I love this film! It was probably the very first SI film I ever bought back in the days before I had any idea about the industry. I watched Bhool Bhulaiyaa in the cinema and then read that the dancing was better in the original movie, so immediately hunted down a copy. And really, it’s not only the dancing that is better! Manichitrathazhu was released in 1993 and has since been remade in a number of different versions but of the three I have seen, the original is definitely the best.
In contrast to the more comedy orientated Bhool Bhulaiyaa, Manichitrathazhu actually works well as a ghost story with some genuinely eerie scenes and unexplained happenings to set up the story. Nakulan (Suresh Gopi) and his wife Ganga(Shobana) move in to his ancestral home, Madampilli house to live for a few months while Nakulan works in the area.
The house is reputedly haunted by the vengeful ghost of a Tamil dancer Nagavalli and that of her murderer, the rich nobleman Sankaran Thampi. Their spirits are said to be held in a room of the mansion and the door is locked shut with the ‘ornate lock’ of the title. Ganga and Nakulan both disbelieve totally in such fanciful ideas, but Ganga is fascinated by the story of the doomed dancer and with the help of Nakulan’s cousin Alli (Rudra) she contrives to open the room. To my disappointment, and possibly hers as well, no vengeful spirits rush out, and she only finds the dust of ages and a box of Nagavalli’s jewellery.
Once the door is opened however there are a number of strange happenings around the mansion. Various articles catch fire and the sound of ghungroos and music are heard at night. The head of the family Thampi (Nedumudi Venu) and his bumbling brother Unnithan (Innocent) move their families into the house to try to protect the couple as well as attempt to confine the spirits back to their room.
This part of the film is captivating with the juxtaposition between science and superstition and the various ways the family deals with the apparent ghostly manifestations. On the one hand Thampi and his family tie charms to ward off evil spirits, employ priests to hold ceremonies and engage a tantric expert to pacify the spirits, while Nakulan steadfastly refuses to believe in any supernatural entity and calls in his friend and renowned psychiatrist Dr Sunny Joseph (Mohanlal). Although from Dr Joseph’s introduction it’s hard to know which of the two methods is the better choice.
Nakulan suspects his ex-fiancée, Thampi’s eldest daughter Sreedevi, of causing all the incidents around the house. Sreedevi is a quiet and withdrawn girl who apparently has an unfortunate horoscope and who also seems to turn up at the wrong place every time something strange happens. With the arrival of Dr Joseph the story shifts from the supernatural into more of a psychological thriller as the psychiatrist does not believe in the existence of a supernatural entity either and decides that there is a mentally disturbed human agency behind the disruptions. Dr Joseph goes about tracking down the culprit with his unique methods, and then has to deal with the consequences of his discovery.
The only thing I don’t like about this film is the character of Dr Joseph despite Mohanlal’s best efforts and terrible shirts. I find that the over-the-top comedy aspect detracts from the more serious side of the story when it starts to delve into the issues of mental illness, and a lot of the antics Dr Joseph engages in are just irritating. However it’s not supposed to be an exploration of mental illness and I don’t find the attitudes of the other characters annoying in the same way. The patronising and condescending manner of Dr Joseph in his ‘comedy moments’ is horrible though and I don’t like way his character sleazily tries to woo Sreedevi at the same time as’ accusing’ her of mental illness. And yet, when the action takes over and the jokes stop, Dr Joseph is much more likeable and I wish that Mohanlal had played him as a straighter character for the whole film.
Shobana on the other hand is amazing as Ganga. She plays the character so well and thoroughly deserved the awards she won for her performance. Vinaya Prasad as Sreedevi doesn’t get as much screen time but she plays the quiet and unassuming character with the appropriate dignity and reserve. The two uncles Thampi and Unnithan together form a ‘comedy-light’ track and it’s generally well done and fits into the story without detracting from the main action. However the comedy track involving the tantric expert Brahmadattan Nampoothirippadu (Thilakan) is a little too slapstick for my taste and just isn’t very funny. Suresh Gopi is fine as the rather utilitarian husband dealing with the unexplained happenings in his ancestral home, but he is frequently overshadowed by Shobana and Mohanlal. The other minor characters are all good in their roles and I really like the actress who plays Unnithan’s wife. She had some great comedy moments and was very natural in her role.
