Review of The Attack of 26/11

My rating: 3.5/5
Punchline: real cinema
Banner: Eros International & Alumbra Entertainment
Genre: Crime
Cast: Nana Patekar, Sanjeev Jaiswal, Atul Kulkarni, Ganesh Yadav, Saad Orhan & Ravi Kale
Cinematography: Harshraj Shroff & M. Ravichandran Thevar
Music: Amar Mohile
Editing: Sunil M Wadhwani & Ajit M. Nair
Action: Javed Eijaz 
Direction: Ram Gopal Varma
Producers: Parag Sanghavi
Release date: 1 March 2013(spoiler alert: This review might discuss a few crucial scenes you might find interesting on screen)

26/11 is one of the nights which I didn’t sleep as I glued onto to TV about the ghastly attack on India. I had been reading and watching many reports on 26/11 incidents since then. I knew most of the incidents that happen, but there is no comprehensive account of what exactly happened. The main reason why I had seen the preview of this movie two days ahead of the release is to satisfy my curiosity factor about what has exactly happened.

RGV has told the story 26/11 as a narration of the top cop played by Nana Patekar. The entire film focusses mainly on the journey of Kasab from the moment he entered into a hijacked boat till the moment he was hanged in Pune’s jail.

Ram Gopal Varma has touched Leopold killings, CST killings, Cama Hospital killings, Taj hotel first killing episode (reception area) and killings that happen when Kasab is captured. Nariman House episode and things happened in Taj Hotel after Kasab is captured are not covered.

Varma has retold the entire sequences of the events the way they happened. The detailing is exceptionally good.

Here are a few exceptional scenes that I loved in this movie.

1. The scene in which a foreigner peeps through door glass and just then constable throws a stone. Shocking scene with nice sound design.
2. The receptionist getting shot while she tries to save a kid in Taj Hotel. 
3. Passengers hiding on the side of platforms. I don’t know if it is really happened. The way it is shown is first-of-its-kind. 
4. The interrogation scene where Kasab tells him about glory of being a jihad.
5. The scene in which Nana Patekar makes Kasab realize about jihadi and glory.

Here are a few observations

1. RGV has focused on deity idols in a couple sequences. Ganesh idol in boat hijacking and Lakshmi idol in Taj reception killings.
2. RGV has juxtaposed the fear in the eyes of kids with the ruthlessness of killers. He has used it effectively in three scenes (CST killing, Taj killing and killing of the man who supplied water).
3. The detailing is very good. In one scene, a cop slides after stepping on blood. In another scene, Nana Patekar tramples on after his shoelace gets untied.

The sound design of the film is exceptionally good. Cinematography is superb. I am told that Varma has used 16 different types of cameras (not 16 cameras of a type). You can see jerky movements at times and tranquil camera movements (Nana Patekar narration room scenes) in some other scenes.

Two actors in the film will walk away with honors. One is Nana Patekar for outstanding work both with voice and persona. The other guy is Sanjeev Jaiswal – a theater artist who played the role of Kasab. He matched the might of Nana Patekar with his work.

In a recent press meet, Ram Gopal Varma has said that he has done this film with fear. But, I feel that he has made this film with responsibility and this is the kind of subject he puts his heart and soul into while making. Ram Gopal Varma has been a great director since his first film Shiva. But he has made a few good films and a lot of bad films. The Attacks of 26/11 can be called as one of the good films made by Ram Gopal Varma.

Note: The violence in the film is stark and bloodshed is raw. Be prepared for it when you go to watch ‘The Attacks of 26/11’.

Race Telugu New Film Photos

Anushka Latest Pics

SHADOW NEW LOOK

The audio release function of Venkatesh's upcoming film 'Shadow' is to be held at Shilpa Kala Vedika on March 7th.

The film is to be directed by Meher Ramesh and produced by Paruchuri Kireeti under United movies banner.

Tapsee plays the female lead in this film, in which Srikanth and Madhurima are seen in the key roles.

Venkatesh is playing a mafia don and Bollywood actor Adithya Pancholi is making his debut in Telugu as villain. The script work for the film has been provided by Kona Venkat and Gopi Mohan. Thaman.S scores the music.

