I walked into the theatre that screened Kalloori only because we didn't get the tickets for Billa on the first day night show. But 10 minutes into the movie, I felt strongly that this was the kind of movie one should pay to watch in a theatre. Sad state of affairs in Indian cinema, or perhaps worldwide cinema itself that such ventures don't get their deserved success.
Balaji Sakthivel, the director whose debut was through Kaadhal, a movie which thankfully and infact so wonderfully paid the best possible tribute to the word "love", has in his second movie paid a better tribute to college life, friendship and love again in so heart-wrenching and heart-warming a manner that even guys who originally went to watch Billa came back very satisfied. One wishes directors like S.S.Stanley watch this movie and realise what kind of trash their movies about college life were. The cast of the movie, all new faces except for the heroine Tamanna have all fit the roles like a glove. Don't read Tamanna doesn't fit the role. I mean she's the only one whose face is not new. The casting director deserves many accolades for having found so many new faces for so many roles. It has to be admitted however that such a movie can only be made with new faces.
The characterisation is so very special, making one identify or empathise with each and every character in the movie. Kayalvili stands out with her relentless support of the myth that guys and girls can be friends. It can be said that the first half of the movie rolls mainly on this theme, of the possibility of friendship between a guy and a girl. No other movie has portrayed the debate so beautifully. Several issues are touched upon - that it's the eye of the society that perceives the intimacy between a guy and a girl to be something other than friendship, that women should be treated as equal to men("oru ponna saga manushiya paakka therinjiko" is the precise line that rings through the ears often), the significance of physical touch in a relationship. It doesn't take too long for "When Harry met Sally" fans like me to understand that our side is going to win the debate in the movie. It is but natural that love blossoms between the hero and the heroine, first one-way and then mutually. The song, "Sariya idhu thavara" adds depth to the whole debate both through lyrics and through the visuals, while "Nee aruge varugaiyil" glorifies the crass term "kadalai" to such a large extent that anybody who argues that there's no real fun in chatting continuosuly with a person of the other sex, will understand why there's so much longing for a girlfriend/boyfriend.
Moving to something other than relationships or atleast non-familial relationships, I must say I haven't seen a more adorable younger sister than the one I saw in Kalloori. The little sister of Muthu, man, she killed me, in Holden Caulfield's words. When such small roles invoke such feelings, one has to believe it is a fantastic movie that you've come to see. The comedy track has two characters whose only lines are "Kaekkaraangalla", "Yaen neenga sollamaateengala", "yaen neenga solradhu" give you a feeling of annoyance initially, but as the movie proceeds, it is but amazing that you find yourself laughing aloud with the whole group at their antics. The concept could have been utilised well in a ragging scene. I tend to feel this thought would certainly have occurred to the director as well, but I guess he might have shunned the idea because in a ragging scene the reaction it would have invoked in the seniors would have been something that could not have been shown uncensored on screen.
Coming to the climax, it seems rather rushed without emphasising much on the true personal tragedy that such an event would have invoked, and the cause seems somewhat lost. All the anger that the director would have ideally wished to convey seem to have been suppressed due to political undertones and repercussions.
To sum it up, lovely is the word. A must-watch for lovers of good cinema and non-believers of the myth(believers as well, of course). One can expect more quality fare from the director whom a commercial masterdirector like Shanker so ingeniously trusted in to deliver a quality movie a second time.
Balaji Sakthivel, the director whose debut was through Kaadhal, a movie which thankfully and infact so wonderfully paid the best possible tribute to the word "love", has in his second movie paid a better tribute to college life, friendship and love again in so heart-wrenching and heart-warming a manner that even guys who originally went to watch Billa came back very satisfied. One wishes directors like S.S.Stanley watch this movie and realise what kind of trash their movies about college life were. The cast of the movie, all new faces except for the heroine Tamanna have all fit the roles like a glove. Don't read Tamanna doesn't fit the role. I mean she's the only one whose face is not new. The casting director deserves many accolades for having found so many new faces for so many roles. It has to be admitted however that such a movie can only be made with new faces.
The characterisation is so very special, making one identify or empathise with each and every character in the movie. Kayalvili stands out with her relentless support of the myth that guys and girls can be friends. It can be said that the first half of the movie rolls mainly on this theme, of the possibility of friendship between a guy and a girl. No other movie has portrayed the debate so beautifully. Several issues are touched upon - that it's the eye of the society that perceives the intimacy between a guy and a girl to be something other than friendship, that women should be treated as equal to men("oru ponna saga manushiya paakka therinjiko" is the precise line that rings through the ears often), the significance of physical touch in a relationship. It doesn't take too long for "When Harry met Sally" fans like me to understand that our side is going to win the debate in the movie. It is but natural that love blossoms between the hero and the heroine, first one-way and then mutually. The song, "Sariya idhu thavara" adds depth to the whole debate both through lyrics and through the visuals, while "Nee aruge varugaiyil" glorifies the crass term "kadalai" to such a large extent that anybody who argues that there's no real fun in chatting continuosuly with a person of the other sex, will understand why there's so much longing for a girlfriend/boyfriend.
Moving to something other than relationships or atleast non-familial relationships, I must say I haven't seen a more adorable younger sister than the one I saw in Kalloori. The little sister of Muthu, man, she killed me, in Holden Caulfield's words. When such small roles invoke such feelings, one has to believe it is a fantastic movie that you've come to see. The comedy track has two characters whose only lines are "Kaekkaraangalla", "Yaen neenga sollamaateengala", "yaen neenga solradhu" give you a feeling of annoyance initially, but as the movie proceeds, it is but amazing that you find yourself laughing aloud with the whole group at their antics. The concept could have been utilised well in a ragging scene. I tend to feel this thought would certainly have occurred to the director as well, but I guess he might have shunned the idea because in a ragging scene the reaction it would have invoked in the seniors would have been something that could not have been shown uncensored on screen.
Coming to the climax, it seems rather rushed without emphasising much on the true personal tragedy that such an event would have invoked, and the cause seems somewhat lost. All the anger that the director would have ideally wished to convey seem to have been suppressed due to political undertones and repercussions.
To sum it up, lovely is the word. A must-watch for lovers of good cinema and non-believers of the myth(believers as well, of course). One can expect more quality fare from the director whom a commercial masterdirector like Shanker so ingeniously trusted in to deliver a quality movie a second time.
