Dude, Where’s My Spage Age 3: The Great Moon Landing Conspiracy Theory.

Fake moon landing. I couldn’t believe that there are folks that’s still spreading the theory that the NASA (National Aeronautics Space something, too lazy to check) (Okay, I’ll check, dammit)(it’s National Aeronautics Space Administration) and the faked moon landing in 1969.

I am a believer that it actually happened. I read about it a lot and became a huge fan of space age related stuff when I was a kid (I have written about it here and here). I was not quite aware that such a conspiracy theory movement exists for a long time. Not until I read the news that Edwin Aldrin, the second astronaut of the Apollo 11 spacecraft that made it to the moon, punched a goddamned conspiracy theorist. Here’s the detail from history.com (makes a good script):

On September 9, 2002, astronaut Buzz Aldrin—the second human to set foot on the moon—is walking outside a Beverly Hills hotel when a conspiracy theorist starts harassing him and accusing Aldrin of lying about the Apollo 11 moon landing. Incensed, Aldrin punches his heckler in the face.

“You’re the one who said you walked on the moon when you didn’t,” Bart Sibrel told Aldrin as he walked by his filming crew outside the Luxe Hotel. “Calling a kettle black …”

“Will you get away from me?” an irate Aldrin warned the man in the incident caught on video.

Sibrel responded, “You’re a coward and a liar and a … ”

Aldrin, then 72, socked Sibrel in the jaw, right when he finished the sentence with “thief.”

Yes, Aldrin clocked the mother. That piqued my interest. I read about it somewhere and put the folder at the back of my mind. I thought it will go away like the midnight beggars you ignore. Nope, it kept coming back.

In fact, these deniers existed all the way back when the moon landing was actually taking place. One famous theory later actually pointed out that Kubrick directed the whole segment. Kubrick, right after the success of 2001: A Space Odyssey (which started production in 1965 and was released in 1968).

A perfectionist, Kubrick would have balked at the prospect of shooting some grainy footages, let alone let NASA pull him this way or another. Kubrick who directed 1980s The Shining, is known for being a hard ass to the point of pushing Shelley Duvall in it to the brink of insanity that it traumatised her for life. I don’t think NASA scientists would particularly welcome Kubrick’s iron fisted approach.

Now, let’s look at the best argument against the conspiracy theorists. This is by Rick Fienberg, the press officer for the American Astronomical Society, who holds a PhD in astronomy. And he is quoted here:

“About 400,000 scientists, engineers, technologists, machinists, electricians, worked on the Apollo program,” Fienberg points out. “If in fact the main motivation for believing in the moon hoax is that you don’t trust the government, you don’t trust our leaders, you don’t trust authority, how can you feel that 400,000 people would keep their mouths shut for 50 years? It’s just implausible.”

And allow me to tell you this: it won’t go away. Skepticism is good at a healthy level, as that enhances knowledge through the need to do more research and come up with an agreeable consensus backed by evidence.

By the way, this is how the article ended:

To those who know the moon landing was real, conspiracy theories that it was a hoax may seem silly and innocuous. But their consequences aren’t: they spread misinformation, make people susceptible to other false theories and could earn you a punch from Buzz Aldrin.

The previous pieces on Spage Age (yes, Spage. It was a typo first time around, I maintained it):

Dude Where’s My Spage Age

Dude Where’s My Spage Age Part !!

Old Grouch Fable Collection pt5

 

The Owl and the Grasshopper

The Owl always sleeps during the day. Then after the bloody sun buggers off, and shadow rises slowly through the wood, and a haunting whistle hums through the hushes of…. Hang on, the narrator got the story mixed up.

Well, when it is dark, she comes out from the old hollow tree she was sleeping in, making the Who sound. No, I don’t mean that The Who. So, the who-who-who sound echoes through the quiet wood, bounces against a branch, and kills a fruit bat. But that is minor collateral damage. Plus the other bats hate this particular preachy vegan and do not miss the bugger.

And so the Owl begins her hunt for the bugs and beetles, frogs, mice, and hopefully possibly some veal cutlet. But her day sleep routine is bloody important for her.

Now, during one warm summer afternoon as she dozed away in her den in the old oak tree, the Grasshopper hopped over and, seeing that it was a glorious day, started singing. He sang one particular song which he felt folks liked because they kept giving him vegetables, despite the fact the items came flying in his direction and usually were beyond the expiry date. He wondered why.

