This review appeared in New Malaysia Herald. I am reproducing here for record keeping:
Senthozhan Sengkathirvaanan: The Daze, The Deranged And The Dame
Malaysian films have some sort of self-limiting explorative nature. Genres can be visited but they are mostly restricted to Malay films. Films industries existing outside of behemoths like Hollywood, Bollywood (and its non-Hindi language sub-industries) and Hong Kong are usually more invested in making films that reflect their respective country’s culture and sociopolitical scenarios.
As such, it is very daring for a Malaysian filmmaker to make Senthozhan Sengkathirvaanan, a Tamil film within the confines of a psychological thriller asylum – because it would be a mad business decision.
Yet, first-time director Govind Singh pulled off a quiet, grounded, “don’t-wake-the-baby-up†serene Tamil language Malaysian-made thriller flick that has its moments and is certainly desirable for more.Â
This review is a follow-up of the premier show on 24 July in TSR Cinemax Shah Alam, quite a grand affair where contributors were honoured and the self-congratulatory gesture was a mass proceeding -– where many were honoured on stage, with most recognised for being reasons for the existence of the film to the point that some may have direct connections to the Lumiere brothers. Â
The filmmakers and stars also thanked audiences – made of mostly those in the “industry†or involved with the film – and were given tips on how not to have the film taken out of the cinema due to poor run. Support, encouragement, buying tickets by block – but nothing can stop the audience from moving their butts from home to the theatre hall if actual words of mouth are not encouraging.
Anyway, since I was involved during the post-production of Senthozhan Sengkathirvaanan writing the subtitles, this is my second viewing perhaps with some tweaking involved. Nothing much changed except for the additions of various production companies’ names before the title credit that allowed time to rush out to get more popcorn or return missed calls.Â
The story written by Govind and Vino Chandra centres on a somewhat aloof, strange, and, as we find out later, slightly deranged, off-the-centre-of-gravity dude by the name of Kathir played by Kash Villanz, who does some err…computer thingy – we have that scene of his fingers sailing across keyboards with nothing happening on the monitor.Â
Who cares about the profession, much effort was taken by the filmmaker and writer to enhance the protagonist’s eccentricity, including the part where he shaves with a chopper (the knife, not the bike). He drinks booze aplenty and could have benefitted from product placements with brands like Johnny Walker, Ballantine and the likes in full display.
Then, as it is wont with Tamil films that couldn’t shake off romances in any genre like a wet canine, a girl gets interested in him – in this case, our heroine, played with gusto by Moon Nila, who ventures out to find out about our hero’s dark past even though he seems like a nice guy at one time and big time jerk in another. Boy, one itches to know his origin story, no?
So, we have unconventional behaviour on Kathir’s part, prompting the girl to snoop around, and some secondary plot involving a querulous couple next door – which is parallel to the hero’s abusive childhood.
Anyway, Moon Nila (whose name I am sure is not copy-pasted from a Google Translate result) is a formidable force in this flick. She had a skeleton to work with but worked on her additional skillset to add the pounds of flesh, with an ounce of pathos, a pinch of feminism, a fracas of humour, a frantic amount of courage and conviction that would make us care for enough to consider her falling for the jerk-hero as a minor misdemeanour.
If not for her character’s concern for the hero, we never would care for him, so she had quite a task ahead of her – the venture that was let down by the usual Tamil film affliction: flashback-isitis. There was just one too many, but most of the current Tamil films are mostly never made without them – the audience are so used to it that they are not aware of it, like global warming.
Despite what the film had promised, violence is far and few in between, and mostly in the background. The danger element are supposedly present throughout, but our butts are in no way going to the edge of the seat – it feels like reaching for the ceiling but touching the top of the cupboard instead.
Another reason to watch this thriller flick is for the soundtrack, which was composed entirely by Kash Villanz. Before the teaser release, the producers released 3 tracks from this movie on the vhommiez Youtube channel. The first track is sung by Kash Villanz himself titled, Mudhal Mura, followed by Pasi Thookam Panjam and Yathey sung by Ganesan Manoghran and Kishen Dass, Michael Rao respectively.
This film will find its audience who had not watched earlier Tamil films like Sigappu Rojakkal (1979) or Puthiya Paravai (1964)– both of which explored the protagonist’s source and consequences of derangement and been influential with all those “psycho†characters appearing in Tamil films ever since.
All in all, the production quality is pretty good for a limited budget Malaysian fare – far more limited than the bigger Malay language films, of course, but that shouldn’t stop quality exuding from the writing and performances.
A potential that may appeal to audiences who are tired of the usual “safe†Malaysian Tamil entries on small screens especially.
