Silhouette of Suriya with a sword in his hand sends fans into a frenzy!
Actor Suriya is currently shooting for his new film directed by Pandiraj and produced by Sun Pictures. Last day, the makers shared a mass photo of the star from the film’s sets. It is a silhouette of Suriya walking majestically with a huge sword. He is seen sporting long hair in this photo. Earlier, the makers had released another similar photo in which he was seen holding a gun. It is a clear indication that the film will be an action-packed mass entertainer. The new photo has already gone viral among his fans in social medias.
‘Suriya 40’ has a huge ensemble of actors. Priyanka Arul Mohan of ‘Gang Leader’ fame plays the female lead. ‘Unnale Unnale’ fame Vinay essays the antagonist’s role. Raj Kiran, Sathyaraj, Saranya Ponvannan, Jayaprakash, Ilavarasan, Devadarshini, Subbu Panchu Arunachalam and ‘Vada Chennai’ fame Saran will be seen in supporting roles.
On the technical front, the film has Rathnavelu as the cinematographer and the recent National-award winner D Imman as the composer. Ruben handles the edits and AnbAriv duo is choreographing the stunts.
The Priest to release in Amazon Prime Video on April 14
Mammootty’s ‘The Priest’ is still running in a few centres in Kerala. The film, which was the first major release in Malayalam after the pandemic, has already been declared a superhit at the box office. It is now gearing up for release in Amazon Prime Video. It has been announced that the film will be out on the OTT platform on April 14.
‘The Priest’ directed by debutant Jofin T Chacko is a mystery thriller with supernatural elements in it. While Mammootty plays the titular role, ‘Kaithi’ fame Baby Monica, Nikhila Vimal and Manju Warrier essay other important roles. Director Jofin himself has written the film’s story and screenplay is penned by ‘Kunjiramayanam’ fame Deepu Pradeep and Shyam Menon. It is a technically superior film with top-notch cinematography by Akhil George and thrilling background score by Rahul Raj.
Hitting screens on March 4, the film took a fabulous opening. It had massive pre-release hype which also reflected on the collections. Many from within the industry thanked Mammootty and the film’s makers for reviving theatre business in Kerala. Though the makers had got lucrative offers from leading OTTs, it was Mammootty who insisted that the film should release first in theatres. Representatives of the Film Exhibitors United Organisation of Kerala (FEUOK) had even visited Mammootty at his residence to personally thank him for helping in reviving the dwindling theatre business.
‘The Priest’ is jointly produced by Anto Joseph, B Unnikrishnan and VN Babu
‘Nizhal’ has three central characters — first class judicial magistrate John Baby, a single mother and her school-going son Nithin. The film begins with John Baby suffering an accident, which forces him to wear a strange-looking mask to fix his nose injury. During a casual conversation with one of his friends, a clinical psychologist, John Baby comes to know about a boy who narrates strange crime stories at school. He gets intrigued by it and tries to befriend the mother and son to learn more about them. John Baby does his own investigation about the boy’s stories and ends up opening a box of pandora.
S Sanjeev has written a clever screenplay that keeps us captivated till the very end. Debutant director Appu Bhattathiri has also done a good job in not letting lose the grip at any point. The twist and the ending revelation are all convincing and gives an overall satisfactory feel.
Coming to the actors, Kunchacko Boban as John Baby does his part well and once again proves how far he has grown as a performer. After watching his performances in films like ‘Anjaam Paathira, ‘Nayattu’ and ‘Nizhal’, he now seems to be more comfortable with serious roles. Nayanthara is equally good in a role tailor-made for her. Another notable performer is Master Izin Hash, who played the mysterious boy’s role. Divyaprabha, Rony David and Saiju Kurup also appear in supporting roles.
‘Nizhal’ is also a technically sound film with quality visuals and crisp editing. The music also adds to the film’s mystery mood. Cinematography is done by Deepak D Menon and music is by Sooraj S Kurup. The film’s director Appu Bhattathiri has also edited it along with Arunlal SP.
So, ‘Nizhal’ is a neatly made mystery thriller that doesn’t really question the sensibilities of the common audience. It is definitely worth watching from theatres.
‘Chathur Mukham’, starring Manju Warrier and Sunny Wayne got released in theatres last day (April 8). The film has opened to largely positive reviews. As promised by the makers, it is a horror thriller that’s very unlike what we usually get to see in Malayalam cinema. It is a techno-horror thriller, which is probably a first in Malayalam. From the initial response in social medias, what we gather is people seem to have been impressed by the fresh content that the film offers.