As he started crooning and frightened a squirrel, out popped the old Owl's head from the opening in the tree that served her both for door and for window. Why would she want them separately anyway?

"Get away from here, sir," she said to the Grasshopper. "You are rude. Here I am, old and tired, and I need to sleep in quiet.”

The Grasshopper snickered and said he can be any bloody place any time; all the places under the sun are his, including where it doesn’t shine. And then, he went on to sing even worse songs.

The wise old Owl knew quite well it’s no point arguing with the Grasshopper or anyone for that matter. Even if she wants to pick the grasshopper apart, her eyes are not sharp enough during the day. For all you know, she might be picking a chip of wood apart. So, she relented and spoke kindly to the bloody insect.

"Well, sir," she said, "if I must stay awake, I am going to settle right down to enjoy your singing. Now that I think of it, I have a wonderful wine here, sent to me from Olympus, of which I am told Apollo drinks before he sings to the high gods. Please come up and taste this delicious drink with me. I know it will make you sing like Apollo himself."

The dumbass Grasshopper fell for it. A single jump to the Owl’s den, and she was waiting with her beak open, and in went the stupid insect. That settled the Owl’s breakfast.

Moral of the story.

When folks start throwing rotten vegetables at you when you are singing, it is a sign that vegetable prices have gone down. I mean, you can afford excessive veggies and keep them around till they rot.

 

Anansi And His Legs

In a faraway jungle (about three blocks next to your car park), there was a spider named Anansi. Initially, his mother named him Annasi, but a neighbour told her that Annasi is "pineapple" in Tamil language. This would be embarrassing for the kid in the future because many folks don’t like pineapple in their pizza.

Indeed, Anansi wasn’t like other spiders. He had a big head, a round body, and eight thick bloody legs. The other kid spiders would ridicule him, though they too had big heads, round bodies, and eight thick bloody legs. They didn’t have mirror technology.

So, this Anansi loved food and parties more than anything else. Well, not true. He likes movies, music, and farting in any general direction. Yes, the narrator will do anything for a laugh.

Anyway, someone told Anansi about four big parties. “Where are they?” asked Anansi. “In the parliament,” said Someone, trying to hold his laugh. That’s his name, Someone Pulleg. But then, Someone cleared his throat and said, “I was pull—err—kidding. There are four big parties going on now”

Speaking of which, Anansi announced to Someone that he wanted to go to all of them. Only there was one problem: all the parties were happening at the same time. “Why is that so?” asked Anansi. Frustrated, Someone said, “Why ask me, the organisers must have gone to the same astrologists seeking the auspicious time.”

Undeterred, Anansi came up with a clever plan. He tied a rope around each of his four pairs of legs. “Whatever you gonna do, bro,” said Someone, “I’m so outta here”.

After the bloke left, Anansi went to his friends—Rabbit, Monkey, Turtle, and Bird—and gave them the other end of each rope.

“What the—” said Rabbit

“If you wanna hang yourself, why drag us?” said Monkey.

“Are you roping us in for something, haha,” said Turtle. Nobody laughed. The Bird held on the rope of the end with its beak with that “whatever dude” look. And so did the others.

Anansi told them to go to a party each, “When the food is ready, pull the rope. I’ll feel it and come quickly to join you!” And so they left.

Anansi sat in the middle of the jungle, waiting for the parties to start. Suddenly, he felt a pull on his legs. “The parties have started!” he shouted excitedly.

But then, all the ropes started pulling at the same time. All his friends' parties had started! Anansi was being pulled in four directions at once. “This isn’t what I planned!” Anansi cried out. “Also, is this what it feels like marrying four times?” and thought of the fate of his fiancés.

His thick legs started stretching because of the pulling. By the time the parties were over, Anansi’s legs were no longer thick. They were long and thin, and he hadn’t eaten any food. Though he did marry all his fiancés, had a miserable life as expected, he did sire thousands of goddamn babies who all inherited the skinny legs and so do most spiders these days.

“What a boring tale,” said Someone.

Moral of the story:

If someone says your story is boring, you should stop. Also, stick to one spouse. Really. The world is overcrowded enough

A Woman and Her Hen

Once upon a time, there was a woman who owned a hen. This Hen was special because it laid one egg every single day. That makes it special like, err, special needs children? I mean, one egg a day? Girl!

Initially the woman was happy with this, as she follows the Tamil proverb “pOthum Endra maname, pon seyyum marunthu” literally translated as “A contented mind is a medicine that turns everything into gold.” Actually, it talks about moderation, about not being greedy. But it has the word “gold” there and you know where this is going.

