It’s that time of the year again when we look back at 2017 and start listing out what worked and what did not. In the age of listicles, the best of 2017 becomes even more relevant. Amid censorship, needless controversies, some movies really stood out. Movies like Angamaly Diaries, Aruvi, A Death In The Gunj did not boast of big budget or a star cast but was poignant in their storytelling. This year small indie movies gave good competition to big entertainers and managed to make a mark.
Here are the top 10 Tamil movies:
Women In Focus, Unconventional Story Arcs: 10 Best Tamil Movies Of 2017
The top music composers of the Malayalam film industry
Rustic Tunes, Contemporary Treatment: Seven Malayalam Composers Who Impressed In 2017
Other top stories of the week:
Screenwriter Syam Pushkaran is quite like his films – grounded, humorous, and delightfully unschooled in mainstream cinema.
Read full interview: ‘Mayaanadhi Is An Intimate, Intense Love Story’: Screenwriter Syam Pushkaran
In recent times, short films have achieved something that has been missing from mainstream cinema – giving voice to the numerous homemakers and highlighting their trials and tribulations through the prism of their mundane life. After Shefali Shah’s Juice, here comes Chhuri starring Tisca Chopra, Anurag Kashyap and Surveen Chawla.
Chhuri: A Short Film Where Tisca Chopra Outsmarts Everyone
Ahead of Velaikkaran release, actor Sivakarthikeyan talks to Silverscren about his film choices, doing lead roles and the importance of humility in the Tamil film industry.
Read full interview: ‘My First Love Is Entertaining People, Whatever The Medium’: Sivakarthikeyan, Ahead Of Velaikkaran Release
When Santhanam was a much-in-demand comedian, many told him that he was the real hero of the film. Today, when he harbours hero dreams — his latest Sakka Podu Podu Raja releases on Friday — some gently remind him that he’s a comedian.
Read full interview: From Comedian To Hero In Sakka Podu Podu Raja: Santhanam On His New Innings
Meryl Streep, while accepting the Cecil B. DeMille Award at the Golden Globes 2017, had hit out at the then President-elect Donald Trump for mocking a disabled reporter. Her rousing speech led to many articles in India which lamented why can’t Bollywood stars show more spine. But a cursory glance at the history of South India would show that film stars have easily taken over the mantle of change-makers.
Read full story: Tamil Cinema & Politics In 2017: Actors Play Politicians And The State Turns Into A Movie Set
Sivakarthikeyan and Santhanam set foot in Tamil cinema at different times – the former in 2012, and the latter almost a decade earlier – at the moment though, both are feverishly trying to be the next star of the masses, each channeling his own brand of heroics.
Read full story: Velaikkaran & Sakka Podu Podu Raja: Two Films Of Aspiring Heroes, One Clever Strategy, Zero Gender Awareness
Movie reviews
Tiger Zinda Hai
In director Ali Abbas Zafar’s utopia, Tiger is the last man standing between India and everything that is bad out in the world. Typical of any Salman Khan movie, Tiger Zinda Hai is high on masala and low on logic.
Tiger Zinda Hai Review: The Utopian World Of Tiger, Quick Fixes & World Peace
Recommended
Masterpiece, starring Mammootty in the lead role, is an unabashedly masala movie set inside a college campus where students and teachers are almost never seen doing anything remotely connected to education. Every known stereotype in Malayalam cinema has been used to portray the campus which looks more cosmetic than Mammootty’s face that resembles a humanoid.
Masterpiece Review: Will Mammootty Ever Wake Up And Smell The Coffee?
Aadu 2 works as a one-time watch that targets the holiday crowd flocking to the theatres. There is loud cheerful music composed by Shaan Rahman, and some funny scenes worth laughing out aloud. Aadu Oru Bheegara Jeeviyaanu was, by far, more honest and original than the second part which ends up as a forgettable film.
Aadu 2 Review: Funny In Parts, But Fails To Recreate The Humour Of Its Prequel