I haven’t said much about the dancing which was the whole point of watching this film initially, but the highlight is the final climax song. It does give away the identity of Nagavalli though so skip it if you don’t want to know. Otherwise click here for the best depiction of Nagavalli I’ve seen. The whole sound track by M. G. Radhakrishnan is lovely too and this is another beautiful and moving song from the film.
As seems to be the case with most Malayalam films, no matter what the subject matter, the film looks beautiful. The house used for the shoot appears to be a labyrinth and the various characters often have to run up and down stairs, along corridors and through innumerable doors to get to the scene of the action. Nothing ever seems to be shot against a blank wall, but instead is filmed against doorways, windows or beautiful shots of the country side. While no actual ghost is seen, there are shadows and suggestions all made more chilling by the use of claustrophobic corridors and shapes glimpsed through far doorways. The décor of the house is also well thought out with the couple’s room having the feel of one where the occupants are only there for a short time. And of course I also noticed the clocks.
I love the music and the whole feel of the film. It’s a great story by Madhu Muttam and Fazil has done an excellent job with his direction to bring it to life. My only complaint is with Mohanlal’s overly jocular psychiatrist and I can manage to live with that since the rest of the film is so well presented. No matter how many times I watch it I still get totally involved in the story again and eagerly wait for that wonderful dance. 4 ½ stars
Temple says:
I really like ghost stories, and Indian cinema has some good examples of spooky, understated and haunting (ha!) films. I like a lot about Manichitrathazhu, and totally agree with Heather on the beauty of the house and location that add so much to the atmosphere, and the excellent dancing in the denouement. Shobana is a compelling and beautiful heroine, and gives Ganga a great deal of emotional depth and energy. There is much more to Ganga than the dutiful wife who mutely follows her husband’s lead, and Shobana brings her to life. But Mohanlal really spoils it for me. I disliked his characteriation of Sunny Joseph on first sight and thought he failed miserably to balance the unconventional prankster with the more serious practitioner and friend. Watching it again, and knowing how it ends, there is no suspense left to distract from the shortcomings of how things happen. This may be considered sacrilege but if I could play mix’n’match, I would replace Mohanlal with Rajnikanth (in the Tamil version, Chandramukhi) who at least has enough charisma to overcome a fairly silly character. And I would probably want Vidya Balan (Bhool Bulaiyaa) or Anushka Shetty (Nagavalli, the Telugu sequel to Chandramukhi) in the supporting cast with Vinaya Prasad as long as they left the dancing to Shobana! I initially watched the film on the strength of one dance sequence and that is still the most memorable element for me. The songs from the Tamil and Hindi versions are also worth a look even if you don’t fancy the whole film, especially the final classical styled songs that feature Vineeth.
Manichitrathazhu is a pretty looking film, has some excellent atmospheric scenes (although it never caused me the slightest goosebump), and the soundtrack is pleasant. I recommend watching it, but unlike Heather I don’t think it stands repeat viewings unless you have a serious interior design fetish, a very poor memory or a very high tolerance for Dr Sunny. 3 1/2 stars.
Cinema Chaat 
Don’t think of Mohanlal as a below par actor.. This maybe the malayalee in me speaking..
But I find it really find it hard to believe that Mohanlal was irritating.. I have seen Chandramukhi also Bhool Bhulaiya.. And i found both Rajni Sir and Akshay Kumar to be below par…
This movie was all about Shobhana… And she has done a role of a lifetime…
If you are to judge the acting of Mohanlal..
Try watching movies like Iruvar, Kireedam, Pavithram, Dasharadham, Thoovanathumbikal.. or even his recent movies like Bharamaram or Pranayam..