Because the woman started wondering if she could get even more eggs from the Hen. And how do you do that? You can’t simply do a motivational training or feed some sort of steroid to the chicken. The hen might become Schwarzenegger-ish and break out of her coop.

Well, the woman thought, "Just feed the Hen more food, it might produce two eggs a day instead of just one." So, the next day, she gave the Hen twice as much food, hoping it would lay more eggs.

The Hen happily ate the extra food and started to grow bigger and heavier. It looked healthy and content and on the verge of being obese. Also, something unexpected happened. Or not. Instead of laying more eggs, the Hen stopped laying any eggs at all.

So, the woman who used to get one egg per day now will never have none. Not to mention the prices of eggs has gone up.

Moral of the story:

One egg per day will keep greed away. Or something like that. Also, did anyone notice this story sounds similar to the goose that laid the golden egg? Albeit a Diet Coke version. Anyway, I am tired, and I am bored. Till we meet in another telling of Old Grouch Fables.

Read the other fables here:

Old Grouch Fable Collection Part 1

Old Grouch Fable Collection Part 2

Old Grouch Fable Collection Part 3

Old Grouch Fable Collection Part 4

Rajini, Kamal, Sundar C. The Fall Of The Three Way Alliance.

Damn, that's a dramatic headline.

Anyway, it has been a roller coaster of a week for fans of Rajinikanth and Kamal Haasan, or admirers of both like me. Those who follow the Tamil film industry know that the two are going to or planning to....or whatever to....collaborate twice:

1. Kamal is to produce the film, which will star Rajini, and the film is to be directed by Sundar C. This is intentional as a gesture by Rajini to help his pal, Kamal, who has lost lots of money, especially burning his fingers as a producer in that borefest, Thug Life. In a way, it’s good, because otherwise the self-replicating industry players would next choose other popular memes for movie titles, like, I  can Has Cheezburger or Lolcatz. The film is so bad that I didn’t even badmouth the director of the film, Manirathnam out of symphathy. This time at least.
2. Rajini and Kamal will appear on screen together, but in another film way later. No further details have been divulged except I know it most probably won’t happen looking at what is going on now.

Let’s see, for several days, the Tamil language YouTubers were euphoric, speculating this and that, driving views up like missiles, with comments splattering like machine gun bullets by the beach, and then…and then…the bomb screamed down. Like pigeon droppings on the head. Sunder C has opted out of the project. No clear reasons were given except that he mentioned in his statement that he appreciated Kamal and Rajini for giving the opportunity, blah, blah, blah. The statement appeared in his wife Kushboo's Instagram, though, giving rise to further speculations (including one where Rajini wanted an item song with the has-been actress).

Coming back to the YouTubers, one good thing that came out of this is that from the time Vijay indirectly caused the death of 41 at a political rally, that was all those so-called pundits and analysts were talking about. Again, the self-replication thing goes on, and I have to look at the time of the release of the clip to determine who copied whom.

So, it must have been a relief for Vijay since a new wave came and they stopped speculating, pontificating, and saturating what was a tragedy into a finger-pointing fest. Now, they are analysing why Sunder C opted out of the prestigious project. Many stories have emerged, again, speculation in nature, or that they got it from the industry insider (as a former practitioner of media, I think most of it is b.s.).

Again, so many theories, suppositions, and presumptions. When it was first announced that Sundar C was letting himself out, I had only one name in my mind: Kamal.  Why?

First, check out the list of dropped Kamal projects, which ChatGPT distilled from a Wikipedia entry, which I copy and paste here:

🎞️ 1980s

Chamayam (1981) – Malayalam film with Ambika, shelved after the producer’s death.

Raja Ennai Mannithuvidu (1982)—shelved after 15 days of shooting.

Top Tucker (1982)—abandoned after 5,000 feet of film was shot.

Do Deewane Pyar Ke—a Hindi film with Dev Anand, dropped due to creative differences.

Jigar (1983)—Hindi film stalled, later reworked as Mera Khoon with Govinda.

Khabardar (1984)—a social drama with Amitabh Bachchan, shelved mid-shoot.

Untitled Godfather adaptation – planned with Sivaji Ganesan, dropped.

Ponniyin Selvan (late 1980s)—Kamal & Mani Ratnam’s attempt to adapt Kalki’s novel, shelved due to finances.

🎬 1990s

Athi Veerapandiyan—a rural drama based on jallikattu, dropped; Kamal did Thevar Magan instead.

