Saroja, Scissors Nikalo…

Posted by Srikanth Srinivasan as Ajay, All Posts, Babu, Charan, Chennai 600028, Ganesh, Jayaram, Kollywood, Little Miss Sunshine, Nikita, Ravichandran, Review, Road movie, Sampath, Saroja, Saroja review, Thriller, Unnai Charanadainthen, Vaibhav, Venkat Prabhu. Premji, Yuvan Shankar Raja, film review, kalyANi, prakashraj, shiva


saroja

Saroja: From Class to Crass…

Riding on the huge success of Chennai 600028 and on huge expectations from the young crowd, Venkat Prabhu has set out on his new flick Saroja. Much has been spoken about the closely knit team and the boundless enthusiasm that they share. That is a good thing for with a good team comes a great working atmosphere. Unfortunately, Saroja seems to be caught between the choices of being so fascinatingly funny as in Chennai 600028 and the “need” to be different from its predecessor.

The plot spans one day in the lives of four laymen visibly heading towards their thirties, Ajay (Shiva), Ganesh (Premji) and the Babu Brothers (Charan and Vaibhav), who have planned to see a cricket match in Hyderabad. They set out on their bizarre vehicle on to the Hyderabad highway carrying along with them booze in hand and songs on lips. All is fresh and fun at this point and one can be hasty to label it the Indian reply to Easy Rider (1969) or more recently Little Miss Sunshine (2006). The group comes to a scene of accident and is forced to go through a different route. Thanks to the chutzpah of the lead, they take a wrong turn and so does the story.

There is also a parallel thread involving troubled businessman Viswanathan (Prakashraj) whose daughter, the nocturnal titular character, gets kidnapped and solicits the help of police officer Ravichandran (Jayaram) to save her. As events go from bad to worse, the four try to save their skin and return home, in the process meeting the hostage Saroja (Vega), at a pirate factory run by the hoodlum Sampath (Sampath). Additionally, there is a sub-plot involving Sampath and his lover Kalyani (Nikita) using which the filmmakers perhaps intended to portray the character’s depth. And that don’t work man! He is nothing but a textbook stereotype and a photocopy of himself from Polladhavan (2008) and Velli Thirai (2008).

After this point the film goes on. And goes on. And goes on. And goes on…And by the time the supposed-to-be all important scene nears, nobody cares. If you repeat a bad joke over and over, it eventually becomes hilarious. And if you repeat a good one over and over, it becomes sickening. Premji’s typically Kodambakkam attitude and surreal visions are amusing to begin with but as the film meanders, his lines are totally out of place and one feels that he should have had a “I’m just the token jackass required for comic relief” T-shirt on. The Dil Chahta Hai-esque magic that the friends shared in the first half hour is completely lost and one craves for those moments again.

I get the idea that a hand held camera enhances the restlessness and the thrill of a scene, but come on. Almost whole of the hour long showdown is presented in the headache inducing format and the clichéd rapid cuts are nothing but nauseating. And the editor’s scissors seem to be jammed at the most important places. On the positives, everything that takes place in daylight seems so close to heart and has the power to charm any audience. Only the end credits offer any consolation for the unwarranted kidnapping of those moments.

It is saddening to see a film that sets out as a fresh concept and ends up in the gutter of the bandwagon. In some ways, I am reminded of Chimbudevan’s decline after his charming debut in Pulikesi (2007). Venkat Prabhu looked consistent with his couple of films before this one and has ended up, fortunately, marginally better than the former. Let’s hope his penchant for depicting effortless ease among friends remains unmitigated and we get to see a real stunner next time around.

Verdict:

      

Popularity: 7%



September 28, 2008 | Filed Under Ajay, All Posts, Babu, Charan, Chennai 600028, Ganesh, Jayaram, Kollywood, Little Miss Sunshine, Nikita, Ravichandran, Review, Road movie, Sampath, Saroja, Saroja review, Thriller, Unnai Charanadainthen, Vaibhav, Venkat Prabhu. Premji, Yuvan Shankar Raja, film review, kalyANi, prakashraj, shiva | Comments Off 

Sa-Ro-Ja - Bull’s Eye

Posted by as Saroja, Saroja review, Venkat Prabhu

First things first. This movie proves that Chennai-28 was no flash in the pan for Venkat Prabhu. This man is really creating a niche for himself. His movies have that youthful feeling to them, that anyone can identify with it so well. So very local as far as the theme is concerned but the technical expertise is really world class.