This is not some kind of a word war..
Just my honest opinion..
Keep up the good work…
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Hi Vijaykuttan,
Thanks for your comment. I agree with you that Mohanlal has done some great films, although from your list I have only seen Iruvar (which I do really like). It’s just that in this film I think his character would have been more sympathetic without all the jokes and slapstick comedy. I’m quite sure that is mainly down to the director Fazil as I’ve read that he wanted the role to be funny but it just didn’t work for me. I liked the comedy from the uncles and the rest of the family, but not so much from Dr Sunny Joseph 🙂
Mohanlal is much better than Akshay Kumar and I have to agree that I’m not a fan of Rajni’s Dr Saravanan either! I just don’t like the way this character is written 🙂
You are right that it is totally Shobana’s movie and she is absolutely fabulous. I realised when writing this that I haven’t seen her in very many other films, so I’ve made a note to watch more of her work. I’ve tried not to give away too much of the story so wan’t able to say too much but she’s the main reason I love this film so much 🙂
Thanks as well for your list of Mohanlal films – more to add to the ever growing list of films to watch!
Cheers, Heather
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Hey guys great review! I have to disagree with your comments about Mohanlal though. I thought Dr. Sunny was just a quirky character and greatly enjoyed his pranks/jokes.
All the songs in the movie are done in a certain scale that is considered forbidden by classical music teachers. Apparently they never teach that raaga to their students as it is considered to be asssociated with evil spirits.
This movie was just really fascinating for me to watch and I never get tired of watching it!
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Hi Meenkaran,
I’ve watched this film around 6 or 7 times and love it! Thanks for the information about the music – it is very haunting and just lovely.
When I first heard the song Oru Murai Vanthu I had it on repeat for months 🙂 and it’s still a song I play frequently.
It’s interesting that both you and vijaykuttan both liked Dr Joseph Sunny, so maybe the jokes just didn’t translate well. But I don’t like this character in any of the versions, even in Hindi where I have a better chance of understanding the dialogue (although there is the Akshay Kumar factor there!). The comedy for his character seemed overdone to me, although as I’ve mentioned I thought most of the rest of the comedy very funny. I still love the film though and in the parts where Dr Sunny is more serious Mohanlal is perfect 🙂
Heather
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You have not understood the basic fact that the character of Dr Sunny is meant to be eccentric . He is what you could call an eccentric genius . He is not your conventional spick and span doctor . If you minus Mohanlal the film loses all it”s comic charm . Now you may argue that a doctor has to be perfectly serious but you should understand that all genius figures in world history has their personal oddities , there are artists like Baudelaire who mostly forgot his name and Einstein , the great scientist often forgot where he lived . It may be presumptuous on my part to compare a cinematic character to real life geniuses but the point is that eccentricity is not silliness or a fault it usually accompanies genius whether in real life or even in Cinema . Now you yourself mentioned that Lal is best in the serious moods of Dr sunny, that exactly is the multidimensional nature of the character . Dr sunny is primarily a jocular eccentric but he can be very calculating and serious when the situation demands . After Shobhana it is Mohanlal”s character i like the most in this film
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Hi Hari,
Thanks for your comment 🙂
I’m sure I did get that he’s supposed to be eccentric – after all he’s a psychiatrist! But unfortunately that’s not how the character comes across to me.
I certainly don’t think doctors have to be serious – not at all, but I find the comedy doesn’t work here and I don’t find it funny. I think Mohanlal is a fantastic actor but this is not my favourite character of his. Then again I didn’t like this character in any of the versions of the film I have seen either, so pretty sure it’s nothing to do with the actor and all about the characterisation.
I’ve found it very interesting to read everyone’s different opinions about Dr Sunny and it reminds me that comedy is one of the hardest genres to translate to another language. Obviously few people agree with me, and that’s the best thing about reading everyone’s comments – it’s made me think about the character in a new light even if I haven’t changed my opinion 🙂
I also don’t find American humour funny and I know that many Australians are baffled by the things I do find funny – Irish humour is pretty dark!
