Filmfare Awards Nominations & Reactions

The filmfare awards (Tamil), considered the Academy awards of Tamil Cinema have released this year's nominees. Rohit Ramachandran reviews this year's nominations.

Best Film:

1.Aayirathil Oruvan- An epic gimmick soulless to the point of exasperation. Reminds me of Kubrick's Barry Lyndon, well paced and very accurate with the details but you couldn't care less.

2.Angadi Theru – A great film.

3.Endhiran- The film isn't the least bit meaningful and it never pretends to be. It is an overwhelming entertainer and it hits with maximum bang. There's no debate on that.

4.Madarasapatinam – I'm not so sure. Too soppy to be nominated for an award.

5.Mynaa- Good pick, but it doesn't deserve more than a nomination.

6.Vinnai Thaandi Varuvaya – One of the year's best films.

Most Deserving:

Angadi Theru

Snub:

Easan - It was Kollywood's The Social Network. Enough said.

Best Director:

1.Goutham Menon (VTV) - A strong contender to win the best director award but the award is Vasanthabalan's to lose.

2.Prabhu Solomon (Mynaa) – Having made a near perfect first half, he got carried away. A nomination is as good as it gets.

3.Selvaraghavan (Aayirathil Oruvan) – Whatever the film is, there's no taking away credit from Selvaraghavan. He gave the film his all. He was making love to the film. There was just him and the film; no one else mattered, the audience included.

4.Shankar (Endhiran)- His relentlessness is apparent. He directs confidently, not once trying to sidestep into any sort of melodrama or pretense. Groundbreaking special effects have matched his imagination.

5.Vasanthabalan (Angadi Theru)- I don't know where to begin. Vasanthabalan's Veyil was a decent film. There's no way you can tell that Veyil and Angadi Theru were directed by the same person. He aches for the characters throughout the film and fights tooth and nail to get the message across with every detail. You'll know what I'm talking about if you've seen the film. Angadi Theru was THE most powerful film I saw in 2010, world cinema included, and Vasanthabalan's passion for the material oozes through every frame.

6.A L Vijay (Madrasapattinam) - This is their way of rewarding the art director, cinematographer, costume design, make up artist and editor. The Filmfare awards' Wikipedia page says that it rewards artistic and TECHNICAL excellence of professionals in the Indian film industry.

Most Deserving:

Vasanthabalan (Angadi Theru)

Snub:

Sasi Kumar for Easan. This is a dark film with a message but it never tells you what the message is. You look at characters that are products of different environments and how things turn out when every action of one character leads to that of another. You're given the freedom to interpret it the way you want. Who's to blame for the events? You decide. Every character is treated in its own entirety and how they have turned out so, as opposed to what Sasikumar thinks of it personally. With its Pulp Fiction-esque storytelling and cultural references, it is a hell of an ensemble piece.

Best Actor:

All right, here's where the compromising starts. They're more interested in pitting stars against each other than rewarding the best performance of that year. These aren't the best five performances. Surya and Karthi, brother vs. brother, Singam vs. Siruthai. Nice way to get the fan boys to wage wars against each other and feel a sense of purpose.

1.Arya (Madrassapatinam) – It's not a bad performance but it's a bad pick. There were better performances that year.

2.Karthi (Paiya / Aayirathil Oruvan) – Paiyya was crap, period. Aayirathil Oruvan had hollow characters, how could an actor possibly bring them to life?

3.Rajnikanth (Endhiran) – He played two roles but three characters. Wooden when playing the robot, Imposing when playing the villain and innate when playing the scientist, Rajnikanth shows that he's an instinctive actor.

4.Silambarasan (VTV) – You could feel the character's nerve endings. How much he lusted for Trisha's character and yet how he had to keep things on an even keel, we understood and felt all of it, thanks to an internalized performance delivered by Silambarasan who never hits a false note.

5.Surya (Singham) – He had a fiery expression through out. Hardly an act. But he has to be nominated, there's a huge fan club that will follow the Filmfare awards. The Jury knows that trash like Ayan and Singam are box office sweepers simply because they have the name Surya attached to them. Their motto is “Everyone's exploiting his screen presence. Let's do the same.”

6.Vikram (Raavanan) – Good pick although it isn't award-worthy. I find it similar to his performance in Pithamagan, without the growling of course, not in terms of mannerisms but by facial expressions.

Most Deserving: Rajnikanth (Endhiran)

Snubs:

1. Just where the heck is Vidharth from Mynaa? He delivered a brilliant performance. As long as his character is in the company of Mynaa, you see a composed person who has nothing but good intentions. In her absence, he simply loses it and you're taken aback. It's a soulful performance.

2. Mahesh from Angadi Theru? You nominate Anjali, but don't you realize that half the film works because of Mahesh? His character's heroic, not in the conventional sense, but because you see him fight against all odds and survive as “a hopeful ant in the jungle.”

Best Actor (Female):

Tamil Cinema doesn't really require its actresses to act. It simply requires them to spice things up. Therefore, there aren't enough performances to nominate. Yet, at the same time empty slots need to be filled, so they give them to animated Mannequins and item girls. Fans aren't going to be discussing performances; they're going to be discussing who's hotter.

1.Amala Paul (Mynaa) – The film rides on her modest performance. If her character was any less likeable, Mynaa might not have worked.

2.Anjali (Angadi Theru) – Naturalistic, all the way. Her character, Kani is far from subtle and Anjali conveys every emotion of her. After her character loses the ability to walk, she walks through the five stages of grief.

3.Nayantara (Boss Engira Baskharan) has earned a nomination for Best Actor (Female). ROFL.

