shanc_sk's Reviews

Nanpakal Nerathu Mayakkam (2022)

2/10

Boring

25 February 2023

Why was this even made into a movie?

Easily could have been a short movie, but stretched to almost 2 hrs.

Long scenes of nothing relevant or repeated visuals of the same activity. You can keep forwarding the movie and still you won't miss anything much.

And somebody switch off that old lady's TV (which is supposed to act as the BGM) - an incessant cacophony. It's the one of the many annoying features of this so called art cinema.

Well acted by Mamootty, but doesn't help the case of this movie.

P. S.: Lijo Jose has now created an image for himself that whatever he directs there's his own set of fans who will declare it a masterpiece.

That's my review albeit not the popular one.

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Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022)

3/10

Highly Overrated

16 January 2023

Not the popular opinion, but this one is another disappointing multiverse outing.

Unlike Dr. Strange: Multiverse of Madness, this one received overwhelming positive reviews which was the very reason for me giving this movie my time. But it turned out to be a dud. It took me to the verge of giving up after the first hour, and thought it might get better but alas not. Performance wise cheers for Michelle Yeoh and Ke Huy Quan. Other than that, it's silly and takes you on a skippable acid trip.

Bottom line: Definitely not worth the hype. Watch it without any expectations and you just might like it.

Watch it on Amazon Prime Video.

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Dark (2017–2020)

10/10

Amazing!! Must watch

6 July 2022

Just watch it. Mind blown... It's the best show ever created. Special kudos to the creators/writers for connecting all the dots with a satisfying ending, unlike another awesome series about a group of people stuck on an island.

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Street Lights (2018)

2/10

Good actors, terrible acting

6 March 2022

Dead boring with an uninteresting screenplay. The acting looked so uninspired even from Mammooty.

I wonder how this movie got a 6.7 rating.

Didn't even bother to complete the movie after watching the initial hour.

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Keshu Ee Veedinte Nadhan (2021)

6/10

Decent fun movie after quite a long time

9 January 2022

Good to have some old vibes of a Dileep family friendly comedy drama movie - something needed especially in today's not-so-normal times. With a trend of dark and changing Malayalam movie trends, it's good to see this one.

Well not a great movie in terms of storyline, but sets out to do what was expected from it - good laughs with a funny supporting cast. Kudos to Dileep for trying out unconventional characters.

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The Walking Dead: Swear (2016)

Season 7, Episode 6

7/10

Hate for no reason

9 September 2021

Don't understand why the hate and low ratings for this episode. It's quite an engaging chapter and good to focus on a secondary character.

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Adi Kapyare Kootamani (2015)

6/10

Totally Hilarious!

17 August 2021

Now this is one movie I'd love to see a sequel of!

It is an outrageously funny movie to the whole gang but special mention for Neeraj Madhav and Aju Varghese. Be it the situations or the handling of those situations. It might sound silly describing them, but they executed it well - be it the fumbling for the keys or any of their ridiculous plans. And on top the catchy soundtrack by Shaan Rahman.

Wish Malayalam had more such comedy movies, considering the industry has taken a path on experimenting with darker genres - which is definitely is a welcome change as well.

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The Family Man: Dance Of Death (2019)

Season 1, Episode 6

9/10

This episode was one thrill ride

21 January 2021

The series has been impressive so far. The highlight of this episode was the hospital action scene, pushing the protagonist - Manoj Bajpai - to a lesser role in this episode.

The one-shot action scene was amazing - the way it was shot in the car, moving into the elevator (with a 360 deg rotation), washroom, the hallways etc.

The cinematography has been top-notch so far, and this episode takes it up another notch up.

Looking forward to the conclusion of the series.

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Rakshadhikari Baiju Oppu (2017)

3/10

Rather disappointing

21 December 2020

I have to say this movie has got good performances from Biju Menon and the supporting cast. The realism you see in front of the camera in every scene is something which you can very well relate to the ongoings of a small town/village in Kerala.

With all that being said, there is no story in the movie. The movie was going nowhere and that's why it disappointed big time. Apart from a few comical incidents, there was nothing much entertaining in the movie.

Even if the movie ended an hour or so back with the same ending, it wouldn't have really mattered. A 7.3 rating on imdb for this movie - not really, it's more of a 3.