The other cast of the film are M.S.Narayana, Jayaprakash Reddy,Nagababu,Adithya Menon, Dharmavarapu Subramanyam, Prabhu, Surya, Rao Ramesh, Uttej, Srinivasa Reddy etc. Cinematography: Prasad Murella, Editing: Marthand.K.Venkatesh, Story: Kona Venkat, Gopi mohan, Producer: Paruchuri Kireeti, Music: Thaman.S, Screenplay-Direction: Meher Ramesh.

ViswaRoopam Review

My Rating: 3.25/5
Punchline: One man show
Genre: Action/Thriller
Type: Bilingual
Banner: Raj Kamal Films International & PVP Cinema

Cast: Kamal Hassan, Pooja Kumar, Rahul Bose, Andrea Jeremiah, Sekhar Kapoor etc

Music: Shankar Ehsaan Loy
Cinematography: Sanu Varghese
Editing: Mahesh Narayanan
Lyrics: Rama Jogaiah Sastri
Writter - Directed by: Kamal HassanProducers: Prasad V Potluri, Kamal Hassan and Chandra Hassan
Release date: 25 January 2013

Story

Viswanatham (Kamal Hassan) is a dance teacher in New York. He is married to Dr. Nirupama who is working as oncologist in nuclear medicine. It was a marriage of convenience as an elder Viswanatham wants a companion and young Nirupama (Pooja Kumar) wants somebody from US so that she can go higher up in life. Her life turns upside down when she discovers that her husband is not a feminine dance teacher, but a manly warrior. The rest of the story is all about past of Viswanatham and the present danger.

Artists Performance

Kamal Hassan has got three avatars in this film which he portrays to the perfection. He is excellent with feminine body language as dance teacher. He is extremely believable in Muslim character and superbly stylish in action sequences in NY with another get-up. Pooja Kumar is alright. Gowtami’s dubbing for Pooja’s character appeared too mature. Andrea Jeremiah did the role of Kamal’s companion and she is cool. Sekhar Kapoor did another important role. Rahul Bose is menacing as a terrorist. His make-u, dubbing and body language are extraordinary.

Technical department

Story - screenplay - direction: Kamal Hassan who has a grand vision has designed a grenadier canvas for Vishwaroopam. Its story is set against terrorism in New York which has genesis in Afghanistan. Kamal who has penned the script had three finely etched get-ups and backdrops for the character played by him. It’s an actor’s delight to have such a multilayered role. He has narrated the story in spaced-flashbacks. The revealing of new hero avatar in the first half is very well done. The entire first half of the film relies on revealing characters and explaining the basic conflict between hero and villain. The second half is about resolving the conflict. Kamal Hassan gave two different tones based on the backdrop. The entire Afganistan episode has docu-feel whereas New York story is given the tone of a Hollywood action thriller with comedy (Pooja Kumar getting surprised/thrilled at her husband’s new avatar). Kamal who has set-up the plot nicely with the scene where he reveals his trueself has lost the grip on first half by narrating the most of the flashback in the rest of first half. There are around 3 short flashback revelations in the second half. A film of thriller orientation needs racy screenplay. I loved the way pigeons are shown during the title cards and how Kamal has connected the pigeons importance to the story (both metaphorically and physically).

Other departments: Background music of the film is excellent. The only song choreographed by Kathak exponent Pandit Birju Maharaj is aesthetically done. Cinematography Sanu Varhese is very good. Special effects are of world class quality. The make-up work is extraordinary. Stunts in the film are good. The art director deserves a major applause for realistic Afghanistan sets he has erected in Chennai. Kamal Hassan has made sure that the entire film is mounted on a huge scale without any production compromises.

Analysis

Viswaroopam is the dream project of Kamal Hassan and he has made it the way he wanted it to be. It’s a spy thriller with sluggish narration. Don’t expect major commercial payoffs while watching the movie (except for a scene I mentioned two in my review so far). If you have orientation of watching Hollywood films, you might connect with it. The emotional content should have more depth so that audiences can travel with the character and understand the motives. The success of the movie will depend on how well audiences connect with the content.

Mirchi Wall Papers