Kanden Seethaiyai—a remake of Ammayane Sathyam, abandoned due to creative differences.

Ladies Only—a Hindi remake of Magalir Mattum, never released.

Amaara Kaaviyam—script by Kamal, meant to be directed by Sarika, never made.

Marudhanayagam (1997) – historical epic launched with Queen Elizabeth II present, stalled due to funding.

Markandeyan—a pan-Indian film idea, dropped after the producer’s financial troubles.

Londonil Kameshwaran—a comedy script, later reworked as Nala Damayanthi (2003) with Madhavan.

🎥 2000s

Robot (2001)—Kamal was the first choice for Shankar’s sci-fi epic, later revived as Enthiran with Rajinikanth.

Naran (2001)—planned with K.S. Ravikumar, dropped due to budget issues.

Panchatanthiram 2 – sequel idea that never materialized.

Moo (2002) – Rashomon-style film that later evolved into Virumaandi.

Krishna Leela (2004)—comedy entertainer, dropped.

KG (2004) – cop thriller, postponed indefinitely.

Vasool Raja MBBS 2 (2006) – remake of Lage Raho Munna Bhai, dropped.

Marmayogi (2008) – 7th-century period film, shelved after Pyramid Saimira backed out.

Thalaivan Irukkiraan (2008) – political action film, stalled multiple times.

19 Steps (2008) – Indo-Japanese martial arts film with Walt Disney, dropped.

Buddham Sharanam (2009) – historical Buddha film with Mysskin, cancelled.

Yavarum Kelir (2010) – comedy drama, dropped; team moved to Manmadan Ambu.

🎞️ 2010s

Tippuvum Unniaarchayum (2011) – biopic of Tipu Sultan, shelved.

Vaamamaargam (2014) – project on “business ethics,” never developed.

Paramapadham (2015) – comedy heist film with Moulee, stalled.

Amma Appa Vilayattu (2015) – family drama, postponed.

Sabaash Naidu (2016) – spin-off of Balram Naidu character, delayed indefinitely after multiple setbacks.

Thevar Magan 2 (2018) – sequel planned, later shelved due to creative differences.

🎬 2020s

Vettaiyaadu Vilaiyaadu 2 (2020) – sequel discussed with Gautham Menon, stalled.

Papanasam 2 (2021) – remake of Drishyam 2, dropped due to Kamal’s busy schedule.

KH 233 (2023) – political thriller with H. Vinoth, officially dropped in 2024.

As one can surmise, Kamal’s list of dropped film projects look like abandoned vehicles in a post-apocalyptic world. That is one argument: either he drops out or the directors pull out. Premature. Or some other reasons.

As the YouTubers mentioned and any Tamil film fan knows, Sunder C is one of the least problematic directors working in the industry. He has entered his third decade, still steady, prolific, and delivering—albeit with a few flops—one hit after another crowd favorite.

He has a few more projects lined up. He has enough on his plate. He felt it was kind of both Kamal and Rajini to wanting him in their project, and, indeed, as he mentioned in his withdrawal note, was honoured to have worked with both before. Throughout the discussion sessions he may have sensed that there will be issues with creative power, and Sunder C is known for always having free rein on set and with the script once the projects are greenlit.

He is not going to take it if Kamal comes like one of those meddling kids in the Scooby Doo show; and starts pushing the making of the film from one direction to another, being the producer. As revealed recently, Anbe Sivam was supposed to have a happier ending, but Kamal decided to make it a bit more tragic. It’s a cult classic now, but it was not a big hit, and Sunder C never went that direction again.

And Sunder C did just that this time.

Thunderbolt (2025)

 I had two minds as to whether to watch this. Is this going to be another one of those comic book movies with similar plots, heroes win end of the day stuff. It is based on comic book characters after all, what else can one expect.

But I was in for a surprise. Here’s the summary taken from IMDB, “After finding themselves ensnared in a death trap, seven disillusioned castoffs must embark on a dangerous mission that will force them to confront the darkest corners of their pasts.”

Yes, for good hour or so, the entire team of those with super abilities are stuck in a building, trapped, making it a unique play of character interactions, frictions, and exploration of their dark pasts. They become memorable at the end of the day, symphathetic unlike the smug members of The Avengers (this was to become The New Avengers eventually).

Of them, I was very impressed with Florence Pugh. You can’t but get involved with her emotional struggle with her father who is in the team. She’s the heart of the film. I was also surprised to see Wyatt Russel, man he is bigger and tougher than his dad, Kurt. Looks like he has some good future in the action arena.