But don’t let that hamper your viewing experience. I thoroughly enjoyed Moon Nila’s performance – she inhabited her role like a comfortable glove and took us for a bit of an emotional roller-coaster ride – for that reason alone it’s worth sitting through the film.
Senthozhan Sengkathirvaanan produced by Govind and Kash Villanz himself will also be featuring popular Malaysian talents like Shamini, Cellina Jay and Chandinie Kaur.
All in all, Senthozhan Sengkathirvaanan is a passable thriller, and certainly a laudable entry from the microscopic Malaysian Tamil film industry. This psychological thriller will be screened in cinemas nationwide on 28 July 2022 onwards!
The
review:
Being
a fan of Madhavan’s and him (alongside Kamal and Rajini) being the only actor I
follow online, I came on board of the Rocketry experience from the time it was
announced. It was a crazy deal. Madhavan is not the most sought-after
actor now, he never quite had worked close on any capacity other than just an
actor with other directors is directing. And writing? Puh-leeze
(*eye roll*).
And
it as it turned out, the ranking goes like this for Madhavan’s three role
in this film (in my assessment, that is):
1. Writer
2. Director
3. Actor.
Many
actors have taken a stab at direction, and most floundered, let’s not
even talk about the self serving writing, often designed to bite more
than what they can chew.
But
Madhavan managed to regroup all he could muster, the three decades of experience
working with varieties of filmmakers and technicians, crafting a compelling
script that is not an eulogy to a still living larger than life figure, but an
unraveling of the slices of life of a brilliant man who is not without his
flaws, who was, too bad, and I don’t care if many disagree with
this, just born on the wrong geographical spot at the wrong time.
First
and foremost, it doesn’t even feel like an Indian film, at least in the
contemporary sense, especially not a Tamil film. None of those over the
top (sometimes literally) showy cinematography or use of editing gimmicks that
look two decades left behind. Speaking of which, I don’t know why they
dig up Simran whose cinematic record being having never used her own voice and
performing mostly with just her hips, and emoting by contracting/flaring
nostrils. At least she retired the hips here.
The
filmmaking itself deserves accolades, and as mentioned, never going over the
top, telling the story as it is, of a man who was instrumental in the efforts
behind an important scientific endeavour who later became victim of internal,
and international politics, wronged and later absolved of the manufactured “crime”.
There may be complaints during the first part of the film where
the science may bewilder many of those uninitiated on the rocket science, which
would be majority of us – but Madhavan the director brought out fantastic
performances from all around even the international casts who would normally
sleepwalk their roles for paycheque.
As an actor Madhavan excelled in not crying for attention to
himself – the ego of a director/actors who often projected themselves as larger
than life heroes is completey out of question here. In fact, in showing his
patriotism and dedication to his work, his character, Nambi Narayanan, withholds
the message about the funeral of one of his scientists’ child so that nothing
disrupts the planned assignment for his handpicked group of scientists. It
showed the selfish side of him, very conflicting, but his conscience is cleared
during the later part of the film. Madhavan was fantastic here - and I had
always seen that crazed fire in his eyes many a times in his older films (used
to maximum effort in Thambi, a guilty pleasure of mine).
As the director, despite the slow pace, he kept the emotion in
check throughout the film often keeping us at the edge of the chair even though
there is no shooting of guns or splattering blood.
Indeed, and speaking as someone who no longer watches new Tamil
releases regularly, this is perhaps one of the most important films to come out
in that language, though, as mentioned, this does not feel like an Indian film
at all, let alone the Tamil version.
Yet, one cannot dismiss the bitterness expressed towards the end
of the film, the appreciation for real genius and talent, amidst the society
that has no respect for those, a society that is still clinging on to morbidly
dumbass values from culture. I felt it strongly, and that is why I say Nambi
Narayanan has no business in, at least, this part of the world.
Thankfully, this film will continue to remind us of that. Those who
wrong Nambi still exists, in our society in fact… and that crab story will
still persist when it comes to Indian community no matter which country it is
in. It’s a sad truth, and Rocketry, more than a celebration of a genius, is a
sad commentary on the failure of a society, of a culture, of leaders who are
never in the business of grooming leaders but are only concerned about their
rickety authority chair they are clinging on too. The collateral damage to
their egoistical struggle is scientists like Nambi Narayanan,
This film makes me extremely proud to be a fan of Madhavan.
After Kamal and Rajini, and to a certain extend Prabhu Ganesan, I had ranked
Madhavan high as an actor way back then. But with a new dimension as a director,
and most importantly as a good scriptwriter, I believe the new multi-faced avatar
of Madhavan will get the recognition he deserves, a far cry from the heartthrob
image he once possessed. I am really proud to be his fan.
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