[jomyboy]

Aavesham: 2024
Amazon Prime

I can't remember the last time we all laughed so hard as a family watching a film. But the Chotta Mumbai scene had us in splits. The best Indian action comedy for the year 2024. Woot woot!!

[RaghuVis]

Originally Posted by greenhorn

On the other hand i did not like manjummel boys at all despite its rave reviews. Mostly at fault was the story about a boorish and inebriated tourist who decided to nominate himself for a Darwin award

Off-topic

I hope you know it is based on a real-life event that occurred around 2006. I was in college during that time and every trip of ours was very similar to this. Being the only Teetotaler, I used to be the guy responsible for a bunch of drunk, silly, non-obedient friends. I used to be very angry at them for that brief period when they created a nuisance but then everything was forgotten after that and the cycle repeats the next day.

Also, note that when he went down, none of them were drunk. Go and talk to any caretaker or watchman of a famous tourist spot - They will tell you that every day, they have to tackle such groups. At that age, It is just human nature to be wild, going against everyone and not following rules and regulations. There is no right or wrong here. It is just human nature.

Originally Posted by greenhorn

then his friends decided to waste the time and effort of all the locals and civic machinery because friendship is apparently more powerful than stupidity.

Did you really just say that?

I really hope you think it is fiction and not a real-life incident. What did you expect? They just accept fate and not fight for their friend's life?

My gang of friends never got into such serious trouble, but I am sure in those days, we all would have gone to any length to save one of us from a certain death.

PS: These are still my best friends in life!

[balenoed_]

Originally Posted by greenhorn

Mostly at fault was the story about a boorish and inebriated tourist who decided to nominate himself for a Darwin award, and then his friends decided to waste the time and effort of all the locals and civic machinery because friendship is apparently more powerful than stupidity.

Ouch, can't it be just seen as a movie atleast, if not a true story?

By that virtue, you may have to say that Dr Sunny in Manichithrathazhu was a very absurd and comical portrayal of a psychiatrist with a ridiculous script written for him and a multiple disordered Ganga waking up as Nagavalli each night and then moving around the house and the thekkini, singing and dancing at times while her ultimate intention was only to murder Nakulan on a Durgashtami day but also tries to poison him much earlier as well.

[dhanushs]

Originally Posted by greenhorn

...and then his friends decided to waste the time and effort of all the locals and civic machinery because friendship is apparently more powerful than stupidity.

May I ask, if you had a stupid friend in that scenario, you will just let him die? Teaching him a lesson of his stupidity?

I'm worried that this sends the wrong message to all those so called tourists who already create a bad name wherever they go.

Sometimes it's all about interpretation. The message I got from that movie was human life is the most important and relationships make it even more valuable.

[greenhorn]

This is a movie review thread, and I don't want to go into a deep dive of personal ethics and morals. Some people just say they did not like a movie and leave it there. My intention was to share why.

I understand that all movies are fiction and some suspension of disbelief is required, but now and then a story comes along that grates against your values so hard that it really makes it hard to enjoy. Another example of it in recent times was Jailer. I find it hard to reconcile that Rajnikant 's character raises a son who ends up a criminal, proceeds to kill him, and still remains the hero of the movie. To me that character is a failure in one of the most important aspects of his life, and is at best a protagonist. Not a Hero

We all have our core beliefs, different people take issues with different things. These are mine, yours may be different. Some people take offence at mindless violence in films. Others the drinking and the loose morality. Trying to debate them is pointless IMO and well beyond the scope of this thread.

[PreludeSH]

By the way, the boys from Manjummel did not look that young to me Even I thought there was a gap in hype vs the actual movie. It was too loud initially with disjointed yelling and behaviour.

Most of the times, the way the story is built and shot is an issue.

[Asish_VK]

Originally Posted by greenhorn

I'm worried that this sends the wrong message to all those so called tourists who already create a bad name wherever they go.

I think you see only one side of the message in this movie.

The movie clearly showcases what can go wrong when people break the low (Here entering restricted area)

The movie showcases how people will treat you when you are acting stupid (drunk, creating ruckus etc.) - When they ask for help, people & even police treats them as some drunk menace

Above all, the movie showcases the importance of having close friends, who will help you in any situation

[dailydriver]

With regard to nothing in particular discussed above, I feel its prudent to recall Manoj Bajpayee's words, with reference to Veer Zara.

...once, a Pakistani woman walked up to him to criticise his negative role in the film as he was the main obstacle between Veer and Zaara. Manoj laughed and recalled what he told that woman and said, “I said you are not thinking from his point of view. He is engaged to her and she is going out with someone else, and you are hating me for it. When I got this role, I was thinking from my character’s perspective and for me, Shah Rukh was the villain of that story.”

(emphasis mine)

Nietzsche too wasn't far off when he said:

There are no facts, only interpretations.

[KryptonMonkey]

Aadujeevitham (Theater): I was a bit underwhelmed by the movie, perhaps due to the fact that I had read the book (English translation). I felt that the movie missed capturing a lot of the emotions and thoughts of Najeeb throughout the ordeal. The movie focuses mostly on the hardships he endured and tried to show it in graphic detail. I would highly recommend reading the book since it's mostly a non-linear soliloquy that runs deep.

I watched the next couple of movies twice. First in the theaters, and then on OTT (with non-Malayali company)
Tip: If watching either movie on OTT, ensure you're in a dark room and have excellent speakers for maximum effect. Otherwise, you're better off going to the theater.