The entire film feels like a bit of fresh air on the comic book movie platform. Character above action, intrigue in interactions, and a sustained tense mood throughout. It’s definitely worth revisiting.

 

The Amateur (2025)

Ah, Rami Malek, Hollywoods new blue-eyed boy, after the success of Bohemian Rhapsody. After his turn as a smaller sized Freddie Mercury, the industry sought him like the way we keep on signing up for a new social media app. Not sure that is an app, I mean, apt comparison, but he’s the man of the season.

Unfortunately, the only thing helping him in this film, as far as performances go, is his bug-eyed appearance. Surely, it helped. For sometimes, then it becomes a routine.

Here’s the story summary, I picked up from MRQE.com, “After his life is turned upside down when his wife is killed in a London terrorist attack, a brilliant but introverted CIA decoder takes matters into his own hands when his supervisors refuse to take action.”

It’s a techno/revenge thriller which do manage to be quiet entertaining till we have to convince ourselves of the incredulity being a techie (in this case, Rami is a CIA programmer) who takes off on a revenge spree while evading his masters who then goes after his ass. 

As with most of thrillers of this genre, the journey is fun and they just don’t know how to sustain the momentum in the climax. This film suffers from it. As one reviewer mentioned, the whole film is constructed into having best scenes crafted for a trailer (see my review on Drop).

So, it’s another good popcorn fare that you will immediately forget after digesting it. It will do well in the OTT, I figure.

Drop (2025)

Making a movie trailer is art by itself. More often than not, in order to sell their products hard, the filmmakers and the studio tend to feature the best parts of the film in their trailer. It, of course, ruins the audiences’ experience when the feature is out.

That was what going on my mind when I kept seeing it during all my recent theatre visits, they keep showing this trailer and you know what’s coming.

In a way, that exactly what happened but, the director and his team proved that they can still find way to entertain you despite the tropes and cliches.

If you have seen the trailer, you will know the plot. This gal going on a date suddenly gets messages from unknown contact, urging her to do this and that, or her kid (being babysat by her sister) would be killed. And the threat was convincing enough to get her to do what the sender requests, including (not a spoiler, it was a trailer) to kill her date.

For a good three quarter of the flick, it’s a hell of a thrill ride. Edge of the seat suspense as our protagonist weave her way through one nail biting scene after another to outwit the mysterious sender and hopefully save her kid and the sister.

It’s a good ride while it lasted, as we jump from one suspect to another with as we go through the journey with Violet played by Megan Fahy whose performance is crucial to draw our empathy. She reminded me a lot of Michelle Pfeifer, though.

Set primarily in two locations – a restaurant and Violet’s home – this techsploitation horror as a reviewer termed it, hardly wavers and held my attention up to the end. Yes, the climax is cliched, but I actually wanted it to happen, hell it has to happen.

But thanks largely to Fahy's performance, the film really works. If we were not along with her for the ride, this might as well be another B-grade thriller.

 

Good Bad Ugly (2025)

 I'll make it short and err...

Good : Ajith. The presence, the charisma, the sly humour. It's all there.

Bad: The entire film. Seriously. Son gets kidnapped and dad goes after the baddies. Could have been a short film. But they kept on dragging and dragging.

Ugly: Over glorification of Ajith. Too much of reference to his past films, and especially when they dug Simran out for a short scene. Ewww.

That's it. Abusing Sergio Leone's film title should by itself be an offense.

Veera Dheera Sooran (2025)

The film begins with a woman and her daughter outside of a don's (or something like that, called Periyavar) house seeking her lost husband.

From that moment right up to interval the movie never lets up, gritty, intense, and building up the drama with one long scene after another until the inevitable action moments.

Director S. Arun Kumar, who also wrote the script, worked on each scenes squeezing the last drops on intensity that keeps us at the edge of the seat (not literally, but you know...).

Everyone was good, may it be Vikram, the scene stealer S.J. Surya, Thushara Vijayan and all the others, right down to the minor characters.

Which is why the film worked for me. What started out as a plot hatched by S.J Surya's cop character to "encounter" (assassination with righteous motive) goes haywire with involvement of Vikram, a former red neck hit man who has since settled down with a family running a provision shop.

There's the inevitable flashback sequence, thankfully short and is only one. Then, we are back in the fray.

