates for reasons that Warne had dominated quality oppositions;not that Murali had not. He had a bagful of wickets in the subcontinent and also against minnows like Bangladesh. He was second, but not a distant second in my list. But that list was just about skills.When it comes to a list on behavior on/off the field, Muralitharan would be right on top with no superstar cricketer staying anywhere close to him. People might say Kumble was humble. If Kumble was humble, Muralitharan was a saint! I have never seen him hold grudge against any batsman – even if it was very much justifiable for him to do so considering the kind of reception he received in Australia every time he was there after Darrell Hair called him for chucking. He enjoys his wickets very much but what he shows is just happiness, not the insane irate stuff we get to see off a Harbhajan Singh who too has had his share from the Aussies.

Even now he takes the decisions of umpires against his action in his stride and says
“You can’t say they did the wrong thing.In their minds, they thought what I did was wrong.There is a fair trial and I passed that”.
How well did he pass the embarrassing biometric tests that made it look Cricket belonged to Australia like how it belongs to India.

Muralitharan’s humility goes to a point of being faulty when he says
“At the end of the day it’s a game and people come and go.Someone will replace me and do something similar”.

I would say that is possible only if Christopher Nolan, with his Cobb, goes and plants this idea into the minds of everybody following cricket and makes someone hit the 801 in their dreams.

Two line Reviews - #60

Movie: Before Sunrise (1995)



Claps:
If romantic films can be this good, I'l definitely watch a lot more in that genre.
The lifelike performances of Ethan Hawke & Julie Delpy - They make this one day ride absolutely believable.
The wonderful,wonderful dialogs - Terrific undercurrent of philosophy in most of the conversations.

Blips:
Nothing on the surface.

Overall Score - 9.0/10

Two line Reviews - #59

Movie: The Boy in the Striped Pajamas (2008)



Claps:
Another Nazi-Jew story; only this time it comes from the perspective of a kid - an interesting watch.
The innocence in the character of Bruno.Climax accentuates the effect.
The character & the looks of Schmuel - The boy in the striped pajama.

Blips:
The background music could and should have been better.

Overall Score - 9.4/10

Two line Reviews - #58

Movie: The Grapes of Wrath (1940)



Claps:
A moving family drama that depicts the struggles of a family in the era of US Depression while trying to move from Oklahoma to California in search of a job when forced to move off their land.
The family - a proud one at that, inspiring final words of Ma towards the end.
Henry Fonda - He plays his role of a responsible son turned rebel with aplomb.

Blips:
The film takes a detour just before it hits the climax. There is some drop in tempo.
The way Fonda arrives from penitentiary exactly on the day his family is california-bound is too much for a coincidence.

Overall Score: 9.3/10

Two line Reviews - #57

Movie: The Night of the Hunter (1955)



Claps:
The villainous role that Robert Mitchum plays as a preacher.
A kid again - Has a mature role to play and he does it at ease.
The touchy climax portions

Blips:
The chaser is efficient in pursuit but keeps falling at the final hurdle every single time.
The fuss was a bit too much for the treasure in pursuit.

Overall Score: 9.2/10