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Halal Love Story (2020)

4/10

The feel-good movie fails to keep up

22 October 2020

It starts out well ... with some well intended script and good humour capturing the local thoughts. But as the movie progresses - with the second half of the movie, the plot fails to keep the viewer interested. Unfortunately gets dull after a moment. Shoubin (malayalam's breakout actor) has been under utilized with his not so significant character.

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Gunjan Saxena: The Kargil Girl (2020)

7/10

Worth a watch, for sure!

13 August 2020

The movie is well made. Impressive acting from the cast esp Janhvi Kapoor (she did a really good job - pleasantly surprised), Pankaj Tripathi (reliable as always) & Vineet Kumar Singh. Angad Bedi was underutilized with his screentime. A thumbs up to Manush Nandan for the camerawork - to mention the aerial shots and capturing the landscape.

Though don't know how much of the reaction from the IAF officers towards the first female officer, as depicted in the movie, was real and how much was fictionalized.

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Superstore (2015–2021)

8/10

Good content and way funnier than I expected it to be

31 July 2020

I have to say this is one of the funniest yet underrated shows. Haven't heard much of this show in social media or among my circles. But I am glad I came across this show. You have an amazing set of characters and if you ever worked in retail, you can very well relate to them.

This is my third workplace comedy right after watching The Office & Brooklyn Nine Nine. So if you loved those shows, I am sure you would be hooked onto Superstore as well.

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Transformers: Age of Extinction (2014)

7/10

For the Transformers movie fans

28 June 2014

You know what you are getting into when you buy a Transformers movie ticket. And nobody goes to watch Transformers expecting an award-winning story or screenplay. Don't know why the critics are crying about.

Michael Bay loves to create cities getting devastated and as an action movie buff, I love such spectacles and if you are one I'm sure you would love that too. Nobody ain't doing this better than Bay.

Awesome SFX with mind-blowing action sequences, kinda a clichéd storyline, deafening sound effects, widespread mayhem and epic one- liners from Optimus Prime and Hound. If you are a Transformers fan, then you just got more of the fun. Else you might be in for a headache plus its a bit longer than the previous installments.

The upgrade here – u got Mark Wahlberg instead of a screaming kid. & the city under target this time is Hong Kong.

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Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope (1977)

8/10

Star Wars - Turned a non-believer into a believer of the Force.

24 April 2014

Warning: Spoilers

Always thought the Star Wars as an over-the-top space opera with too many laser shots flying, with colored fluorescent swords (read "Lightsabers") and funny looking aliens involved. But after finishing all the major movie series, a random thought to experience the Star Wars series came in, after being exposed to all the hype and fan craze around the saga over the years.

To say - I made a mistake of missing this series all along or was it a good thing for keeping one of the best for now. It is an absolutely impressive movie which sets up an epic series, with good SFX considering a movie made in 1977. The movie is just not about Visual FX, but has a strong story line with equivalent good screenplay and introduces you to characters - Luke, Han, Leia, C-3PO, R2D2, Obi-wan and one of the most legendary antagonists in cinema Darth Vader.

For all sci-fi and adventure fans, this is a highly recommended movie series. And Contrary to Chronological order, start watching the series with this one (Ep IV) instead of going chronologically from Ep I.

And like I said - this has turned a non-believer into a believer of the Force. Mr. Lucas, Thanks you!

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The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012)

8/10

Back to Middle Earth

16 December 2012

Well, to begin with - this movie is for those who just hadn't had enough of the Middle-Earth adventures with the almost 10 hours saga of LOTR. And I am one of those. For the non-LOTR hardcore fans, it's like the movie being too long, being dragged or just piling on the LOTR popularity to mint money from making a trilogy out of a 19 chapter book.

On the story line, The Hobbit takes you 60 years back before Frodo's venture to Mordor began. With the ever-inspiring Gandalf (Sir Ian McKellen) recruits Bilbo (wasn't impressed with Martin playing this character initially, but turns out he fits quite well) to a team of 13 dwarfs set to reclaim their lost home encountering orcs, goblins, trolls, the ol' Smeagol, the Ring & more to come. Starts lil slow at Bag'end, the pace then picks up once the journey begins leading to some intense chase and action sequences.

On the technicalities, the 3D instead of being a distraction here, its actually quite effective and has got impressive clarity too (supposing its coz of the high frame-rate 3D 48fps). Thumbs up to Howard shore for the epic music plus a mention for the haunting Richard Armitage "Misty Mountains Cold".

