Engeyum Kaadhal Film - Romantic film

Engeyum Kaadhal   is a 2011 Tamil romantic musical film written and directed by Prabhu Deva that stars Jayam Ravi and Hansika Motwani in the lead roles. Featuring music by Harris Jayaraj, it was produced by Kalpathi S. Agoram and released on 6 May 2011 to mixed reviews. The story revolves around a girl living in France who loves a boy coming from India. This movie is a straight ripoff of the English movie Love in the Afternoon (1957 film).

Kamal (Jayam Ravi), a young billionaire, doesn`t believe in love. He works hard for 11 months and takes a month`s break from all the work related commitments. Celloist Kayalvizhi (Kayal for short or Lolita for Kamal) (Hansika Motwani) believes in true love and is highly fascinated with Indian culture. Then she sees Kamal one day and it is love at first sight for her, but before she can follow him he gets into his car and goes away. Her father Rajasekhar (Suman) runs a small detective agency in France and Kayal often reads her father`s case files for interesting stories. One day, Rajasekhar gets a new client (Sonu Gates) who wants to know about his girlfriend`s mystery man. After a brief investigation, Rajasekhar finds that his client`s girl friend is dating Kamal. Sonu gets angry and decides to kill his girlfriend and Kamal. Kayal overhears the conversation and deciding to save them, rushes to their hotel. Sonu has sent some men to kill Kamal and he is on his way there. When Kayal reaches Kamal's room she finds the door locked from inside. Without knowing what to do Kayal tries to get inside through the balcony. Then she sees that sonu's men were already fighting with Kamal. Seeing this she faints in the balcony. By this time sonu's girlfriend has escaped from there. Just when Kamal is about to win the fight Sonu enters the room and threatens Kamal with a gun. Then he searches for his girlfriend he can't find her, instead he find Kayal in the balcony. Then he thinks that Rajasekar has made a mistake and apologizes to Kamal. Understanding that Kayal has saved him, he tries to get to know her better during their incidental meetings and even though Kayal tries to resist she cannot. Kamal leaves Paris for some board meetings and Kayal is heart broken. When he returns he doesn't remember her immediately even though she has been waiting for him. Kayal tries to make Kamal love her by pretending to have many boyfriends. Kamal does get a bit jealous and he decides to get a detective to know everything about her and her possible boyfriends. Initially the detective he chooses is Rajasekar Kayal's dad. Kamal doesn't know Kayal's name, but he says about all her fake boyfriends. Rajasekar realizes that the girl's boyfriends' names are same as the names of the people in his case files realizes that Kamal is actually inquiring about his daughter, Kayal as only she has seen them. He tells Kamal about it and asks him to leave his daughter as he always does when someone falls in love with him. Kamal agrees and tells Kayal that he will be leaving for Germany and that he doesn't know when he will return. Kayal is heartbroken. Kamal tries to forget her but find that he cannot as he realizes that he too loves her. So he returns to Paris and finds her. But Kayal is angry with him and walks away. Kamal runs after her saying that he is in love with her and will never leave her.

BOX OFFICE

Engeyum Kaadhal Film  had an average opening and the collections in Chennai were 2.50 crore after 3 weeks. It was declared an 'average' film by the trade pundits.The Good family entertainer Film .The film had made good collection  from tamilandu & kerala

SONGS

 The music is scored by Harris Jayaraj. The soundtrack was scheduled to release on October 3 but was postponed "due to Enthiran mania".The audio launch, was held on November 8 by Sony Music, exactly ten years after Jayaraj's first album Minnale was released. The soundtrack received positive reviews from professional critics and also turned out to be Sony's Best Selling Album in 2011. The track "Dhimu Dhimu" was also used in the album Orange as "Chilipaga". The songs became a huge hit, before the movie had been released itself. As part of the film score, a song "Kulu Kulu Venpani Pola" was additionally composed, penned by Jayaraj himself and sung by a new singer Arjun.

Tim Burton's "Vincent"

       With the mention of the name Tim Burton, most people automatically revert to productions such as The Nightmare Before Christmas, Willy Wonka, and Alice in Wonderland. But let us explore an earlier work of Burton's, a 1982 black and white stop-motion short entitled "Vincent." The short relates the story of Vincent Malloy, a young boy who fantasizes that he is Vincent Price:

An excerpt from Burton on Burton describes the story as

      "flitting between the reality of [Vincent's] banal suburban existence and his fantasy world, Vincent imagines himself in a series of situations inspired by the Vincent Price/Edgar Allan Poe films that had had such an affect on Burton as a child."