Manjummel Boys: This is a movie that works in both formats. Definitely indulgent in parts, but the whole package just works when it comes together. Even if one doesn't know that it's based on a real-life incident, it shakes you and makes you think about it long after you're done watching the movie. Apparently, the film has depicted close to 95% of the real-life incident.

Aavesham: This movie deserves a theater watch because the audio experience is equally important if not more than the visual experience. On the surface, the story sounds thinner than the paper it's written on. However, the execution is what transforms it into a synonymously exhilarating experience and brings along with it a deeper emotional connection. This is quite easily one of the few enjoyable comedy-action-drama films of our times.

My non-Malayali friend definitely enjoyed the OTT experience because it allowed rewatching some sections where the dialogues moved too fast to process from the subtitles.

[Rajeevraj]

GuruvayoorAmbalaNadayil: Had high hopes for this with the Prithvi - Basil combo and coming from Vipin Das after Jaya Jaya Jaya Jaya he and happy to say the hopes were not misplaced. Throughly enjoyed the movie and from the response in the theater, this is the kind of comedy that the malayalee audience have been waiting for. It is fairly slapstick, lot of characters, most jokes land well with a big climax with all characters. Priyadarsan or Siddique - Lal style..

Basil and Prithvi are fantastic and rest of the cast also do well. Not everything is perfect and there are issues also. Parts of the 2nd half don't click well and the climax could have been done better.

Not complaining though. A light hearted , easy to watch comedy with a great cast. Have been missing that for a long time now.

4/5

[myavu]

Originally Posted by Rajeevraj

[b]

Parts of the 2nd half don't click well and the climax could have been done better.

4/5

I felt the climax inspiration was from God Father and Nandhanam respectively. Also strangely felt some amateurish editing of some scenes.

This will definitely click in the theaters but might turn average on OTT.

[naveen.raju]

Ranam Aram Thavarel - Tamil



It was a decent crime thriller but could have been better. It had it's flaws and dull moments and Vaibhav could have been better. He felt dead in some scenes.

Rating - 3.5/5 (Amazon Prime). Decent watch

Dear - Tamil



A good storyline but bad execution. Also felt the choice of actors were poor. I watched it few weeks back so don't exactly remember whether it's wise to recommend or skip it .

Rating - 2/5 (Netflix)

Hot Spot - Tamil



An anthology film with some cheesy stories. Acting was pretty decent by the leads while some supporting characters were poor. It was well executed.

Rating - 3/5 (Amazon Prime). Watchable.

[Geo_Ipe]

I think I know why opinions are so polarised on Aavesham!!

Let me start with the cons of the movie
- Starts off slow; the college scenes are cliche
- Fahad looks like he' is "over acting"
- There is no critical story line as such

However, I felt the movie was fantastic!
We're seeing Fahad in a semi comical role, which we haven't before. Is he over acting?? Absolutely not! He's doing exactly what the character needs him to do - a semi eccentric, lovable goon!

The movie comes to life after the first 20-30 minutes, once the college kids meet Ranga (Fahad)! The subtleties of the characters are easy to miss, it took me at least 3 watches to pick them all up.

Special mention to Fahad's sidekick - Ambaan! Lesser known actor Sajin Gopu has done such a wonderful job there. Again, it took me a coupe of watches to pick up all his comic dialogues and subtle mannerisms. For example, he says "Shall I??" just before demonstrating firing the gun - a dialogue which has almost attained cult status. This one I actually missed when I watched the movie in the theatre for the first time. Had me in splits the next couple of times I watched that scene!

This is one Malayalam movie where one needs to kind of ignore the story line. This is pure entertainment! Coming to think of it, there might even be an Aavesham 2 - a sequel or even a prequel!

I recommend everyone watching this one a couple of times on OTT, at the risk of being named insane & unstable - as my better is referring to me for my Aavesham obsession! A definite must watch.

Rating - 5/5

[aravind.anand]

Originally Posted by Geo_Ipe

This is one Malayalam movie where one needs to kind of ignore the story line. This is pure entertainment! Coming to think of it, there might even be an Aavesham 2 - a sequel or even a prequel!

I recommend everyone watching this one a couple of times on OTT, at the risk of being named insane & unstable - as my better is referring to me for my Aavesham obsession! A definite must watch.

Rating - 5/5

I have watched it thrice since last week on OTT! Me being someone who likes story-oriented movies and took to Malayalam movies for their simple and relatable dramas, this is a surprise. I have always loved FaFaa's acting. But Ranga Chetta is something else. Loved every bit of his acting in Aavesham and my playlist is also playing Aavesham songs on loop since last week

[Asish_VK]

Guruvayoor Ambalanadayil - Malayalam 4/5



Watched this latest Malayalam feel good comedy drama in theaters on the weekend. Must say, I've enjoyed it. Its been a long season of intense movies (Survival, Investigation, Biopic etc.) in Malayalam and this was a breath of fresh air for me (I didn't like Avesham much )

This is a very simple story with good comical elements. Most of the comedy works and the packed theater response also said the same. Yes there are negatives like : Lag in the second half, Forced comedies, Non logical story, Plot holes, not having good songs and slightly overdone climax.

Still a good watch if you are not worried about the above flaws and just approach it as a light hearted comedy.

Prithviraj surprisingly did the role very well. He is not someone who is associated with comedies, but managed to make people laugh for a change.
Basil was good as always so is the female leads (though they have nothing much to do). Special mention to the actor who played "Dr. George", he was hilarious.

I guess this movie will have a good run in theaters but will be getting lot of trashing once OTT release happens