Cheers, Heather
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Hi Heather, This is probably not my genre but I enjoyed the two clips – the dance was really good! Cheers. Suja
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Hi Suja,
Good to know that you liked the music – and the dancing which I think is the best scene in the whole film 🙂
The rest of the soundtrack is really worth listening to as well if you liked these two songs, as I think it is really very beautiful.
The film is more of a thriller really than pure horror and it’s such a beautifully shot film that you might like it. I do think some of the early scenes are quite creepy though so maybe don’t watch it alone 🙂
Cheers
Heather
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Did you guys know that Shobana is the niece of the dancing trio Lalita, Padmini, Raagini of the South Indian Cinema in older days?
The song was fantastic. Acting-wise, I didn’t really expect Shobana to beat Jyotika based on her Telugu movies. The dance clip was an eye-opener. Thanks!
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Hi Violet – Yes I did 🙂 And I think Vineeth is a cousin of hers, so there is some seriously excellent dance pedigree in that lineage. I thought Shobana seemed more possessed where Jyothika was more crazy in their versions of this character. Both performances were good, but that final dance tipped the scales towards Shobana for my money. Cheers, Temple
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Hi Violet,
Yes, as Temple says it’s an impressive lineage 🙂
I think that both Jyothika and Shobana played the character very well, but Shobana just wins for me. She really got the behaviour and mood changes just right to be mentally disturbed whereas Jyothika did look more as if she was acting ‘crazy’. I also think the rest of the cast are a bit more even in this as Rajni overshadows everyone a bit more in Chandramuki. But saying that I could have done with more toning down in Mohanlal’s performance here too 😛
Glad you enjoyed the dance clip – it’s a song that’s still on my playlist too – I love it! 🙂
Heather
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This is an very impressive review indeed. I remember having seen this movie as a kid and remember not being able to doze for days.
Shobana just nailed it with her epic expressions and her constant spurts of anger. The role has never been matched by any of her counterparts in other languages. The strong screenplay is an absolute delight and the smaller roles are perfect. With all due respect though,
I find the reference to Mohanlal’s acting a bit too harsh. There are times in the movie where he does show his finesse as an actor, especially towards the latter part of the movie.
But agreeably one of the epic movies to come out of the malayalam stables. And glad to know it has found an following among people from everywhere. There are a few more classics in malayalam which are worth a mention here too.
Lookin forward to more reviews from India.
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Hi Sandeep,
Thanks 🙂
100% agree about Shobana – brilliant performance from her and the best out of all the versions I’ve seen.
Re Mohanlal – I found the comedy tended to jar against the drama of the rest of the film. Sometimes it was funny and fitted the story but a lot of it just didn’t work for me. Comedy is one of those things that doesn’t always translate well either and there is often a cultural difference in the humour from different countries. I don’t disagree that Mohanlal is a good actor though, and I’d like to see more of his films 🙂
Which Malayalam classics would you recommend? I’m always looking for new films to watch.
Cheers
Heather
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Hello Heather,
Nice review…..as u just explained comedy is one thing that doesn’t translate well, u sud be a native speaker….i think the character sunny was intended to be like this at the initial stages and later on the character became more serious which translates well with the flow of the movie……
Rgds,
Ajesh
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Hi Ajesh,
Thanks for your comment 🙂 Comedy is definitely the hardest to understand and since I’m not a fan of this type of slap-stick humour in any language I find it hard to relate to Sunny’s character. That said, I still do love the film and it’s my favourite version out of all three that I’ve seen.
I have a pile of other Mohanlal films to watch too since I’d like to see him in a less irritating (for me at least) role 🙂
Cheers, Heather
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I completely disagree with the comment that Mohanlal as Dr.Sunny was irritating. That character is funny and light-hearted and Mohanlal has done a perfect performance in that role.