‘Chathur Mukham’ is directed by Ranjeet Kamala Sankar and Salil V. Anil Kumar and Abhaya Kumar have jointly penned the script. With this film, the makers have tried to achieve the concept of solving something that’s beyond science using science. It is the novelty in their ideas and smart usage of the genre’s tropes that work in favour of the film. Add to that, Manju Warrier’s excellent performance as she shoulders it almost singlehandedly.
Thanks to the positive reviews and overall good talk in social medias, theatres are fast filling for the weekend shows. The film is expected to have a good run in the next few days.
Innale Mellane: Check out this new song video from Nizhal
Kunchacko Boban-Nayanthara starrer ‘Nizhal’ is hitting screens in Kerala and UAE today. The film has pretty high expectations thanks to its intriguing trailer. As a part of last minute promotions, the makers released a new song video yesterday. The song titled ‘Innale Mellane’ is sung by Haricharan Sheshadri. Manu Manjith has penned the lyrics and the song is set to tunes by Sooraj S Kurup.
‘Nizhal’ is the directorial debut of editor-turned-filmmaker Appu N Bhattathiri. It also marks the first time coming together of Kunchacko Boban and Nayanthara. From the posters and the trailer, the film promises to be a mystery thriller with supernatural elements in it.
While Kunchacko Boban plays the role of a first class judicial magistrate named John Baby, Nayanthara’s character details have not yet been revealed. A young boy essays another major character. Saiju Kurup, Divyaprabha, Rony David and many others are part of the supporting cast.
‘Nizhal’ is scripted by newcomer S Sanjeev. Sooraj S Kurup is handling the music department and cinematography is done by Deepak D Menon. The film’s director Appu Bhattathiri is also editing the film along with Arunlal SP. It is being jointly produced by Anto Joseph, Abhijith M Pillai, Badusha NM, Fellini TP and Ginesh Jose.
‘Nayattu’ starring Kunchacko Boban, Nimisha Sajayan and Joju George as the leads got released last day (April 8) amidst high expectations. The hype was mainly due to the big names in the team and the fact that director Martin Prakkat is making a comeback six long years after he made the blockbuster ‘Charlie’. Going by the initial response, it is safe to say that he has made a terrific comeback.
Right after the first show got over, highly positive reviews started flooding in on social medias. Critics and cinephiles seem to have unanimously lapped up the film. Hard-hitting is a word that has been repeatedly used in various ‘Nayattu’ reviews and it is indeed true. The film presents a disturbing picture of how a corrupt system victimizes those in its lower strata.
‘Nayattu’ might seem like a survival thriller on a peripheral level but is actually a socially-relevant drama that raises some serious questions. Shahi Kabir, who had earlier penned ‘Joseph’, has scripted the film. The performances of all the three lead actors — Kunchacko Boban, Nimisha Sajayan and Joju George, is getting lauded along with Shyju Khalid’s cinematography.
With the word-of-mouth highly positive, the film is certain to do well at the box office this weekend.
Chathur Mukham: A well-made horror thriller that’s worth your time and money
‘Chathur Mukham’ has Sunny Wayne and Manju Warrier playing college mates who later team up to own a CCTV installation business. Manju Warrier’s Thejasvini is the protagonist here; a hardworking and ambitious young woman. A new smartphone she buys online brings all the trouble for her. A couple of eerie incidents and soon she senses something’s wrong with the phone. But everytime she tries to get ride of it, it keeps getting back to her somehow. With the help of Clement, a science scholar, Thejasvini and Antony (Sunny Wayne) try to find the mystery behind the phone and get her out of trouble.
The first half of ‘Chathur Mukham’ is absolutely thrilling and will keep you glued to the edge of the seat till the revelation is made. The knots are unwound smartly till then and keeps the guessing game on. Scenarists K Abhayakumar and Anil Kurian must’ve done some vast research to get the technicalities right. Ultimately, what they’ve tried to achieve here is to find a solution to something that’s beyond science with the help of science. Though the backstory angle is generic and doesn’t have anything exciting, the makers still manage to hold the grip.
Manju Warrier’s fantastic performance is the film’s backbone. It is her arresting performance that takes the thrills to the audience. While Alenicer does his part well, Sunny Wayne was mostly stiff in a weakly written character. Directors Ranjeet Kamala Sankar and Salil V have shown great promise. They have steered clear of most of the horror-thriller templates that we are used t in Malayalam cinema. The fact that they attempted to make something original is in itself commendable. They’re also well aided by a good technical team. Cinematography and sound design are always an integral part of horror films and in ‘Chathur Mukham’, they’re employed to great effect.
‘Chathur Mukham’ is a skillfully made film that has an intriguing concept and some fresh ideas. A big screen experience is recommended.
