May 17, 2012

Movie Review: Grandmaster

You can't go wrong with this one. After a series of so-so's, we are on the third in a winning streak with Ordinary, 22 Female Kottayam and now Grandmaster!

B. Unnikrishnan's latest may be based on a Hercule Poirot novel (wanna know which one? :-)), but has a lot of changes and embellishments to keep it fresh and full of suspense till the end. Mohanlal plays a reluctant policeman thrown into a fledgling task force that must gain a name for itself or perish. That is when a criminal mastermind invites him to play a deadly game of chess with him. He cannot but accept the challenge, especially when the lives of his dear ones are at stake...

The cast including the newcomers have done a beautiful job. It was a wrench to watch Seetha and Roma in uncharacteristic roles, but they have done very well too. 

Although the movie has slightly more drama than a good detective movie ought to have (but hey, I am a fan of Castle and cannot complain!!!), altogether, it is well-paced, has lot more red herrings than an Agatha Christie novel and - this is the crucial part - the final culprit can't guessed! Do go and see before I reveal more than I should!!!

My DH did a comparison study between a successful and a dud "adapted story movie". He compared Grandmaster and Masters. Masters is not a bad movie at all - but the real culprit was totally guessable (even if you didn't recognize the inspiration) and after the sticky end, we were left wondering what the title signified - the protagonists certainly did not turn out to be "Masters". By comparison, we went in knowing fully well the original story and still were surprised by the ending of Grandmaster. 

It doesn't hurt to have good music in a detective movie too. Have you got a chance to hear "Akaleyo,.."? - very easy on the ears.

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