« Thenpandi cheemayile » is the seed from which Nayagan’s story grows. When Ilaiyaaraja’s voice breaks the silence in the film’s opening credits, we understand that it’s an introduction song about Sakthivel. A child whose […]
Author: 1916tamilcinema
No time for love in “Kadhalum Kadanthu Pogum”
Kathir (Vijay Sethupathy) is a semi-looser rowdy who dreams about owning a bar. Yazhini (Madonna Sebastian) is a graduated engineer searching for a job. At first glance, they have nothing in common other than being […]
Remembering Sujatha’s words
I just learned that writer Sujatha would have turned 84 today. Millions words would be needed to explain the importance of this master of words, this Srirangam’s child in Tamil literature and cinema. He, the […]
The area as main character in Pa.Ranjith’s “Madras” & “Kaala”
In both “Madras” and “Kaala”, the heroes may be Kaali (Karthi) and Kaala (Rajinikanth) for the movies credits. But I tend to think that the main character is actually the area of the city that […]
Frame(s) 9 : K.Balachander and ladies eyes
Just a quick visual ode to the maestro KB and these remarkable actresses… Eyes are the windows of the soul in K.Balachander’s films. That’s why close-ups are very frequent in his cinematic language, especially for […]
Frame #8 : When stairs stare at you in “Anjali”
I love Anjali for many cinephile and personal reasons. One of them is the way Mani Ratnam depicts the life of a upper middle class neighborhood. Chitra (Revathi) and Shekar (Raghuvaran) move on in a […]
Frame(s) #7 : Aishwarya Rajesh framed within frames
In her young career, Aishwarya Rajesh has boldly played an interesting range of characters, often depicted on the screen with frames within frames. This visual technique is very meaningful as it shows little painting canvas, […]
Frame(s) #6 : Trees and humans in “Merku Thodarchi Malai”
Trees are important characters in Merku Thodarchi Malai. Firstly, they are used as benchmarks in the vast landscape to express the mountain people identities, to hang their flags. Thus, Rangu hangs his “kayli” at the […]
2018, a year of tamil cinema
Here is a panorama of tamil cinema in 2018, not exhaustive, but only made as a tribute to my favorite films, without any will of ranking them. This year of tamil cinema was marked by […]
Frame(s) #5 : Love & train
Film : Thillana Mohanambal (1968) Director : AP Nagarajan Cinematography : KS Prasad Cast : Sivaji Ganesan, Padmini Film : Vaaranam Aayiram (2008) Director : Gautham Vasudev Menon Cinematography : R Rathnavelu Cast : Surya, […]
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