Makkhi

I saw this film at the Imagine (SF/horror/fantasy) film festival 2013 in Amsterdam. A lot of impossible things happen in this film, but the context is clear from the opening scene on, where we hear a persistent daughter asking her father to tell a bedtime story. It sets the tone for what follows: a fairy tale, with good and bad people, the good ones win in the end, the bad ones await what is coming for them, etcetera. The voices of father and daughter re-appear in the ending scene, to remind us that this was indeed a "Once upon a time" story from the start. Maybe the heads up is not really redundant, while all sort of things happen during the 2 hours in between.

Basically, we see a proverbial David and Goliath story: a David-like (Nani) figure is killed by the Goliath-figure (Sudeep), all in the struggle for a woman (Bindu). But Nani reincarnates as a fly and makes it his business to haunt and annoy Sudeep at first, later on followed by real attempts to kill him. It is beautifully visualized, with a lot of animation where a fly is neatly integrated in the picture.

In the first half hour (before the fly makes its/his appearance) I had the impression that the main characters were portrayed a bit over the top. Especially the bad guy (Sudeep), who usually gets any beautiful woman he wants, has to let go of Bindu who has set her eyes on neighbor Nani. Nani follows Bindu everywhere, but she waits 2 years before responding to his courting.

When collecting funds for a school support project, Bindu is received by Sudeep who writes a cheque on first sight in favor of her charity, but also insists she has lunch with him. This is where the trouble starts. Bindu is apparently distracted when seeing Nani nearby during lunch, being an unusual experience for Sudeep. He "solves" this problem by killing Nani in a dark alley. Nani reincarnates as a fly, at which moment the animation kicks in.

That is also the moment that the fairy tale atmosphere starts. Nani is determined to get his revenge. We see many impossible things happen during his actions. I'm not sure about some of them being physically possible for a fly, like carrying a needle many times its own weight. And the ominous writing on Sundeep's windshield looks also improbable. But who cares, since it fits the story line AND we can expect this in a fairy tale where the good win and the bad loose in the end, by whatever means available at the time.

All in all, in spite of the simplistic story that one could have derived from the synopsis, the plot is worked out beautifully. The subsequent attempts of the fly to deal with Sundeep, are various and creative. At first, the fly works alone. Later on he finds a way to communicate with Bindu, and they start working together. But even then, many killing attempts fail. As a result, we get many opportunities to admire how the animation and the "real" characters work together. We also become aware that a fly lives a very dangerous life, feeling very vulnerable and defenseless against people who think flies are a menace to mankind. However, this special fly survives it all, of course inherent to a fairy tale that is designed to let the good ones win. The festival visitors (all 18+) gave this film an 8.07 score for the audience award, demonstrating that this movie is also interesting enough for adults.

Folks, before I begin let me just say that Telugu Cinemas have become too formulaic in the past decade. To sum it up there is ALWAYS a flashback, hero sets out to make the villain look like a fool, right before the intermission/halfway point through the movie the audience is let in on the secret that the hero only knows, in between there is a love track between the hero and heroine that is established in a wish-washy way. All the while there are 5-6 songs thrown in at the most inopportune moments; with double-entendre lyrics. I for one am fed up with the lack of variety among the modern Tollywood films.

Along comes Rajamouli's "EEGA" (also released in Tamil as "Naan EE") and kicks the routine formula out of the equation, and puts any other movie made in the last decade or so to shame. TELUGU MOVIES do not get any better than this folks. Take a moment to applaud Rajamouli as this film is his magnum opus! The special effects, background score, cinematography, and screenplay rival that of Western world's best films (might be a slight exaggeration on my part). It's safe to say that Rajamouli's streak will continue, and will carry his name to new heights around India. He must be commended for making use of a low key set of actors and actresses to make (in my opinion) the greatest Telugu film ever made.

Sudeep is the real scene stealer here; while Nani, Samantha, and Thagubothu Ramesh do their roles justice. Sudeep plays the villain with such conviction that you forget he is acting. Every scene with our protagonist the "Eega" and Sudeep is sure to be eye candy for every audience member. I assure you that there will be enough comedy in this movie for anyone looking for a few laughs. After the halfway mark/intermission is when the ticket price starts paying for itself (I won't say why ;) ). I have to commend the SFX team for making this one a visual treat. There is not more that I can say without giving away key information about the plot, and story. Go pay the ticket price and enjoy this close to 3 hour visual feast.

GO WATCH THIS ONE WITH THE FAMILY!

My Rating : 9/10

This is what being creative is all about, seriously good movie about a lover who dies and then reincarnates as a fly to take revenge on his perpetrators.

Visually riveting, Eega is one helluva high-concept thriller/comedy and needs to be seen to be believed.

Watch it!!!

Elements like the below are an icing on the cake : 1. Eega doing its best to prevent Sudeep from getting intimate with Bindu.

2. Eega's teasing gestures to Sudeep, which is funny and also lends an aura of heroism around the fly.

3. Eega's song where it challenges Sudeep is not only well-placed but also an integral part of the film.

4. The character of Bindu being made a part of Eega's plot is superb. Kicha Sudeep's performance in Eega is getting rave reviews from various quarters. With his wonderful acting, the actor has won the hearts of the audience. However, his fan followers from Karnataka had one more reason to be thrilled

Makhhi or eega is a movie which is absolutely weird and non sense but wait......this movie is a official non sense movie. I am sure the director made it and announced "hey folks this film is non sense...see if you like it or not but i have tried to make it entertaining".

So this non sense movie is absolutely a rich experience. Its fresh beautiful and artistic. Unexpectedly this is first movie from south that i loved. Amazing story though nothing new but along with 'arey arey' soundtrack this film is just a refreshing experience. Don't know if they like it or not but i just loved this senselessness. Animation is unforgettable even though it has no match with modern animation movies. In all i loved this movie and congratulate director and crew for this try.