Bala is a filmmaker who has a reputation for sketching such characters that are misfits in the society. And he seems to have a liking for the Maniratnam style of movie making, which is quite evident in this movie....


If you have watched the Maniratnam-SS starrer - Thalapathy, you could clearly see the correlation between the two movies. The movie starts off in black-and-white in a similar manner to Thalapathy where a child is born and is seperated from the mother. As soon as the child is born the movie shifts to a coloured frame and our hero having got seperated from his mother as she dies after his birth in a graveyard, is brought up by a grave-yard dweller. The two movies have a lot in common; the friendship between the leads, villain interfering in the lives of our heroes.... leading to the death of one, and the other avenging his death.


What is unique in this movie is the way in which Bala has sketched out the characters of the leads Vikram (Siththan) and Surya (Shakthi). Siththan is a character that maintains his silence as he has not been in contact with the outside world since his childhood and Shakthi is the exact opposite, a con-man being very loquacious and talks people into believing him and eventually cheats them. How friendship blossoms between the two and how Shakthi makes Siththan feel one among the world and finally how Shakthi's death affects Siththan forms the remaining part of the story. All credits to Bala for having given a mixed feeling in the movie. The film contains aspects of Comedy, friendship, romance and revenge and Bala has handled all such human emotions very well and gives a subtle touch which makes the movie feel realistic.


One major asset of the movie is Vikram's acting that eventually fetched him a National Award for best actor. His dialogues in the movie is close to nil and yet he manages to make one relate to his character through his body language, mannerisms, facial expressions all of which have been enacted to perfection. It is quite a thing he has managed that it takes some time to sink such barbarian characters into one's heart. Apparently the scene where Vikram has a quarrel with the jailer and when he beats him down and sits on the parapet wall is definitely a delight to watch. This is the movie that established Vikram in the league of heroes those who guarantee a minimum return.


Coming to Cinematography, the very first scene captures the attention of viewers. The transition from black-and-white to colour is done in such a way (the camera moves along a particular path, stops for some time, colour transition takes place as Siththan is born, and then the camera traces back along the same path and stops where it originally started) that is sure to leave a mark on the viewers and ilayaraja's music in the back ground adds an effect to the introduction of the film. Subramaniam's camera also effectively captures the surrounding locales of Bodinayakannur and the natural village setting creates a  coherent mood for the narration. Though this film has a tragic climax just like every other Bala film his auteurism is felt all throughout the movie, and the movie is also greatly supported by the lead actors that makes Pithamagan one of the finest films made in Tamil Film Industry. 

Sergio Leone's characterization of The Ugly... has changed the perspective of the word "UGLY".

Cast:
Clint Eastwood (Blondie) as the good
Lee Van Cleef (Angel Eyes) as the bad
Eli Wallach (Tuco) as the ugly
Direction: Sergio Leone
Music: Ennio Morricone


The movie could be classified under the adventure genre where three gunslingers fight among themselves to find a fortune of gold buried in a grave in Sad Hill Cemetery. The film is probably set in the 1860s when the CSA tried to assume de facto control over its claimed territory during the American Civil War.

I wasn't sure if i was going to write about this movie, after almost everything has already been said by hundreds of people before. But then i decided i should go about it after having watched the movie the second time when i understood a lot of nuances in the film (which i certainly didn't upon partial 1st viewing thinking it was a slow, lengthy movie based on unpleasant characters) that commands appreciation.

But then now, a couple of years later, when I watched the movie again.... i was totally taken away by it.... with its great characterization, Tuco's(The Ugly) acting, bgms, direction and picturisation. With a lot of things already known about the movie, I only intend to mention a few things which i had prominently noted upon watching it the second time and how this movie had changed the perception of a single word.

Clint Eastwood being the Good has only one shade to portray and also, so is the case with Lee Van Cleef to portray the Bad guy. But when it comes to the Ugly character, the director has sketched it to perfection with a mixture of shades of both the Good and the Bad. And Wallach as Tuco was no less great in enacting the Ugly part.

Nothing much about Lee Van Cleef and Eastwood in the movie.... Lee Van Cleef's eyes spoke volumes about his bad nature. In his introduction scene where he interrogates a former soldier he doesn't talk much and just his eyes were focused so profoundly to create an impression of terror in the minds of the audience. It is a well know fact that something bad is associated to darkness and shades of black. Now when Angel Eyes (Van Cleef) comes into frame there is no lighting and he comes from darkness carrying a wick lamp that creates a mood for the situation that something bad is about to happen. And the bgm when this happens is neatly incorporated into the film by Morricone; the initial music is low pitched and slowly & gradually it increases in pitch and it so shrill that it is in perfect sync with the situation. Tho perfect combo of the lighting, Angel's eyes, and the music just creates magic. Just note his name too.... Angel Eyes (a perfect contradiction to his nature; he rather has the eyes of a Devil).