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Hi Arfaz,
Comedy is very subjective and for me the humour just didn’t work. I think that Mohanlal was good in the role, but I just didn’t enjoy that part of the characterisation of Dr Sunny and found him to be a more likeable character when he wasn’t clowning around. Same goes for Rajinikanth’s Dr Saravanan in the Tamil version Chandramukhi 🙂
But as I’ve mentioned before, both are much less irritating than Akshay Kumar’s Dr Aditya in Bhool Bhulaiyaa!
Cheers, Heather
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Where do I find this movie with english subtitles??
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Hi Lucia,
I bought this DVD from AnyTamil who unfortunately aren’t around any more. But you could try http://www.malayalamflix.com who do have a good range of Malayalam films with subtitles and are happy to try and find a film if they don’t have it in stock.
I hope you find a copy – it’s a great film!
Cheers, Heather
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Thankyou, they have it w eng sub, but I live in Norway, so I think it will be very expencive….
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Hi Lucia,
😦 Probably
I haven’t seen it online with subs anywhere.
Norway – I love Norway! Haven’t been there since I was a child though but I remember how beautiful it is 🙂
Heather
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hi lucia
if i find any subtitled downloadable link i will let you know or did you see the movie?
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Lucia schanke, try to look on YT. There was a whole movie with built -in subtitles.
And about the movie: trying to understand fenomen of this story (i.e. so many remakes and sequels and nearly all succesfull) I’ve seen three different versions (tamil, mallu and kannada) and althought I really like all actresses playing Chandramukhi role (in cannada version that was Soundarya) and think they made a good job, it’s probably just the story not-in-my-type so none of these versions was really fascinating for me. Pity:)
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Thanks ciummaa
It was difficult to find a copy of this version with English subtitles when I first bought it a few years ago!
It’s a shame you don’t like the story as the actresses really do make the most of their roles. I haven’t seen the Kannada version apart from ‘the dance’ on YT so I really must track it down to complete the set! 🙂
Cheers, Heather
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That’s only proof that sometimes even the best actor/role doesn’t make the movie (as a story) interesting:D
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Hi Temple,
I was amazed to read your review on this film. I really believe acting should be natural and movies too should give it’s happening or once happened or may happen feeling. I don’t know what makes u think to replac Mohanlal with Rajnikanth. I was sad when I watched Chandramukhi..really a commercial trash version of a classic. Manichitrathazhu is not a ghost movie actually..more stress on psychatry and superstitious intepretation..In Chandramukhi did you see Rajnikanth introduction , what logic..just stardom..Manichitrathazhu is totally script oriented, inspired from a real incident. Really annoying to see ur remarks on Mohanlal’s acting.Watch malayalam movies Kireedom , Devasuram, Nadodikattu…
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Great review about the movie, it is indeed one of the best movies made in malayalam. I will have to disagree about the comments on Dr.Sunny’s character. He has both funny and a serious note in his behaviour.
Shobhana had done absolute justice to her role and as a dancer she is just brilliant. One important thing which made the character more impactful was the excellent dubbing provided by two famous dubbing artists – Bhagyalakshmi for Shobana’s Ganga portion, Nagavally’s portion by Jayageetha. They had played an important role in making Ganga/Nagavalli alive even after 20 years of making the movie.
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Hi Aswathi,
Thanks for your comment and the information about the dubbing artists. I wish this information was more easily available as I would often like to know more about the actors who provide their voices for these roles. A voice can completely change my opinion of a character, particularly if the dubbing doesn’t seem to fit 🙂
Cheers
Heather
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hi Heather Wilson
i like your review but if you don’t understand malayalam you may find some comedy scenes a bit irritating. that ‘s not your fault because comedy will loose its fun when it gets translated.and some people may not like comedy scenes in serious films.mohan lal is a great actor,in malayalam he is a superstar but this movie is well known as shobhana’s movie and the entire crew of the movie done a great job.i have watched its remakes and like you said they are all scraps.i am a malayalee so i really enjoy the movie whenever it telecasts in TV.
rgds
Vivek
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Hi Vivek,
Thanks for your comment & good to hear you liked the review. Comedy is one of the hardest things to get in another culture, and it never translates well. Having to read subtitles just makes another barrier to ‘getting it’, and I’m not a fan of slap-stick in any language! However I still love the film and could tolerate Mohanlal much better in this than Akshay Kumar in Bhool Bhulaiyaa!
