A Disappointing Continuation

A Brilliant Conflict

I was totally surprised at how great this film.You could feel your paranoia rise as the film went on and as you gradually learned the details of the real situation.

In truth, there is barely enough story here to make a film.

The movie was excellent. Kamal Haasan amazing acting. Madhavan also acted very good in the movie. There is many humor and comedy scenes which are so funny.

Manmadhan ambu is a classic example of talent gone waste. It has a wafer thin story line & is a pathetic attempt at comedy.Kamal haasan is a good actor but he should stick to just that. Wonder what madhavan was doing in this movie. Trisha speaks in her own voice for the first & the last time in a film. Being a tamilian, wonder why her tamil is so bad! Urvasi has been totally wasted.It is only sangeetha who tries to salvage the film with her performance.The malayali duo irritate. DSP's music is crap.Kamal looks like Trisha's dad, with his unshaven look.One of the worst films of kamal & no wonder it bombed badly at the box office.

The master story teller is back this time with a romantic comedy drama "Manmadhan Ambu" (short for "Man"nar , "Madan"agopal , "Ambu"jakshi ) . The manner in which screenplay is etched out lucidly with each & every details propounding a meaning in itself which comes out neatly & effortlessly is in itself a treat for cinema lovers.The dialogs are crisp , intelligent & razor sharp & Kamalhassan has played with the language be it Tamil or English. "Intha ulaguthula nermaya irukaravangalukku thimiru than sir veliye.." , "Matrimony was lousy , but alimony was superb " are just two of many such genius writing. The scene in which the lead pair exchange with their poems is not only a great piece of cinema in recent times it also evokes nostalgic memory of such a sequence in one of yesteryear Kamalhassan movie "Varumai Niram Sivappu" -"Chippi irukuthu muthum irukuthu".Story is nothing new but the treatment Kamalhassan has given is different with many characters whom one may think not related to the story comes to their own as the story unfolds. The way in which romance , drama , sentiments & not the least of them all comedy are blended into the story makes it a healthy cocktail refreshing your tired mind. And the last 30 minutes is one of the most rip-roaring hilarious sequence Tamil cinema has seen in recent times. Look out for the way in which the words are just played with & the " crazy" Mohan influence is all for one to see.KamalHaasan has not only excelled in these mentioned three departments of the movie , he is gracious enough to give a more challenging & more attractive role to Madhavan & let his role do the underplaying. Movie has nothing much to showcase the acting talents in him , however in couple of instances he shows us why he is regarded as the most talented actor the country has ever produced. The sequence in which Trisha reveals the truth about the accident is the just an example. All there was glimpses of his suave stylishness in couple of instances like when he rearranges the fallen garbage can , put his mobile into his pocket & the initial steps of the ""Dhagudu Dhattham" song.Madhavan has the plump role in the movie & boy he has utilized it to the max. He steals the show & this will be one of his career best performances. He looked absolutely confident in his role & the manner in which he effortlessly managed to bring out those slapstick acts of his were commendable. His dialog delivery has grown leaps & bounds & it was a carnival seeing him perform his role in this movie. Trisha has also done her part well & "act"ed this time after she started doing so in "VTV". Her dialog delivery was also good especially the confidence in which she has mouthed those poetic lines were praiseworthy.Sangeetha is yet another performer , who has done a good supporting job. Though initially her role irritated a bit , she more than makes up for it in the last 30 minutes or so. Others like Kunjan , Manju Pillai , Urvashi , Ramesh Arvind also have done well.Music by Devi Sri Prasad is good. "Neela Vaanam" is a good melody while "Who's The Hero" & "Dhagudu Dhattham" are foot tapping numbers. BGM was also fine , no qualms.Manush Nandan's cinematography aids in the travel of the story without undue gimmickry.K.S.Ravikumar is the director who has helped his bit in bringing out the final product.On the whole, initially though the pace is sluggish , after "Dhagudu Dhattham " the movie picks up the pace building up expectation in the interval slot & after which it again reaches a plateau then really taking off in the final 30 minutes.Bottomline : Pleasant..!

Man Madhan Ambu can be described as a intelligent comedy by the successful duo Kamal Hassan and K.S.Ravikumar. From a promising casting, writer and strong technicians, Man Madhan Ambu does not disappoint to deliver.Firstly talking about the story, this film has a simple cute love story with comical elements. It is about possessive Madhan (Madhavan), setting up a detective, Mannar(Kamal Hasaan) to spy his ex girlfriend, Ambu (Trisha) during her holiday trip to Barcelona with her friend, Deepa (Sangeetha). The simple story has unexpected twists here and there which sets the pace of the film. Kamal interestingly feeds messages on the rich stepping the poor intelligently. Kamal Hassan has written a light hearted story after delivering a gigantic Dasavatharam two years ago. The film contains strong clever dialogues and the play of words at each scene is interesting to watch. Kamal Hassan's idea of revealing flashback in reverse mode needs applaud. Thinking out of the box is not new to this veteran and he has proved his talent once again. However the screenplay lacks punch and pace at the first half, It wonders aimlessly until a major twist before the interval. But the 2nd half sets momentum and leads to a super comical climax. But however it is quite disappointing as it is from Kamal Hassan who always comes with a strong screenplay, comes with a simple story with sprinkles of illogic.Man Madhan Ambu's next strength is its music. The music is cool and calm just like the movie. The songs are well picturised and suits the movie well. Neela Vaanam's picturisation makes the whole film's mood and in fact saves the film! The casting of the film is also the major strength. Trisha who is speaking in her real voice for the first time evokes emotions well and renders tamil perfectly with her own style. Sangeetha steals the show from the 2nd half onwards with her comic acts and does terribly well during the climax potions. Kamal Hassan as usual does well and proves his talent but one could wonder why his character is designed in such a way the it is too simple for an actor like him to play. Madhavan steals the show by his timing sense and drunkard acts. He is the true hero of Man Madhan Ambu according to me. Other small characters of Ramesh Aravind, Oorvasi, Usha Utup, Kurup couples and the small kids gels well with the flow of the narration.Man Madhan Ambu also scores in technicality with excellent cinematography. The cool tones and breezy place is showcased beautifully. There were lots of crane shots in the film which makes the film look rich. The films marks its innovation by recording live sounds by avoiding dubbing. Its something new in tamil movies and worth a special mention. The set designs were classy and rich. The colourful, stylish costumes make the film more light hearted like its story.In overall, the film certainly creates a new skin to Kollywood, thanks to the team of innovation lead by Kamal. The film starts off slowly but takes off in a jet speed in the second half. A novel attempt! VERDICT - 7/10