Yes, there's violence towards the end, lots of bloodshed but this story demands it. Everyone has done a great job, including composer G V Prakash aiding with the tense situations. I like this flick.

A Working Man (2025)

There is a sense that you have seen it all before. Of course, you have. Which is exactly what the expectation should be when you walk into a Jason Statham flick. It’s critic proof in a way, that the reviewers would be genuinely intrigued if at all something original and brilliant appears on screen.

I like Statham ever since I saw him in Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels (1998), and felt he would have a great future. I was right, but I never thought he would be surfing in the hardcore action wave. Even in the worst ones, Statham can be quite entertaining – may it be the physical moves or the sense of humour that he picked up from the Guy Ritchie films.

This has the run-of-mill plot of someone dear getting kidnapped and the protagonists goes and gets the person. The film is co-produced and co-scripted by Sylvester Stallone based on a novel by Chuck Dixon. If you have watched too many John Wick or Liam Neeson flicks, you will find this film very ordinary. But then, you walk into a Burget King outlet, you ain’t gonna order no Linguine in tomato sauce with chopped basil. You have Angus Signature burger which is exactly what I am having while I write this (no, I am not paid by BK).

I liked it fine. The burger. The film? Well, it has some pretty good action sequences, bad guys you want to hate, the kidnapped gal who is not a damsel in distress, and the stoic Statham kicking asses. The end indicated that there might be a sequel. Let’s see.

 

Snow White (2025)

The review is so small, I'm typing this in my phone.

First of all, my expectations has been so low, thanks to the bad press this film is getting that actual I got cool with it.

It's not that bad and it's not great either. There are interesting moments and there are cringe worthy ones as well.

The songs are not memorable, those ones sucks and Gal Gadot's singing....well you know. 

She is the weakest part of the film in fact. She tried her best to be wicked, but nah. It didn't work out.

As for Rachel Zegler, she's fine. It's not a heavyweight part and beauty is subjective. Not as white as snow? From this Asian point of view, she is 

The CGI dwarves were distracting at first, but later I got used to it, as does all the other CGI-ed stuff. It has been force-fed onto us audience for so long now, it's part of film watching experience. I ain't got no complainta, it's a goddamned fairy tale after all. Not Hamlet.

Mickey 17 (2025)

I liked Robert Pattinson as Bruce Wayne in that sleeper hit that came out of nowhere, The Batman. Just when the so-called comic book aficionados were celebrating Ben Affleck as the comic-book accurate Bruce Wayne/Batman (who probably haven't read ones before the Dark Knight revival).

What is this flick but a mish mash of some of the iconic sci-fi flicks of the past. I see Arnie's Sixth Day (cloning), Groundhog Day (waking up to same event) and even Total Recall (science under the corporate's feet).

Pattison's character starts out as the 17^th version of Mickey, clone, printed actually, basically a guinea pig for experimentation by Mark Ruffalo character who is not reticent about mimicking Donald Trump – you know the filmakers are on the left side here.

It could have been stereotypical, formulaic and well, who cares. I did. I liked it. Especially Pattinson's portrayal of the clueless character who has to team up with his later version (Kinda like what Arnie did in Sixth Day) and go up against authority.

There are moments that felt like pure innovation, nothing like you have seen before, and well, if you have seen one too many films, you have seen them all. But it still felt fresh. The story is not too complicated especially when you have a corporate buffoon (Ruffalo is edged on by his onscreen wife, played by the wonderful Toni Collette – the Trump comparison eh? Whatever). 

Also, I liked Naomie Ackie, gutsy performance. You gonna be big one day, kid. I said the same of Zoe Saldana and she got herself an Oscar.

The only issue I have is that the filmaker uses plenty of flashback shtick – something I abhorred considering it is the staple of the Tamil film industry past few decades, but hey, the director, Bong Joon Ho is Asian after all (Korean).

Some may fall out of the plot carousel – it is sci-fi, after all – but let me assure you, Pattinson's performance will keep you gripped. There are messages here and there, like, hey, don't fuck with nature, but it will fly pass you. I hear the opening has been weak in the US, and I can understand why. It is mostly bereft of the action sequences one would associate with sci-fi (thank you, Schwarzenegger), and Ruffalo's baddie is not exactly the bigger than life type despite is Trump impersonation and not exactly effective counterpoint to the protagonist's struggle or journey.

But it was alright with me. I liked it. Which means, it is not going to do well in the cinemas. Perhaps the OTT crowed might embrace it.

