Hi there, I hope that you are doing well.
Welcome to the Rebel’s Newsletter. We will discuss sustainability, religion, politics, social justice, Movies, and Things that matter.
Theatre arts have been used efficiently as a medium to propagate ideas. While some were real game-changers that influenced the religious, cultural, social, economic, and political landscape, others failed miserably to convey their ideas or were unable to make an impact. Nazis efficiently used theatre arts to propagate their biased and nefarious ideas. They succeeded in it till the second world war saw their defeat and Hitler’s suicide.
In South India, the Dravidian Politics of Tamil Nadu and the Communist movements of Kerala used theatre arts effectively to establish their clout. While the Communist movements had International backing and many secret powers to champion them, Dravidian Politics was an entirely new concept carried by Thanthai Periyar. After 70 years of India’s Independence, the clout of Dravidian politics has proven to be a force to reckon with while even Communist politics flirts with Fascist tendencies. However, the rise of both parties through theatre arts beckons in-depth studies and analysis.
In this edition, I will discuss five films I saw last week. Two of them were United Kingdom-based films in English, and the other three were South Indian Films-two in Malayalam and one in Tamil.
Ghost Stories [Available in Amazon Prime]
This 2017 English film talks about Professor Philip Goodman, a Paranormal investigator who gets caught up with his investigations emotionally. However, contrary to the film’s name and its portrayal, it moves away from the horror genre into the Psycho-thriller category as it hits the climax. The film is a bumpy psychological ride that will make your dopamine centers kick if you are a psycho-thriller nerd like me. There are enough scary moments to quench the thirst of horror nerds as well.
The Green Knight [Available in Amazon Prime]
This 2021 English film talks about the nephew of King Arthur of England, who is eager to earn the honor of his land. He is reckless and gets himself involved with a dangerous predicament with a mysterious creature, and risks his life in the process. He sets himself on a journey to the North to find the Creature as part of an agreement, a promise that if Gawain fails to keep will risk a lot of things. This film is in the Fantasy genre with adventure genre mixed with it. However, I got the psycho-thriller kick that I pursued, and maybe the film is not what it seems to be. Watch and find out.
Chuzhal (Gyre) [Available in Amazon Prime]
This 2021 Malayalam film experiments with concepts of horror, sci-fi, and the psycho-thriller genre. It speaks of the rash driving culture in the state and how it endangers the life and well-being of not just individuals but also families and even societies. The film is open to different interpretations. This aspect of the film might be an unintentional drawback of the director or reflect his genius. You decide.
Varikuzhiyile Kolapathakam (The murder at Varikuzhi) [Available in Amazon Prime]
This 2021 Malayalam film experiments with new faces and deserves appreciation in this regard. However, the film falls flat in being a psycho-thriller or even a thriller. The movie seemed like a propaganda piece by Christian Orthodoxy to bring back their lost reputation that got mired in scandals and controversies. This film was a disappointment for me, who went expecting a thrilling experience and ended up watching a boring religious propaganda piece used for indoctrination of gullible masses.
Jai Bhim [Available in Amazon Prime]
This film was released last week and has been creating ruffles in the political and social circles of South India and the entire Indian Subcontinent. The film has a score of 9.7 in IMDB and stars South Indian heartthrob- Surya in his most mesmerizing role yet in his entire film career. The film speaks of the plight of a pregnant Irular Tribe woman who goes in search of her missing husband with her 7-year-old daughter. Nobody helps her in her pursuit as no lawyer is ready to work for her as she is penniless and lives in a mud hut. But a Madras high court lawyer who doesn’t charge fees for human rights cases-Chandru comes to her aid. Surya sparkles as the unrelenting maverick lawyer Chandru. Surya’s eyes speak of rage against the state and its police. Surya’s portrayal of Chandru is mesmerizing because his whole body seemed immersed in the character and the film’s situations. A look in his eyes is enough to picturise the intensity of a scene.
Manikandan as the missing husband and Lijomol Jose as the pregnant Tribe woman are perfect in their roles. Rajisha Vijayan, in her role as the teacher of the tribe, does her job well, and Prakash Raj dazzles in his role as the morally upright police officer. A real case inspires the film. The Madras High Court took up the case in 1995 that the real-life High Court lawyer Justice Chandru appeared. He has appeared for thousands of human rights cases without charging even a single penny.
Surya produced the film himself, and T J Gnanavel is the director. This film made my week. I implore you to watch it because I feel that if I had died without watching it, I would have failed to realize many of life’s realities. Without a doubt, this film is one of the best films I have seen in my life.
Do let me know if you need an explanation of the movies in an audio podcast after watching them.
Thank You for your time.
Take Care
Jai Bhim