Burton elaborates with,

       "Vincent Price, Edgar Allan Poe, those monster movies, those spoke to me. You see somebody going    through that anguish and that torture - things you identify with - and it acts as a kind of therapy, a release. You make a connection with it. That's what the Vincent thing really was for me."

       

          Personally, I LOVE this short. I think it is an expressionistic masterpiece that truly exposes how Burton saw himself as a child. According to Burton on Burton, Tim always acknowledged an inherent vapidness in his surbuban home, he always felt out of place, as if he was searching for something else, something greater. This sort of longing is portrayed perfectly in Vincent's large and desperate eyes, the lethargy of his motions, and the sparse furnishings and landscaping of his environment. This short displays perfectly a boy that is searching for his escape.

For fun, here are is an original sketch of Burton's:

And Vincent's script:

Vincent Malloy is seven years old
He’s always polite and does what he’s told
For a boy his age, he’s considerate and nice
But he wants to be just like Vincent Price

He doesn’t mind living with his sister, dog and cats
Though he’d rather share a home with spiders and bats
There he could reflect on the horrors he’s invented
And wander dark hallways, alone and tormented

Vincent is nice when his aunt comes to see him
But imagines dipping her in wax for his wax museum

He likes to experiment on his dog Abercrombie
In the hopes of creating a horrible zombie
So he and his horrible zombie dog
Could go searching for victims in the London fog

His thoughts, though, aren’t only of ghoulish crimes
He likes to paint and read to pass some of the times
While other kids read books like Go, Jane, Go!
Vincent’s favourite author is Edgar Allen Poe

One night, while reading a gruesome tale
He read a passage that made him turn pale

Such horrible news he could not survive
For his beautiful wife had been buried alive!
He dug out her grave to make sure she was dead
Unaware that her grave was his mother’s flower bed

His mother sent Vincent off to his room
He knew he’d been banished to the tower of doom
Where he was sentenced to spend the rest of his life
Alone with the portrait of his beautiful wife

While alone and insane encased in his tomb
Vincent’s mother burst suddenly into the room
She said: “If you want to, you can go out and play
It’s sunny outside, and a beautiful day”

Vincent tried to talk, but he just couldn’t speak
The years of isolation had made him quite weak
So he took out some paper and scrawled with a pen:
“I am possessed by this house, and can never leave it again”
His mother said: “You’re not possessed, and you’re not almost dead
These games that you play are all in your head

You’re not Vincent Price, you’re Vincent Malloy
You’re not tormented or insane, you’re just a young boy
You’re seven years old and you are my son
I want you to get outside and have some real fun.

”Her anger now spent, she walked out through the hall
And while Vincent backed slowly against the wall
The room started to swell, to shiver and creak
His horrid insanity had reached its peak

He saw Abercrombie, his zombie slave
And heard his wife call from beyond the grave
She spoke from her coffin and made ghoulish demands
While, through cracking walls, reached skeleton hands

Every horror in his life that had crept through his dreams
Swept his mad laughter to terrified screams!
To escape the madness, he reached for the door
But fell limp and lifeless down on the floor

His voice was soft and very slow
As he quoted The Raven from Edgar Allen Poe:

“and my soul from out that shadow
that lies floating on the floor
shall be lifted?
Nevermore…”

 The last quote is from Edgar Allan Poe's "The Raven." Here is the original poem:

Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered weak and weary,
Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore,
While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping,
As of some one gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door.
`'Tis some visitor,' I muttered, `tapping at my chamber door -
Only this, and nothing more.'

Ah, distinctly I remember it was in the bleak December,
And each separate dying ember wrought its ghost upon the floor.
Eagerly I wished the morrow; - vainly I had sought to borrow
From my books surcease of sorrow - sorrow for the lost Lenore -
For the rare and radiant maiden whom the angels named Lenore -
Nameless here for evermore.

And the silken sad uncertain rustling of each purple curtain
Thrilled me - filled me with fantastic terrors never felt before;
So that now, to still the beating of my heart, I stood repeating
`'Tis some visitor entreating entrance at my chamber door -
Some late visitor entreating entrance at my chamber door; -
This it is, and nothing more,'

Presently my soul grew stronger; hesitating then no longer,
`Sir,' said I, `or Madam, truly your forgiveness I implore;
But the fact is I was napping, and so gently you came rapping,
And so faintly you came tapping, tapping at my chamber door,
That I scarce was sure I heard you' - here I opened wide the door; -
Darkness there, and nothing more.

Deep into that darkness peering, long I stood there wondering, fearing,
Doubting, dreaming dreams no mortal ever dared to dream before;
But the silence was unbroken, and the darkness gave no token,
And the only word there spoken was the whispered word, `Lenore!'
This I whispered, and an echo murmured back the word, `Lenore!'
Merely this and nothing more.