Clint Eastwood has a meaty role to play in the movie. In the major part of the movie he maintains his silence and doesn't utter much, except for his crisp one-liners. His style is what has been used to full extent in the movie.... the way he takes his gun, the way he shoots, the way he rotates and puts his gun back into the gun belt are all an eye candy to watch. And the very famous Good Bad Ugly soundtrack has been maximum used with his screen presence.



There probably is no one who is either completely good at all times or completely bad at all times and this is what Sergio Leone is trying to tell his audience through the characterization of the Ugly. The Scene where Tuco meets his brother Rodriguez (shown in the extended version) is beautifully conceptualized by Leone and enacted by Tuco (Wallach), when we get to know that Tuco had to choose a tougher path than that chosen by his brother which had ultimately put Tuco in the current situation that he is in. Acting by Wallach requires no mention as he was simply superb; be it portraying the emotions of anger, joy, pride, dejection or whatever. Among all three he had a tough job to do i.e. to do the emotion switching part so frequently... and he scores a perfect 10/10.

Though initially my perception of the Ugly was to do with how shabby he looked or how gross his actions were in the movie, but it is truly in his characterization where one can perceive the actual meaning of the Ugly. In spite of the many instances which shows the Ugly nature of Tuco, it is this one scene which stands out, where he forcefully gets into the revolver stores to get a revolver, that his Ugly nature has been shaped out beyond imagination. Here after trying out the revolver, he asks "How Much?".... giving an impression that he was good enough to pay for it, but then when he points the gun at the store keeper and again asks "How Much?".... it strikes you that he is so bad enough to loot the poor old guy; What a Fascinating Ugly Character!!! (How Oxymoronic - Fascinating Ugly; and don't fail to notice Tuco's acting here).

The incidents in this movie, or more specifically the Ugly nature of Tuco is so Ugly, that my perception of the word "UGLY" has completely changed and has given a new meaning for the word different from the one given in the English Oxford Dictionary.

Cast & Crew
Arya, Emy Jackson, Nasser, Cochin Haneefa, Alex O'Nell.
Art Director: Selva
Cinematography: Nirav Shah
Music: GV Prakash Kumar
Writer & Director: Vijay


The movie is all about a British Girl falling in love with a Dhobi from Madras, who is also a brave Kusthi(wrestler) fighter, set in pre Indian Independence era just as India is about to gain its independence.

First of all the director Vijay must be applauded for having attempted to give a period film to the Tamil film industry that produces cliched films. There were a few films like Paruthiveeran, Subramaniapuram, Aayirathil Oruvan that have attempted to break away from the cliched movies that are produced. There are reviews about Madrasapattinam that Vijay has been inspired from movies like Titanic and Lagaan.

This movie, though has shades from Titanic - like the 80 year old woman narrating the story, it is quite very much different in-terms of screenplay from that of titanic. Here the eighty year old woman comes to Chennai from Britain to find here long lost love, from whom she had got separated on the Day of Indian Independence. The movie shifts back and forth from past to present depicting the nostalgic feeling of the old Amy Wilkinson (Amy Jackson) as she comes across similar happenings in the present Chennai that had also occurred in her life during her past teenage days in Madrasapattinam.



Though the movie is good in parts, the director has divulged from the main plot in the first half, where he has tried to concentrate more on the Indian British rivalry rather than trying to portray a subtle romance between the leads. Amy is forcefully engaged to the then Inspector Robert (Alex) who is selfish and ruthless, whom she hates to such an extent that she thanks the man Parithi(Arya) who accidentally helps her in removing the engagement ring. And from then on starts a series of happenings involving Amy and Parithi which finally culminates in Amy falling for Parithi. These events have been stretched too much and the screenplay slacks deteriorating the pace of the movie.

Coming to acting part, Arya is good as a rough and tough wrestler portraying the right facial expression, but when it comes to the romantic part, he fails to impress and Amy steals the show with her innocent charm. For a foreigner to give the right emotions in a native film is asking too much of her and she seems to have done it with ease and is a big positive in the film. Nasser and Cochin Haneefa are good as usual in their supporting roles, though the director has overdone the Cochin Haneefa part that leads to a diversion from the plot.

The sets of the old Madrasapattinam have been well crafted, but we get to see only Madras Central and the River in front of it that is used for ferrying. Sets of old Mount-road is a big letdown and fails to create an impact. Cinematography by Nirav Shah is good with distinctive shades for the past and the present, but he still is yet to outperform his previous best Billa. Back ground music by GV is the best he has scored until date and creates a mood for the period film.

Another thing the director has failed to look into is the Tamil dialect during the pre Independence period. The characters seem to speak the same slang in the present and the past.

On the whole the movie is a different attempt in the Tamil film industry and is worth watching.