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Screen scorchers
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Summer is the time for biggies, writes Sreedhar Pillai
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Theatres in Chennai are trying to beat the heat by installing state-of-the-art air conditioners and generators to fight power cuts. But when the sun is burning bright, it is also time for exciting big-budget films and blockbusters to hit the screen.
Chennai is one of the biggest markets for Hollywood action-adventure films in South East Asia though tickets are priced low ($1.50 compared to Singapore's $ 7) in the region. The city has also emerged as a major centre for Bollywood movies and accounts for nearly 80 per cent of the total box-office collections from the Tamil Nadu-Kerala territory. Recently, Aamir Khan's "Rang De Basanti" collected Rs. 50 lakh from Chennai alone.
Telugu and Malayalam films too have a niche audience here, making it the only metro in India where films in five languages have a market.
And Tamil cinema never had it so good after last year's super hit "Chandramukhi" and "Anniyan" collected a distributors' share of Rs. 2 crore! The three summer months (April 15-July 15) account for nearly 60 per cent of the total box-office collections of the year and some of the biggest hits are released during this period. Here is the list of 10 big movies from Hollywood, Bollywood and Kollywood which are eagerly awaited and are expected to do good business.
Hollywood
In Hollywood, they think Dan Brown's "The Da Vinci Code", featuring Tom Hanks and releasing worldwide on May 19, will take the summer box-office by storm. However, in Chennai, Hollywood action thrillers have done well if they are sequels of popular movies and this year promises to be the year of sequels.
In "X-Men 3 - The Last Stand", the mutant heroes have to defend the world that hates and fears them. This time with the help of new recruits — the beast and the angel — they must face evolution itself.
"The Omen-666" is a remake of the 1976 horror classic about an American ambassador who realises that his young son may be the devil incarnate. Remember that the original ran for 25 weeks at Madras' Devi theatre and is a landmark horror film that was scary without any graphics! "Mission Impossible-3" is the most anticipated film with its awesome action scenes.
Its previous versions, "Mission Impossible - 1" and "Mission Impossible - 2", were super hits in Chennai. "Superman Returns" is back after 23 years. Its earlier version came in 1983. The man of steel returns to earth from planet Krypton to once again save his ladylove Lois Lane. The film promises to have splendid special effects.
Bollywood
"Fanaa" produced by Aditya Chopra under Yash Raj banner is directed by Kunal Kohli. It is a beautiful love story between a terrorist masquerading as a tour guide played by Aamir Khan and a blind Kashmiri girl played by Kajol. The film marks the return of Kajol to acting after a long sabbatical. It is a touching tale of love, trust, betrayal and pain with some soul-stirring music by Jatin Lalit. It has been shot in Kashmir, Delhi and Poland by ace cameraman Ravi K. Chandran.
After the critically acclaimed "Page 3", Madhur Bhandarkar and Sahara One Motion Pictures come together for "Corporate". The film with Bipasha Basu in the lead takes on the business world and will give the audiences an insight into a world of power, money and success. It has music by Shamir Tandon. "Krrish" (the sequel to "Koi Mil Gaya") is said to be "Superman", "Spiderman" and "Batman" rolled into one and is among the most eagerly awaited films of the year. Hritik Roshan plays a superhero and the film has a lot of special effects. Priyanka Chopra is the heroine. "Krrish" is produced and directed by Rakesh Roshan with melodious music by Rajesh Roshan. Expectations are high from "Krrish" which is also being dubbed in Tamil. Hritik dons a mask and sports a dark, mysterious look in the film that also has some breathtaking stunts.
Kollywood
"Vetayadu Vilayadu", will this action adventure, made by Gautham Menon and starring Kamal Hassan, be able to make it to the theatres this summer? Producer 7th Channel Narayanan is confident that it will be the big summer release. Kamal plays Raghavan, the firebrand cop, who goes on a mission to the U.S. Gautham has laced this action thriller with enough romance by featuring Jyothika and Kamalinee Mukherjee. Music is by Harris Jayaraj and the songs are already scorching the charts.
"Puthupettai", the much-awaited gangster movie by Selvaraghavan, the director with a proven track record, features his brother Dhanush, Sonia Aggarwal and Sneha.
BIG-BUDGET FILMS (From left) "Krrish", "Puthupettai" and "Fanaa"
It is said to be based on the Brazilian film "The City of Gods" and delves into the mean streets of Chennai. It has some great music and background score by Yuvan Shankar Raja.
"Jillendru Oru Kathal" is a triangular love story with Suriya, Jyothika and Bhumika Chawla in the lead. Debutant Krishna directs the film, which has music by A. R. Rahman. Suriya plays a suave business executive and has a lovely wife but suddenly his lover from his college days resurfaces giving new twists to the tale.
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