With the Orthopaedician prescribing for one week, “Walk only when necessary, and not just for walking”, it was movies and webseries all the way.
Good Wife, Tamil, Jiohotstar: An adaption of The Good Wife in English, this is directed by Revathy, the seasoned Tamil actress. Professionalism, and follow the story line with a blinker seem her hallmark. Engaging and moves swiftly. Priyamani dons her role to a T. There couldn’t have been a better choice than Sampath Raj as her screen-husband with shades of doubt about his fidelity and his repeated reassurances that he has been true to her. 3/5.
Criminal Justice Season 4, Hindi, Jiohotstar. Truth be told, after Season 1 and 2, I gave up without being able to ascribe any plausible reason. But on pressure from friends watched Season 4. Pankaj Tripathi carries himself with ease in his role as the Defence lawyer. His rustic Hindi diction, uttered with casualness, wins the heart of the audience. Mita Vashisht as yet another defence lawyer, did a good account of herself.
On the flip side, it was a little too long drawn in the initial stages. And when we were about to declare, ‘not very gripping’, and search for something else, we stumbled on the turning point and watched it through. Although everyone did his/her job well, one doubts if it was for Pankaj Tripathi’s performance that sustained audience interest. Thus, though I would have chosen to give it 2.5/5, the last few episodes more than compensated for the somewhat drab first half and would give it 3/5.
The Hunt, Rajiv Gandhi Assassination, Webseries, SonyLiv. Full marks to Nagesh Kuknoor, the Director, for his attention to details. This can well serve as visual handbook for aspiring film-making students on how to make a documentary. Very natural settings, and takes you through all the incidents live. Very well done, though I am yet to watch the last two episodes. 3/5.
Panchayat Season 4, Amazon Prime. The team lives up to the expectations of the audience. For a change, the actors from the opposing camp have become the favourites. That said, the law of diminishing returns would seem to have set in, and the producers better make sure to sustain audience interest in their future episodes. 3.5/5
Thug Life, Movie, Tamil. Truth be told, the 2.45 hours duration of the movie was a great deterrent. “Just give it a shot,” came a call when the lady of the house announced, “I am off on errands for an hour.” And I got stuck with it and completed it in instalments. Credentials are excellent: Maniratnam movie, Kamala Hasan in the lead ably supported by Silambarasan, a host of pan-India stars, not to speak of ‘A R Rahman’s musical extravaganza’ tag, with Trisha being assigned a role to make it star-studded. Maniratnam did his job well, and so did Kamala Hasan though in places I felt he laboured to look casual. Silambarasan too showed us what he was capable of. I can’t particularly remember any Rahman number that was catchy. Production values were very good. The norm being 2-hour length at best both Maniratnam and Kamala Hasan could have reduced it by 30 minutes, and in return expected the audience to compromise with a grace of 15 minutes. 3/5.
PariWar, Malayalam Movie. Amazon Prime (Manorama Max). A delightful comedy with the four sons eyeing for the expensive ring of their 99-year old patriarch on his death bed. 3/5
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