4.Reema Sen (Aayirathil Oruvan) - Some evil spirit in the movie possessed her. By her, I'm not referring to the character. I'm referring to the actress herself.

5.Tamannah (Paiyya) - She needs to take acting classes before she can even be worthy of a nomination.

6.Trisha (VTV) – Unsure, pained, cautious and maybe even regretful. The film's main perspective is Silambarasan's character, not hers. But that didn't come in the way of my understanding the character. A restrained performance that complements that of her co-star.

Most Deserving- Anjali (Angadi Theru)

Best Actor Supporting Role (Male):

This category is so wrong. Just so wrong. I think they nominated the actors based on how hard they tried instead of how hard they succeeded with what they tried.

1.Madhavan (Manmadhan Ambu) - What the hell are you talking about? Best Actor in a supporting role? His work mostly involved blathering in a state of drunkenness. I didn't' find anything that the character did funny nor did I like his presence on screen. If there was something I wanted the character to do, it was to die from an alcohol overdose.

2.Parthiban (Aayirathil Oruvan) – He held the same expression throughout. Maybe he should pose for portrait artists.

3.Prakash Raj (Singham) – I've seen this Prakash Raj a number of times, where's the act?

4.Prithviraj (Raavanan) - The main difference between bad and good acting is what the eyes read. Prithviraj succinctly expresses the character's obsession even behind those sunglasses.

5.Santhanam (Boss Engira Baskaran) – Fine, good job clowning around but nothing's funnier than awarding Santhanam for his performance here.

6.Thambi Ramaiah (Mynaa) – Sure, he tried hard. Too hard. It was an over-the-top performance and he was what made Mynaa sag under the weight of its own over ambitiousness.

Most Deserving:

Prithvi Raj (Raavanan)

Snubs:

The ensemble piece, Easan had a well-rounded cast. I know it isn't a good idea to reward too many supporting actors from one film but what if the alternate is to choose a bad performance? Screw it. Reward the best. All five supporting actors from Easan delivered better performances than the above nominees.

1. Samudrakani (Easan) – You could say that his character is actually the hero. But he never preaches. He never says, this is right and that is wrong. He never attempts to melt hearts by pouring fuel over himself. He's intolerant towards injustice and he expects to be treated with dignity. His work of maintaining law and order gives him a sense of purpose and when tricked into a shady deal, he demands an explanation. Samudrakani embodies this character well. It's incredible how that incorrigible face in Subramaniapuram actually transforms into someone with righteousness and integrity.

2. Vaibhav (Easan) – I don't remember him breaking down or screaming aloud. So what? Are those requisites for a good performance? He plays a kid who has had it easy, takes things for granted and uses his power in ways that benefit him, even if it appears to be benefiting someone else. Vaibhav does his job, underplaying his character to the right extent even if he appears to be the lead character.

3. A. L. Alagappan (Easan) – A dictator who sees things happening in no way other than his own. When he finds his son's dead body been chewed on by a dog, he's hit hard. His stocky build and authoritarian face makes the character brim with vitality each time he makes an appearance. This is a guy you don't mess with.

4. Blessy (Easan) – A simple villager who's been both, father and mother, to his children. You don't find him talk about his parenting insecurities, but when he realizes that the new world is an evil one, you see his deep-set fears surface on top.

5. Dushyanth Jayaprakash (Easan) – Playing the title role, he makes a late appearance and he does it effortlessly. The character isn't very deep yet he is believable and Dushyanth is pitch-perfect. But the filmfare award jury believes he's too young to be rewarded especially when there are stars like Madhavan getting drunk and throwing up on screen.

6. BIGGEST SNUB- A.Venkatesh (Angadi Theru). What were you guys thinking? You nominate Vasanthabalan for best director; you nominate Anjali for best actress and Angadi Theru for best film but the film is pivoted on the character of A.Venkatesh. That character was pure evil. Venkatesh gets under the skin of the character and you loathe him enough to grin with pleasure when he's given a taste of his own medicine. His performance deserves a shower of awards.

7. Sethu (Mynaa) – In portraying a dedicated cop who pays little attention to his wife's demands, Sethu really nailed it. He wasn't playing the character. He simply was the character.

8. Ganesh Janardhanan (VTV) – Playing Silambarasan's wingman, he provides the film with comic relief. Not in the usual way. He plays a developed character and he's funny being that character. There's no ridiculous circumstances he's put in just to extract laughs from the audience.

Best Actor Supporting Role (Female):

1.Andrea (Aayirathil Oruvan) – Her character is the reason for the movie's existence but she's the last thing I remember in the film. Very supportive indeed.

2.Carole Palmer (Madrasapattinam) - No, it's not. Carole Palmer gives the character a comic element that wasn't called for.

3.Manorama (Singham) – For some thirty seconds of screen time? Cut it out.

4.Sangeetha (Manmadhan Ambu) - You rewarded her for Pithamagan. Is it the leftover love? If that's the case, unacceptable but understandable. If you believe you're rewarding based on merit, I think your jury needs some serious hiring and firing.

5.Saranya (Thenmerku Paravukatru) – Half her filmography has her playing the grieving mother. Here, she's the strong fearless mother. Breaking stereotype has earned her recognition. It's not a great performance but it certainly is more worthy than those of her co-nominees. Dreadful film, though.

Most Deserving:

Saranya (Thenmerku Paravukatru)

Snub:

Abhinaya (Easan) – Her character was a vulnerable, insecure, timid village girl. There's a wide cultural gap between the society she is and was part of. The character is a mute and Abhinaya mimes it wonderfully.