Sudarshan's Movie & TV Reviews

There are films that you really like, but forget over the course of time due to the multitude of movies you watch after that. But there are some great movies, that stay with you, that have such a deep impact on your heart & soul that it never leaves you. Aaiyrathil Oruvan (2010) is one of such movies for me.  Deeply rooted in an era that marked the origin of Tamil civilization, tackling genres like history, adventure, drama & action, Aayirathil Oruvan was a monumental project by writer-director Selvaraghavan & his team, done on a budget of Rs. 32 crores ($7m, yes you read that right), with 2000 junior artists involved in makeup, costume design & VFX, lot of effort spent on building & erecting the sets, music composer pouring his heart & soul into his songs. But guess what, audiences back in 2010 didn't like it. People complained it was too violent, too disturbing or gory, not understandable, difficult to follow & so on. But now, 10 years later, people p...

Finally! It's now the time to talk about my favorite show ever, Dark! I will cover S1 & S2 briefly, then move on to S3. Also, this is a no-spoiler zone. I'm not even gonna reveal the main genre of this show, instead use the word "Sci-Fi" throughout. (Even though it is revealed quite early, it makes for a little surprise moment when it happens. Also, I apologize in advance you find this review very vague). This is gonna be a long read. So put on your yellow jackets & let's goooo!     Before we jump in to S3, let's get some things out of the way that apply generally to all 3 seasons. Dark is a story about mysterious, supernatural, strange & crazy events that happen in the small fictional town of Winden, Germany, & how 4 families (Kahnwald, Nielsen, Doppler & Tiedermann) are affected by these events, how their lives intertwine with each other. Whether be it the mesmerizing opening intro (this replaces Daredevil & has now become No.1 for ...

Having not read the books, nor played the games, I went into this show blank, with no idea what it's going to be about. [Yes, while watching, I did try to ignore (as much as I could) the comparison to, or have expectations as high as Game of Thrones]. Hence the real question to be asked - Is The Witcher a good show for someone like me? (Source:  https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5180504/mediaviewer/rm880577537 ) What shows like these are supposed to do is to build the characters, the lore, the environment in which it is set, and explore the locations, places, and rules of the said world (in short, world-building). However, The Witcher only succeeds marginally in doing so. I wouldn't mind the random time jumps, if this was Season 3 or 4. I wished there was a deeper exploration of this world, that has mutants, witches, mages, kingdoms and more. Who are the Nilfgaardians? What is the significance of places like Cintra, Sodden, Aretuza, Blaviken? What is a kikimora, a djinn or a s...

A spin-off Birds of Prey movie with Margot Robbie reprising her role as Harley Quinn? Heck yeah! Wait, it is going to be solely focused on Harley Quinn, and not much on the other members of Birds of Prey? Ummmm....okay, I guess? After watching the trailer and listening to the reviews for Birds of Prey, my expectations were very low. I wasn't expecting something crazy, excellent or exemplary (especially disregarding DC's coming fresh off its tremendous success in the R-rated Joker), and what I got was pretty much what I expected. (Source:  https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7713068/mediaviewer/rm817332737 ) Birds of Prey starts with Harley Quinn breaking up with the Joker (Jared Leto as the Joker in Suicide Squad, not the one with Joaquin Phoenix), and the events that follow their breakup. Many people want her dead, on hearing the news that the dynamic duo has now parted ways. This led to witnessing some great fight scenes. While they were insane and very well-made that kept ...

When a movie makes history by getting nominated AND winning both Best Picture and Best International Feature Film at the Oscars and in total, around 120 awards across multiple categories, it must be outstanding, out of this world, and should probably be the best movie anyone has ever watched? Parasite is a Korean film that has been on my watchlist ever since I heard a lot of buzz about it on social media when it released in the US and other countries. Suffice to say, this is my first ever exposure to a foreign film (other than Hollywood), a Korean film, and boy oh boy wasn't this a wonderful ride! One of the biggest positives of the movie is that all the characters are "grey" by nature, there is no black and white, no clear cut good guys or bad guys. George R.R Martin, author of the A Song of Ice and Fire books, once said that he always wants his characters to be grey, and not to write a story which is atypical of good vs evil. And it is evident from the Game of...

Ah, it's been a while since I have written movie and TV reviews. Glad to be back :) The movie that has now won around 60 nominations, including Best Picture at the Golden Globes 2019, has now finally released in India. 1917 is a movie I was eagerly looking forward to watching, ever since the trailer released. After reinvigorating the Bond franchise through Skyfall (and kinda boring us all with his follow-up film "Spectre"), director Sam Mendes provides us with this breathtaking, beautiful-looking film about 2 soldiers who must travel beyond enemy lines to deliver a message, which could save the lives of 1600 people! And now, I thank him from the bottom of my heart for giving us this masterpiece. 1917 is one of those films which you must watch in theatres, whatever it may be! It is one of the most visually stunning, seamlessly edited and wonderfully made films, that leaves your eyes glued to the screen for its entire runtime. The movie's USP, w...