Warning: Possible Spoilers Ahead



THE PLOT:



This is about a group of four friends who are in the wrong place at the wrong time. The film starts of with the number starring Yuvan Shankar Raja that says “Lets get Cheeky”- true this one is cheeky. The first few scenes show who is related to whom and in what way and then it gets to the main story. A day or rather should I say a night in the life of these guys. The leads are Jagapathi Babu (SPB Charan), his brother Ram Babu (Vaibhav), Tv soap actor Ajay (Mirchi Siva) and the lovable (yet lovelorn) Ganesh Kumar (Premgi Amaran). Ajay is betrothed to Kajal agarwal and what follows is a out of place song with all small screen artistes dancing to Yuvan’s tune. The film picks up tempo when the four guys start of to Hyderabad to watch the India Pakistan match. Right from the beginning the film revels in the frequent digs and one liners from Premgi. If it was “Enna koduma sir ithu” in Chennai-28 here it is “ Evlavo pannittom itha panna mattoma?”. To add to it there is the Bharathiraja movie spoof element of “Angels of love”(kaadal thevathaigal) clad in white, circling around the girls he sets an eye on. There is more- like the karagattkaran music when the van they travel is introduced, and the telebrands style advertisement when siva explains the van’s features.



The friends then set off to Hyderabad and find themselves in a dilapidated warehouse ( Binny mills again) when they take a detour because of a road block. Suddenly in a succession of events they are stranded amidst a gang that holds Saroja as ransom for 20 crores from her father Vishwanathan (PrakashRaj). Though the quartet manage to escape they come back for a trifling of a reason namely Charan’s wallet. What follows is wild goose chase after the four try to save the girl Saroja. Though most of the film is shot in darkness the shots are clear at least to the basic details. The movies winds up to a twist of a climax. The scene with the booby traps that get the better of the villain gang is a little too far fetched but forgivable.



Jayaram as the Asst. Commissioner is very apt. and more so are the artistes in minor characters. Nikitha is wasted except for a item number.



On the whole the movie is a thrilling experience with a subtle undercurrent of humor running. There is no single serious moment that isn’t made light with gibes.



THE CAST:



Mirchi Siva is very apt. He has a knack of making himself sound funny with his diction. He provides nice support to Premgi. Fortunately there is no particular occasion where his acting skills are really required and he manages to get through unscathed.



Vaibhav is the new find and he is smart. A nice telugu hero material. He has the build for a action hero. And his character offers ample scope for his talent.



SPB Charan is the surprise elemnt. I have never considered him to be a good actor but he really scores in Saroja. Be it humor or pathos, he has given his best and it is commendable.



Premgi is easily the best of the four. Funny all the way. His unsteady love for every girl in town gives lot of room for unending laughter. He carries the humor element of the movie single handedly in some parts.



Praksah Raj as usual is excellent. The very enterprising businessman who has no time for his daughter or family. The scene where he expresses to his wife, the love for his family with a short film of his daughter running in the background is just plain wonderful. In fact though he appears calm throughout the kidnap drama, he breaksdown at a stage.



Saroja (don’t remember the girl’s name though) has a expressive face. And she does her bidding.



Jayaram is the pick of the lot. He impresses form the beginning to the climax. He has come a long way from being the hero to such roles. And he has way to go.



Cinematography is by Sakthi Saravanan. Though almost 85% of the movie is in darkness it doesn’t pain your eyes. The canning is candid. Half the time it is hand held running behind the leads. Nice work there.



Music by Yuvan Shankar Raja is pathetic. Only Dost Bada Dost and Kodana kodi stand out in the lot. Re recording is quite good.



Editing by suresh is a highlight. On spot editing(Avid) is a very difficult art and is handled well.



Venkat Prabhu can now settle down for a breather because he has hit the bull’s eye second time around. Lets hope he keeps it going.



P.S: Sorry if the review is too long. Wanted to scribble whatever I had noted bout the movie.

Popularity: 2%



September 8, 2008 | Filed Under Saroja, Saroja review, Venkat Prabhu | Comments Off