My first movie review-Mozhi
A Tamil film? Me? Watch? -let alone review?
My greatest fear was that I would fall asleep half way through…lesser fears included dances and songs, melodrama, ‘comic relief’, a mirage of mature emotions, caricatured characters and a big zero of a story!
I emerged fully awake after almost three hours-in fact with new ideas and questions buzzing within me.
Hats off to the ‘Mozhi’ team!
Handsome boy sees pretty girl. Plummets in love. Necessity being mother of invention and learning, develops insight and devises methods to win her over. Girl resists; boy persists. Help comes from friends and relatives. And they tie the knot.
It isn’t as simple as that of course. Nor as mundane. Pulsing music, healthful laughter and a crisscross of warm relationships substantiate the story line. A cute granny like yours or mine, the ubiquitous watchman who keeps the pulse of the building where the characters live, an ‘out-of-the-world’ professor, the little Pomeranian, a bumbling, bungling building secretary and an impulsive music fan add to the seasoning while Karthik the hero and Archana, the heroine are ably seconded by their best friends Viji and Sheela who pair off with ease.
It isn’t as simple as that either. Nor as mundane. When the much smitten Karthik understands that Archana is hearing-speech impaired, he is not crest-fallen. Nor non-plussed. Nor condescending. In fact, matching Archana’s brisk jogging and lively doggie, is her crisp, self-sufficient personality and it is Karthik who has to jog his thinking to match it. He discovers that a soundless world need not be sad, that music can be a language as much as gestures or silence and that it is unnecessary to append a working voicebox to a person who does not have one. Archana, for her part, learns to understand music through vibrations and to appreciate Karthik’s love through her friends’ efforts and example.
While all elements fuse in harmony, and it is a relief that the comic-relief does not jar, the ‘Sorry’ song/dance feels a little childish and out of place. We may condone it considering that song/dance sequences are perhaps a reflex for mainstream movies and actors. The scene where the professor is shaken out of his imaginary world triggers our tears as much as Karthik’s and the loudness of it falls well in place. The hero’s magnanimity, either inborn or love-borne, is well show-cased, perhaps a little overly so, with his donation to the school and the little hearing impaired girl selling flowers.
The heroine’s vehement reaction to the hero’s imagination of her voice brings a question…she may feel complete within her without a voice but is it a crime for another to complete his image of her with the attributes he is accustomed to or inspired with? Also are complexities of thoughts adequately expressed in the sign ‘mozhi’ between Karthik and Archana?
Soundscape is such an integral part of life. From the hum of air conditioners to the blare of vehicles…the hero’s effort to experience soundlessness is interesting.
Mozhi comes as a good breezy story but as well as an awareness creating medium. The choice of well known actors and good publicity adds to the effect.
Director Radha Mohan’s chance enrolment in Ability Foundation’s sign language crash course sowed the seed for Mozhi. Credit goes to the teacher who conveyed the plenitude of the sign language to him. Enough to make him conceive a full length, not ‘off-beat’ or ‘art’ movie but a ‘regular’ ‘commercial’ one with the popular stars. The director says that the story came to him with the image of the lead actors. Jyotika does full justice to her role with her very expressive eyes, her artist hands and her winning smile. Prithviraj, as Karthik, doesn’t lag behind in dispensing his charms . Prakash Raj as his bungling buddy and Swarnamalya as Jyotika’s friend and confidante are easier to fathom.
Seeing the stars in flesh and blood half way through the film was memorable. This film offered a different, refreshing experience to them, they said. Mozhi comes as a fitting, fulfilling finale to Jyotika’s acting career.
The enthusiasm of the stars to learn the sign language and to use their talents to emote soundlessly is creditable. More credit goes to our very own admirable Vijaya Bhaskaran(whose diehard fan I am) who trained the actors in sign language.
Why ‘Mozhi’( language)? It could well be christened ‘mozhi venduma?’( is language necessary?)