Captain America: Brave New World (2024)

Here's the deal, I took a different route in watching this film and to my relief, I managed to have fun despite knowing about the bad reviews that has been pouring in.

Yeah, the cliches, the usual badly edited fight sequences and the overused CGI are all there. My advantage is, I have not watched any of the previous Captain America films, having only see the character in the Avengers films. 

And speaking of which, I had no issues with all the Avengers films simply because I treat them as the Iron Man sequels with Tony Stark being the central figure.

Likewise, I decided to watch this focussing on on Harrison Ford's character. It worked. I managed to overlooked all those elements 

It works better as a political thriller, as  elements of this genre is present throughout (US almost going to war with Japan) and that is where Ford's contribution comes in having had played CIA analyst and yes, a different sort of US president before.

As usual to test how exciting a film is, I have made it a practice these days to watch after lunch, the time I'd be pining to have a nap. I slept through the Scorcese, Ridley Scott films recently.

But this one survived it. Not because of the action sequences though the noise helped, but watching Ford under duress... sweating and snivelling from scene to scene.

So, this flick will bore the regular audience overexposed to the previous superhero movies, but it will definitely appeal to the fans of the Jack Ryan series and Air Force One ("Get off my plane!")

Vidamuyarchi (2025)

Vidamuyarchi has one big issue: it’s an unofficial remake of the 1997 Kurt Russell starrer, Breakdown. At least the first half. So, it’s not a fresh story telling…again..which is an affliction when it comes to watching Tamizh language films. Or content. Originality is not this industry’s forte.

The second half, otherwise, is a mish mash of many thrillers out there. But there are two points that keep us riveted:

1. Ajith Kumar. The man carries the film no matter whatever plot holes or pure dumbassery occurring on the screen – he gave the film a touch of class and gloss.

2. Lack of Trisha. She’s the main heroine all right, but with her character ‘s disappearance being the central plot, this queen of frozen faced performance is only seen at the beginning, the bloody flashbacks and towards the end. Yippee!

We have Arjun as the chief bad guy, but I still haven’t bought him as a hero, much less a baddie now. But Arjun is in the right territory, Hollywood purloined action flicks – which used to be his playground during the leading man days.

Then there are some henchmen, you know, the current crop of yesterday’s beard and cropped hair fashion statement.

Leaving aside Ajith and Arjun, the rest delivered their best mega serial inflected performances. Though I can’t say the same of those actors playing Azerbaijanis (is that how you call ‘em?) whom seemed to be pretty comfortable in their terrains, giving our hero tough time.

The story of ordinary guy getting entangled in extraordinary situation in cinemas got its prominence from the Buster Keaton days….we have since accustomed to this central plot. We have not been told how (despite gazillions of flashback that needed to be told here because most Indian filmmakers treat us audience as dumbfucks) Ajith suddenly has the resourcefulness and punchability, but Kurt Russell did get heroic at the end of Breakdown. So, fair is fair, I didn’t question his character there and I am not going to do the same with Ajith kicking assess.

In fact that is the best part of the film, director Magizh Thirumeni has a knack for action sequences. There was a good long sequence towards the climax which could have been a great thrill and fun if it was not ruined by Anirudh’s pathetic song plus background score or whatever shit you call it.

Last few words about Ajith Kumar. I always compared him to Steve McQueen -a superstar who was also a fantastic actor with great screen presence. And yes, McQueen was a car racer too. I went to this flick just to watch Ajith and for that reason alone, I am not disappointed.

Update: Apparently makers of Breakdown got to know about the plot similarities after the film was into production...and Vidaamuyarchi producers paid for the rights as is said in this link. Yet, I didn't see the original writer credited.

Tamil School Pasanga (2024)

 

The last time I watched a Malaysian-made Tamil film, I was a guest at the launch and the premiere. It took plenty of diplomatic skill to criticise it while ensuring I sprinkle it with chocolate and nuts on it to sweeten the overall read. The producer and director managed to overlook the needle pricks.

This time, I voluntarily stepped into the theatre (didn't buy popcorn, sugar issues, dammit) and was curious as to how far the Malaysian Indian film scene has come since then.

Well, as expected, the film started slow and somewhat confidently wiggled its way into the halftime, really sure that the audience would still plant their butts on the seats. But what the hell, the scenes were charming and, well, kept the few audience members in the Rawang LFS cinema plant their butts on their respective seats.