Cheers, Heather
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Add me, a Malayalee, to the number of people (probably miniscule) who found Mohanlal *very* irritating in his Dr Sunny Joseoh incarnation! And he’s such a fantastic actor too.
But Manichitrathazhu was directed by four directors – Fazil, Priyadarshan, Sibi Malayil and Siddique-Lal (the last three named all served as second-unit directors). I have a dirty feeling that the Dr Joseph’s comedy track was Priyadarshan’s work. (No proof, but it’s an educated guess having seen his directorial style with Mohanlal.)
But it is a classic and deserves to be known better than it is. I wish there was a really good sub-titled versiont that can be shown to people who do not understand the language. The remakes in the other languages never came close to achieving this one’s simplicity.
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Hi Anu Warrior
Interesting thought about the directors – I can see your reasoning there 🙂
It’s still my favourite version of the story as Shobana is just amazing as Ganga – and I just endure the ‘comedy’ and remind myself about how much I love Mohanlal in many other films!
Good to know it’s not just an Irish vs Indian idea of comedy issue too!
Cheers, Heather
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When the movie was announced several filmmakers
suggested director Fazil to cast Mammootty for the part
of psychiatrist “Dr. Sunny Joseph”, but he wanted the
character to be light hearted and funny, so he cast
Mohanlal instead.
source:imdb
yes! its little bit annoying when one find frolicfull character in serious film especially psychological thrillers. But if you dissecting into 2 parts. 1st half is mostly focussed on comedy sprinkled with bit eerie scenes. 2nd half is serious and you’ll noticed that even Dr. Sunny Joseph became committed psychiatrist. 🙂
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Hi Victory,
Thanks for the information about the casting. Interesting reasoning.
For me it’s not so much that there is comedy in the film, it’s more that the character is a little too OTT for me. Less extreme would have worked better for me, but that is just my opinion 🙂
Cheers
Heather
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I really enjoyed reading your review. I agree with your comment that Mohanlal was a bit annoying when he tried to be comical. Maybe he was trying to calm things down as this movie is a disturbing movie in some ways. Overall its the best Malayalam movie ever.
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Hi Jayakrishnan,
Thanks for your comment.
It’s definitely a classic!
Welcome to the small (or perhaps exclusive 😛 ) group of people who didn’t completely enjoy Mohanlal’s character!
Cheers, Heather
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it’s hard to find the best movie ever came in Malayalam….but if u look at almost all online polls, Manichitrathazhu bags no.1 spot……….it is still fresh even after 20 years and all these remakes… As Heather correctly pointed out, comedy is hard to get translated….
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Hi Arjun,
It’s still one of my favourites! Shobana is incredible and I think her performance is the main factor in my love for the film. It was watching the song Oru murai vanthu pattaya that inspired me to watch the film initially and she is just mesmerising throughout.
Cheers, Heather
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good review! I saw many disagree with your view about replacing Mohanlal vth rajnikanth, well definitely Mohanlal is the most versatile actor and I think that you want Rajni character than Mohanlal frolicfull character instead of replacing actors. May be so! I never get bored while watching this epic movie that to for umpteen times. Remakes were all kinda mockery to this epic!. if you want to know definition of versatile watch all Mohanlal film especially of 80s & 90s. Watch Kireedom.Vanaprasthanam,Thanmatra,Bhramaram,Bharatham & Guru.
Also Shobana ma’am showcased a do or die kinda act. Though it has few loopholes still its an age-defying classic.
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Hi Victory,
Thanks for your comment. I love rewatching this film although I do now skip over the bits I find annoying. It’s an absolute classic!
