~r

I’ll hold off on responding to that until I’ve seen the movie. But your comments in general, I agree with.

As far as the comparison between Manichithirathazhu and its remakes is concerned, I think the problem varies depending on the remake. With Chandramukhi, the problem is that it stars Rajni, who is such a big star that space twists itself into knots around him, as Einstein might say. I wonder what they would do with Kadha Parayumbol now that they have Rajni in Mamooty’s role in the Tamil remake.

With Bhool Bhulaiya, the problem was that, even if everything else was kept the same, Akshay Kumar is just so much better than Vidya Balan that the movie ends up being about him. A case in point: the scene where she shows him all the jewelry and costumes she found is used very effectively in Malayalam (and in Tamil, I felt), by showing the same moment first from behind her back, and then later from his POV, so you can see the madness in her eyes. I don’t think Vidya Balan was up to the task, because the Hindi version more or less does away with the latter POV.

~r

In general, what I love about mallu movies, especially serious movies, is the fact that there is a conscious effort to stick to the main elements of the story rather than play to the gallery. The stories are also often innovative and leave a deep impact. It also helps that there is an educated audience in Kerala for these types of films. Even a random comparison between a mainstream film like “Manichitrathazhu” and “Chandramukhi” will highlight all the points that I make. The performances are also much more subtle.

Don’t get me wrong. I love films, period. But I also respect originality. However, I wear the mallu hat when I watch mallu films and wear the tamil, hindi hats when I watch the respective language films. It helps me to get a sense of perspective.

~r