Thalappavu

Dear Madhupal, your film was a failure at the scripting level itself. The characterization was more one dimensional than in a bad Shaji Kailas-Renji Panicker film. The state and the landlords are horrible conspiring fascists. The poor are wretched and helpless. The naxalites are all heroic men. No new ideas here.

Prithviraj pulled off the role of the naxalite physically but the character's cloying humanitarianism got on your nerves after a point. Same was the case with the policeman's (Lal) seemingly unassailable wretchedness and impotence. The cruelty of the landlord (Atul Kulkarni) and the other policemen came across as cartoonish.

The background score was annoying. Yet you kept repeating it ad nauseam. And even worse were the over the top weeping of the women. Jagathi's comedy track added nothing to the movie. In fact, it served as a distraction.

The comparison of Naxal Varghese's life and death to that of Jesus Christ was an interesting idea.

You had an interesting story based on a real life incident. But your unimaginative direction and characterization ruined this film.

Best Regards, Pimpin.

For all you people who has been shedding tears about no good movie gets made nowadays, it is time for you to stop worrying, well for the time being at least, because this is a terrific movie. The acting by all the actors, especially Lal and Prithviraj was terrific without going over the top. The direction, screenplay and camera work is commendable as well. It takes guts to put your money on such projects and Lal after the endless masala flicks has come up trumps with this. It might be fictional, the story might be one sided. Like in one review I saw a reviewer asking where is the evil man's side of the story. So if one can be very harsh that is the minor blip if one can say it so. But overall in malayalam cinema for the last decade or so this is one of the very few gems that have come out. I never expected it from Madhupal!!! Well, I guess I was wrong. So in short all you people who like good cinema, please support this film by buying an original copy of the film from video centers...please...

--> Thalappavu is well worth watching compared to many other high budget so called multi-starred "flops" in Malayalam!

--> Madhupal seems to have the potential to become a great Movie director. I somehow felt that the Art direction and the locations selected were not up to the level where the screenplay and direction were in this Movie. Probably the production team didn't want to invest more on a debut director. Hope other production houses have their doubts cleared seeing what Madhupal has delivered through this movie.

--> Longing to see more such movies created with substance and with more perfection in Malayalam to regain the Trademark of Malayalam Movie Industry that has degraded lately.

There are certain films that are a whole way ahead of its time. Thalappavu is one of them.

The so called malayalam film critics may think only adoor's films are best, but this one is a gem. It's way above Adoor's 'Naalu Pennunghal'

Never in any frame it look liked a debut director's venture..

Don't go by the rating.. this film will be considered a classic in the future..

It is a story of a man who has committed one mistake (and only one) in his lifetime and how his life turn over him after that. Madhupal has done a great job with a great script. hats off to him..

Lal has given the lifetime best performance and Prithviraj was good as usual.

Background score was awesome.

well Madhpal, Give me more....