And Peter Jackson - you are the guy for Epic Movies, not for some family tragedies. Good to see you back.

The only disappointment being a year long wait for "The Desolation of Smaug".

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Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance (2011)

1/10

Awful - My rating says that

9 July 2012

Fortunately for "Ghost Rider: Spirit Of Vengeance" IMDb doesn't offer negative ratings, else its definitely got a minus rating.

I'm a big fan of Marvel movies & a superhero movie fan too, but this one is utter crap.

The first Ghost Rider movie wasn't that impressive, but was still a one- time watch for the effects & action sequences with decent acting.

Sincerely request Mark Neveldine & Brian Taylor, please don't inflict such torture on the audience again - never never in any of your lifetimes or in any of the parallel universes. What were you guys planning to deliver anyways - Was it something with total senseless direction, Pathetic acting, weird editing with ridiculous action scenes.

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Final Destination 5 (2011)

7/10

FD5: Can be considered the best of the series

21 August 2011

Now, this is one movie I didn't repent watching in 3D. This has to be the best of the series, the only thing which pulls it down is its following of the standard formula - hence, kinda predictable. Else it scores.

To the positives, they reserved the best choreographed opening disaster for this one. And Coming from the fourth FD (which was plain & the death scenes coerced), this has some of the most "jaw-dropping" death sequences, as this might be probably the last one in the series - ends a full circle.

Don't miss the premonition neither the final scene. The 3D is really worth here.

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Cowboys & Aliens (2011)

6/10

C&A - doesn't disappoint either the Western lovers or the Sci-fi fans

30 July 2011

Jon mashes 2 different genres together to create a mash up called "Cowboys & Aliens" instead of the usual Cowboys - Indians or US Army - Aliens combo.

It delivers but not the blockbuster fare of the Iron Man flicks, but decent entertainment for either set of fans with not much complaints. C&A has its usual set of clichés, but for the sake of fun - we sometimes start loving these clichés - be it the aliens capturing humans, cowboy racing along & jumping on to the alien craft (in this case), gold rush, the- everything-collapses scene etc.

After all, it brings in a lot of big names together - Jon, Spielberg, "Indiana" Ford, Daniel, Ron Howard,Wilde, Lindelof (surprise surprise) etc.

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Lost: The End: Part 1 (2010)

Season 6, Episode 17

7/10

The Writers got LOST!!! they aren't going to deny that

30 May 2010

Warning: Spoilers

what i had fearing all along since the beginning of the final season - happened.

THE END was lame.. totally lame.

Making it an emotional heart-rendering blah blah finale didn't work with me & i am sure it ain't worked with a lot of fans. The flash sideways was a purgatory sequence, r u kidding me? I understand the series had strong characters & had shown relations to dharma, good vs evil, faith vs science, but 18 episodes of purgatory scenes- come on, i don't digest that. It was a waste of time making all those story lines within the purgatory world, better could have focused on the huge containers of unanswered questions. And whats happening in this episode: *Ben was stuck under the tree trunk with no sign of sawyer and Hurley getting him out of that & the next scene for Ben, he was free at the cliff!! * No incantation for Hurley (so, did he really become the next Jacob)!!! * The ajira plane left maybe 5-10 mins ago.. still its flying over the island when jack sees it!!!

Cuse- Lindelof -> please don't give us "its a character based" cop-out thing. After building some much on the mythology of the island, didn't expect the series was supposed to end this way forgetting the mythology (that was another unexpected turn from the LOST writers).

Numbers, the others, Walt-"special", dharma etc etc - forget them?!? or get answers by ourselves coz u don't have satisfactory answers. The series really got so amazing & complicated that it would have been a great pull-off if the writers did came up with a great finish.

Anyways - 3 cheers to cuse-lindelof for the series, but not for the series finale.

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Lost: Across the Sea (2010)

Season 6, Episode 15

7/10

Could have been better!

12 May 2010

Warning: Spoilers

The second episode totally dedicated to the island mythology after "Ab Aeterno" comes nowhere near it.

Its good as a standalone one, but when u draw comparisons keeping in mind the approaching series finale, the Candidate & Ab Aeterno, this one falls. Tucker Gates fails to recreate the charm.

Some questions answered, but new ones still crop up at this stage of the series.

Well, the first thought that sprang up on seeing the opening scene of the lady coming out of the water is - hey, is it Sun? did she make it?But no. It's a new face. BTW, it didn't act as a surprise for me that the pregnant woman is Jacob's mother, as i had easily guessed that or so could any LOST fan.