Nayattu Review: A hard-hitting survival drama that exposes a corrupt system
Nayattu, which translates to hunt, is a survival drama when seen on surface level. But it is actually a gripping tale of how a corrupt system functions and victimizes those in its lower strata. The film seems to be inspired from an incident that occurred in 2018 in Thiruvananthapuram.
Maniyan, Praveen Michael and Sunitha are the three major characters, all of whom are cops working in the same police station. Their characters and background are established neatly in the first half hour before the conflict occurs. Unlike what we seen in usual ‘mass cop’ films, here we get to see how the actual police system functions and the day-to-day lives of an ordinary cop. Since the film’s scenarist Shahi Kabir was a cop, there is an authenticity to these scenes and it keeps the audience invested. Soon an altercation with a local party member snowballs into a huge issue that forces Maniyan, Praveen and Sunitha to flee the scene. The State is on the verge of a crucial election and to save their face, the government launches a massive hunt for them. Anything more about the plot will act as spoilers.
Martin Prakkat, who is making a comeback after 6 long years, has made the most serious film of his career with utmost sincerity. The film hardly has any deviations as it is focussed completely on the hardships of the three leads and how they get tangled in the bureaucracy’s foul play. The narrative becomes interesting towards the end and lands on a hard-hitting note.
Nayattu Review
Kunchacko Boban and Joju George grab bulk of the screen time and they both have done superbly well in their respective roles. The latter in particular is excellent as he gets the body language and mental agony of a middle-aged policeman spot-on. Nimisha Sajayan’s character, however, is one-dimensional as she continues to remain petrified and worried all the time. Late actor Anil Nedumangad also makes his presence felt as a crime branch officer. The actress who essayed his superior’s role also delivered a commendable performance.
Shyju Khalid’s cinematography, Vishnu Vijay’s music and editing by Mahesh Narayanan come in handy to narrate this engrossing plot. Director Martin Prakkatt has ensured he gets the best out of his actors and technicians and the result is there to be seen on screen.
‘Nayattu’ makes you think even after the end credits roll and on that note alone, it is a clear winner. The film definitely deserves to be watched on big screen
Nayattu all set for release amidst high expectations!
‘Nayattu’ starring Kunchacko Boban, Nimisha Sajayan and Joju George is hitting screens tomorrow (April 8). The film has had high expectations right from the time of its announcement. First and foremast reason is the fact that director Martin Prakkat is making a comeback six long years after he made the blockbuster ‘Charlie’. Moreover, ‘Nayattu’ has some big names in the cast and crew, most of whom guarantee a quality output. The expectations went further up when the trailer got released. It was an unusually interesting trailer that managed to pique the majority’s curiosity.
‘Nayattu’ is a cop-thriller scripted by Shahi Kabir, who had earlier penned ‘Joseph’. All the three lead actors — Kunchacko Boban, Nimisha Sajayan and Joju George, will be seen in police roles. From the trailer, we could make out that these three cops are forced to be on the run after something drastic occurs. The trailer promised a gripping thriller that also reflects the current socio-political scenario in which we live in.
‘Nayattu’ has cinematography by Shyju Khalid, music by Vishnu Vijay and edits handled by Mahesh Narayanan and Rajesh Rajendran. Veteran filmmaker Ranjith and PM Sasidharan are producing the film under the banners of Gold Coin Motion Picture Company and Martin Prakkat Films.
Prithviraj Sukumaran shares a still from Barroz sets
Superstar Mohanlal’s directorial debut ‘Barroz’ had gone on floors earlier this month and shoot is currently progressing at a brisk pace in Ernakulam. Prithviraj Sukumaran, who is playing an important role in the film, has shared a location still in his social media handle. Mohanlal is seen giving instructions to Prithviraj in the photo. The makers are yet to reveal any details about his character in the film.
Prithviraj Sukumaran shares a still from Barroz sets
‘Barroz’ scripted by ‘My Dear Kuttichathan’ director Jijo Punnoose is a 3D fantasy film set against the backdrop of the maritime history of Portugal, Spain, India and Africa. Mohanlal plays the titular role and a 13-year-old child artiste named Shayla McCaffrey essays the other lead. Rafael Amargo, Sara Vega, Cesar Lorente Raton, Don and Joshua are some of the foreign actors in the cast.
National award winners Santosh Sivan, Sreekar Prasad and Santhosh Raman are handling the camera, edits and production design respectively. Child prodigy Lydian Nadhaswaram is composing music for the film. Antony Perumbavoor’s Aashirvad Cinemas is producing this highly ambitious venture.