Back into the chamber turning, all my soul within me burning,
Soon again I heard a tapping somewhat louder than before.
`Surely,' said I, `surely that is something at my window lattice;
Let me see then, what thereat is, and this mystery explore -
Let my heart be still a moment and this mystery explore; -
'Tis the wind and nothing more!'

Open here I flung the shutter, when, with many a flirt and flutter,
In there stepped a stately raven of the saintly days of yore.
Not the least obeisance made he; not a minute stopped or stayed he;
But, with mien of lord or lady, perched above my chamber door -
Perched upon a bust of Pallas just above my chamber door -
Perched, and sat, and nothing more.

Then this ebony bird beguiling my sad fancy into smiling,
By the grave and stern decorum of the countenance it wore,
`Though thy crest be shorn and shaven, thou,' I said, `art sure no craven.
Ghastly grim and ancient raven wandering from the nightly shore -
Tell me what thy lordly name is on the Night's Plutonian shore!'
Quoth the raven, `Nevermore.'

Much I marvelled this ungainly fowl to hear discourse so plainly,
Though its answer little meaning - little relevancy bore;
For we cannot help agreeing that no living human being
Ever yet was blessed with seeing bird above his chamber door -
Bird or beast above the sculptured bust above his chamber door,
With such name as `Nevermore.'

But the raven, sitting lonely on the placid bust, spoke only,
That one word, as if his soul in that one word he did outpour.
Nothing further then he uttered - not a feather then he fluttered -
Till I scarcely more than muttered `Other friends have flown before -
On the morrow he will leave me, as my hopes have flown before.'
Then the bird said, `Nevermore.'

Startled at the stillness broken by reply so aptly spoken,
`Doubtless,' said I, `what it utters is its only stock and store,
Caught from some unhappy master whom unmerciful disaster
Followed fast and followed faster till his songs one burden bore -
Till the dirges of his hope that melancholy burden bore
Of "Never-nevermore."'

But the raven still beguiling all my sad soul into smiling,
Straight I wheeled a cushioned seat in front of bird and bust and door;
Then, upon the velvet sinking, I betook myself to linking
Fancy unto fancy, thinking what this ominous bird of yore -
What this grim, ungainly, ghastly, gaunt, and ominous bird of yore
Meant in croaking `Nevermore.'

This I sat engaged in guessing, but no syllable expressing
To the fowl whose fiery eyes now burned into my bosom's core;
This and more I sat divining, with my head at ease reclining
On the cushion's velvet lining that the lamp-light gloated o'er,
But whose velvet violet lining with the lamp-light gloating o'er,
She shall press, ah, nevermore!

Then, methought, the air grew denser, perfumed from an unseen censer
Swung by Seraphim whose foot-falls tinkled on the tufted floor.
`Wretch,' I cried, `thy God hath lent thee - by these angels he has sent thee
Respite - respite and nepenthe from thy memories of Lenore!
Quaff, oh quaff this kind nepenthe, and forget this lost Lenore!'
Quoth the raven, `Nevermore.'

`Prophet!' said I, `thing of evil! - prophet still, if bird or devil! -
Whether tempter sent, or whether tempest tossed thee here ashore,
Desolate yet all undaunted, on this desert land enchanted -
On this home by horror haunted - tell me truly, I implore -
Is there - is there balm in Gilead? - tell me - tell me, I implore!'
Quoth the raven, `Nevermore.'

`Prophet!' said I, `thing of evil! - prophet still, if bird or devil!
By that Heaven that bends above us - by that God we both adore -
Tell this soul with sorrow laden if, within the distant Aidenn,
It shall clasp a sainted maiden whom the angels named Lenore -
Clasp a rare and radiant maiden, whom the angels named Lenore?'
Quoth the raven, `Nevermore.'

`Be that word our sign of parting, bird or fiend!' I shrieked upstarting -
`Get thee back into the tempest and the Night's Plutonian shore!
Leave no black plume as a token of that lie thy soul hath spoken!
Leave my loneliness unbroken! - quit the bust above my door!
Take thy beak from out my heart, and take thy form from off my door!'
Quoth the raven, `Nevermore.'

And the raven, never flitting, still is sitting, still is sitting
On the pallid bust of Pallas just above my chamber door;
And his eyes have all the seeming of a demon's that is dreaming,
And the lamp-light o'er him streaming throws his shadow on the floor;
And my soul from out that shadow that lies floating on the floor
Shall be lifted - nevermore!