Some of the acts failed like - at the brother's first confrontation, what made Jacob so furious that he drew blood out of his loving brother. Simply difficult to understand.

few more to go. as i said before, please do not make it lame. LOST doesn't deserve that.

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Lost: The Candidate (2010)

Season 6, Episode 14

9/10

LOST - now back on track

6 May 2010

Warning: Spoilers

alrite... here we are back on track.

after some thrill-less episodes, seems LOST is good to make a grand finale of "2.5 hrs" with The last recruit & now, The Candidate.

The Candidate did take some unexpected twists on road to 23rd May. In sideways-timeline, Locke refuses to become a candidate & on the island, Jack seems to be following Locke's path of ideas, to become a candidate.

On the Island : After Jack screwed up with the nuclear blast therby killing Juliet & not mending anything, it was Sawyer's turn to screw up things not just with the death of one main character 'Sayid', but also the Kwons & probably, Lapidus too.

Not much Qs been answered yet, awaiting the upcoming final episodes to be more thrilling.

This is the best show on TV & i give it a 9/10. The remaining 1 depends on how cuse & lindelof carry this show and answer the 'hell lotta' unanswered Qs. Hope the ending for this show is really worth this 6 seasons.

Cuse & Lindelof,

Please don't spoil the ending with some lame twists; better have some good answers.

Anyways, counting on u guys...

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Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (2009)

7/10

simply amazing FX

2 May 2010

a film bashed by the critics.

oh come on... this is a movie which delivers what the fans wanted to see - another full blown action movie set across the world.

The transformation sequences still amaze me, be it the prime's airdrop or the devastator's. It truly is another Bay movie with jaw-dropping action sequences. I am still suffering from the after effects.

Accolades to the visual & sound FX team. This movie grips me right from the Dreamworks & Paramount fanfare. The sound fx in the movie does get loud at times, well if u'd survived the first transformers, then u can survive this one as well. And if u want to find flaws, there r plenty. Everybody knows this movie isn't meant to be a cinematic classic, u better watch godfather or schindler's list for that.

This review comes after my 3rd viewing of the DVD disc.

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How I Met Your Mother: Home Wreckers (2010)

Season 5, Episode 20

7/10

Drunk or Kid

26 April 2010

Warning: Spoilers

A nice episode but not as funny as "Zoo or False" (man, the way Barney pulls off the Neil Armstrong statement is fantastic ).

As with Ted, we also don't meet the MOTHER, but we get introduced to his present home. Now that does that give an indication that his Wife will make an appearance soon. Cant say that... Initially, i didn't think the creators would take the series till 5 seasons without bringing her in, so they can get another 5 seasons as well.

Highlights: 1. Who cried? 2. Your p**** is enormous. 3. Drunk or Kid 4. Barney was planning to become Ted's dad 5. & of course... Mahatma Gandhi, and the pancakes, and the dragon and you

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500 Days of Summer (2009)

7/10

a better-than-anticipated movie

24 April 2010

This was a movie which i stumbled upon without any anticipations at all, just expected to kill time. In fact, it was more than that.

I am not a big fan of romantic movies, however this one will surely get my appreciation. Joseph, a rare lead, gives an impressive performance as well as Zooey, who definitely grabbed my eyeballs. & Of course, appreciation to Marc Webb.

Inspite of the nonlinear presentation, the viewer seldom does lose track of the storyline. Its a high recommend for the romantic comedy genre aficionados. For the rest, definitely watchable.

With a bolly kinda-song & the LA architectural setting, 500 days of summer begins with Summer & ends with Fall.

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Lost: The Last Recruit (2010)

Season 6, Episode 13

8/10

One of the better episodes of this season

23 April 2010

Warning: Spoilers

This was one of the better episodes after "Everybody loves Hugo". Some may find the Hugo-Libby love story cute, but i definitely did not.

Looks like the thrill is setting in for the Series finale with all the characters making an appearance in both the timelines except alpert's team in the island line.

This was one of the better episodes with Ab Aterno occupying the top slot. Hume is playing fate by bringing people together either by persuading or by hit&run. The whole season doesn't match the thrill & excitement of the previous season's yet.. but gotta see wat cuse & lindelof have in store for the series finale.

Now have a two week break before the next broadcast.

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shanc_sk

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