PS: The music part escapes me.
My greatest fear was that I would fall asleep half way through…lesser fears included dances and songs, melodrama, ‘comic relief’, a mirage of mature emotions, caricatured characters and a big zero of a story!
I emerged fully awake after almost three hours-in fact with new ideas and questions buzzing within me.
Hats off to the ‘Mozhi’ team!
Handsome boy sees pretty girl. Plummets in love. Necessity being mother of invention and learning, develops insight and devises methods to win her over. Girl resists; boy persists. Help comes from friends and relatives. And they tie the knot.
It isn’t as simple as that of course. Nor as mundane. Pulsing music, healthful laughter and a crisscross of warm relationships substantiate the story line. A cute granny like yours or mine, the ubiquitous watchman who keeps the pulse of the building where the characters live, an ‘out-of-the-world’ professor, the little Pomeranian, a bumbling, bungling building secretary and an impulsive music fan add to the seasoning while Karthik the hero and Archana, the heroine are ably seconded by their best friends Viji and Sheela who pair off with ease.
It isn’t as simple as that either. Nor as mundane. When the much smitten Karthik understands that Archana is hearing-speech impaired, he is not crest-fallen. Nor non-plussed. Nor condescending. In fact, matching Archana’s brisk jogging and lively doggie, is her crisp, self-sufficient personality and it is Karthik who has to jog his thinking to match it. He discovers that a soundless world need not be sad, that music can be a language as much as gestures or silence and that it is unnecessary to append a working voicebox to a person who does not have one. Archana, for her part, learns to understand music through vibrations and to appreciate Karthik’s love through her friends’ efforts and example.
While all elements fuse in harmony, and it is a relief that the comic-relief does not jar, the ‘Sorry’ song/dance feels a little childish and out of place. We may condone it considering that song/dance sequences are perhaps a reflex for mainstream movies and actors. The scene where the professor is shaken out of his imaginary world triggers our tears as much as Karthik’s and the loudness of it falls well in place. The hero’s magnanimity, either inborn or love-borne, is well show-cased, perhaps a little overly so, with his donation to the school and the little hearing impaired girl selling flowers.
The heroine’s vehement reaction to the hero’s imagination of her voice brings a question…she may feel complete within her without a voice but is it a crime for another to complete his image of her with the attributes he is accustomed to or inspired with? Also are complexities of thoughts adequately expressed in the sign ‘mozhi’ between Karthik and Archana?
Soundscape is such an integral part of life. From the hum of air conditioners to the blare of vehicles…the hero’s effort to experience soundlessness is interesting.
Mozhi comes as a good breezy story but as well as an awareness creating medium. The choice of well known actors and good publicity adds to the effect.
Director Radha Mohan’s chance enrolment in Ability Foundation’s sign language crash course sowed the seed for Mozhi. Credit goes to the teacher who conveyed the plenitude of the sign language to him. Enough to make him conceive a full length, not ‘off-beat’ or ‘art’ movie but a ‘regular’ ‘commercial’ one with the popular stars. The director says that the story came to him with the image of the lead actors. Jyotika does full justice to her role with her very expressive eyes, her artist hands and her winning smile. Prithviraj, as Karthik, doesn’t lag behind in dispensing his charms . Prakash Raj as his bungling buddy and Swarnamalya as Jyotika’s friend and confidante are easier to fathom.
Seeing the stars in flesh and blood half way through the film was memorable. This film offered a different, refreshing experience to them, they said. Mozhi comes as a fitting, fulfilling finale to Jyotika’s acting career.
The enthusiasm of the stars to learn the sign language and to use their talents to emote soundlessly is creditable. More credit goes to our very own admirable Vijaya Bhaskaran(whose diehard fan I am) who trained the actors in sign language.
Why ‘Mozhi’( language)? It could well be christened ‘mozhi venduma?’( is language necessary?)
PS: The music part escapes me.
posted by meera @ 5:48 PM
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