There's something about not overstaying the welcome feel throughout the film. The story is very familiar if you have watched the older Hollywood flicks like To Sir With Love or Dead Poets Society, or the amalgamated copy, Nammavar, in Tamil. A teacher comes to a school that needs some sort of rehabilitation. He does do that, but not without challenges and resistance, and how he gets over it would form the rest of the narrative.

This film follows the formula to the T, but the difference is that, in doing so, it tackles many issues facing the Tamil schools in the country and predicaments afflicting the Malaysian Indians in general. The filmmaker tried his best to skillfully blend many of these issues into the narration; some felt very relevant, and some—somehow—felt like they were force-fed and could have been left out.

But this is not to say the story went left field or something. The characters, at least the main ones, do keep us intrigued, with all the actors, from the lead, played by co-producer Denes Kumar (well known among the Malaysian Indian content followers), right down to the little ones, being good and adequate, and even if at times the performances look amateur, you are involved enough to dismiss any sign of weaknesses.

And this is also the first time I ever got emotional watching a Malaysian flick (bar the earlier P. Ramlee features, but that's another story)... it will hit you hard, that scene. I wish it could be avoided, sort of something most lazy directors would resort to in order to get the attention towards the climax—but I suppose it is needed in this film.

I am also glad that the romance angle is not explored too keenly, or it would have lost the focus. Neat, tidy script (despite the lag in the beginning and some not-so-great comedy materials), a not-too-rushed pacing, and, as mentioned, able performances from all around make this a good viewing. The only issue I had was the quality of the picture, which kind of switches now and then from really good to grainy. Well, it was not bothering me.

If I were the great critic Roger Ebert, I would definitely give it two and a half thumbs up...if such a thing is possible.

Dongeng Sang Kancil (2024)

 

Remember the beloved Sang Kancil and its escapades, using purely wits and wisdom, going through the challenges, obstacles cunningly and ending up a brilliant victor? In folklore, these characters are known as tricksters, you would see them in Brer Rabbit of Uncle Tom's Cabin – an African American folklore, Puss In Boots himself and many human/god characters like Loki or Prometheus. Even the Indians have Thenali Raman

Well, Sang Kancil was our answer, our equivalent to those characters.

And the Sang Kancil of this film is not it!

I hardly saw any wit and wisdom from this famed mouse-deer. This Sang Kancil, is out for blood after seeing his mother killed by some dark force (like literally). It's out for vengeance and that is what the plot of this whole damned film about. There are hardly any showcase of brilliant, and often hilarious wits and wisdom that we expect from the Sang Kancil that I talked about earlier

This one is a bloodthirsty sonofabitch who would trick anyone to get his way and not in any means that can be evaluated as being clever or brilliant. He is just good strategist, that's about it.

And the level of bloodthirstiness. This 2.5D(?) animation is filled blood and gore. Yes, you actually see pool of blood among the bodies (especially the poor rabbits) strewn over, The bad buys (a panther) is portrayed as vicious, violent and vile – the film-makers went a bit overboard to portray him as the sadistic most meanest mofo in the flick, hell-bent in taking over the jungle (there is a colonialism subtext going on, or I am reading too much into the film?).

The animation is fine, by Malaysian standard at least, though it seems that they did borrow heavily from the Disney stock characters and peppered it with some Anime stuff. The battle scenes are pretty well done, I especially liked the fight between the panther and the crock – quite intense actually - until of course, when it gets gory.

Yet, very few characters are memorable. The lead baddie, the panther would probably the deadliest bad guy in the history of Malaysian cinema. Most would like the old Sifu character, a squirrel that's pretty nifty with footwork and was probably funny in three occasions. The rest are forgettable (oh, I also like the fact that in the crocodile gang, the animators included variations, like including alligators and gharials as well). 

Things could have sailed smoothly but for the climactic battle that got too violent, too gory and too bloody for a film of this nature – it received a P12 classification – meaning kids below 12 can watch it with parents' guidance. Well, I tell ya this – some can be traumatised seeing the cute fluffy animals' body strewn with blood all over the place. The rating is wrong. The film-makers didn't know where to draw the line.

Plus the voice acting is still at the RTM Drama Minggu Ini or, those early days dubbed Japanese animation standard. Pretty poor, I tell ya. But our country is not abundant with great onscreen talents, and I am sure it reflects on the behind the scene ones too. What to do. We do lots of biting more than what we can chew in this industry.

Finally, it makes sad that they did not adapt fully the actual Sang Kancil mythology to the screen. It would have been an awesome entertainment, instead of some dark Snyder-verse influenced shit they came up with here. Sad.