I’ve watched quite a few of the films you mention (when I can track down a copy with subtitles) and agree that Mohanlal is a great actor 🙂
Cheers, Heather
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Hi,
when you criticize the character of Dr. sunny , you should remember two things.
First, mohanlal like any other actor,is a tool in the hands of the director.he has done what the director had asked him to perform.and he has done it brilliantly.if you look in Lal’s filmography,there is no dearth of serious characters done by him in mainstream cinema .examples like ‘ kireedom, chenkol,sadayam etc immediately comes to mind. And for your information he has also done the role of a serious psychiatrist in ,ulladakkom directed by kamal,in which he treats the mentally ill character of actress Amala.incidentally shobhana played his love interest in the film.so you can’t blame mohanlal if you felt his character was overblown.
Secondly manichithrathazhu was intended as a mainstream film primarily to make good PROFIT.to leave out the comedy would have made it a wearisome watch and it would not have become the huge hit it is.
This is just my viewpoint. I am sorry if I have offended you in any way.
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Hi ramnathp,
Thanks for your comment. Absolutely the character of Dr Sunny is down to the writer and the director, but I still didn’t like the way the comedy was used. It’s not just Mohanlal either as I have the same problem with the character in both the Tamil and Hindi versions with Rajinikanth and Akshay Kumar in the role. I still love the film, so it’s not that it’s a major issue for me, but I found some of the jokes inappropriate. That’s just my opinion though and as you can see from the comments plenty of people have a different view. I think that it’s great that other people have different views and reading other people’s opinions sometimes does make me think of things in a different way.
Cheers, Heather
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Hi Heather,
Manichithrathazhu is at the top of my all time fav movies and I’m a big fan of both Shobana’s and Mohanlal’s performance in it and hence found your view on Dr. Sunny’s characterisation very odd. The character was written in this way because, if Dr. Sunny was a serious guy then the secret that shobhana was the mental patient would get disclosed very early in the film.
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Hi Santhosh,
Thanks for your comment. I think comedy is one of the hardest things to translate and this just didn’t appeal to me. I take your point about the plot, and it’s not that I mind comedy per se but the style of slap-stick comedy employed here just isn’t funny for me.
I still think it’s a fantastic film though!
Cheers, Heather
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Hi Heather,
This is indeed a good review on the classic movie Manichithrathazhu.. It is completely a “Shobana” movie where the heroine is Shobana’s character “Ganga” and the hero is the “Script”. I find Mohanlal’s character not that odd. May b u felt it odd because it is difficult to translate comedy scenes or understand comedy scenes in other language.
Not only Shobana;s dance but her acting is also superb, out of the world, in this movie.
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Hi Dominic,
Thanks for your comment. I think this style of more slap-stick comedy is just not something I enjoy. Although the more Indian cinema I watch the more I seem to at least understand if not actually laugh at the comedy! It’s one of the hardest things to translate as so much is cultural rather than literal. Being Irish I tend to have a very dark sense of humour and perhaps that’s the issue. It’s still a great film and yes, Shobana is brilliant throughout 🙂
Cheers, Heather
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Good review and i must say itz a great to see you replying for the comments, continuing it for many years for this film..
Itz a classic malayalam movie and d best f shobhana.. N translation could have spoiled d impact f dr. Sunny’s funny character.. But as evry1 said.. Each n evry malayalee hav njoyd watching mohanlal doing dis role..:)
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Hi Vishnu,
Thanks 🙂
I’m amazed at how many comments there still are about this film, given that it’s now over 20 years since Manichitrathazhu was released – and it’s hard to believe it was that long ago too 🙂
Definitely a classic!
Cheers, Heather
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Dear,
I firstly want to point out that Unnithan is not Thambi’s brother, but , is his brother-in-law.
More clearly, Unnithan is the husband of Bhasura, who is Thampi’s sister.
And, even as a Malayali, I too agree with your comment that Mohanlal was a bit or more annoying when he tried to be funny.
I too watched the remakes of the film in Tamil, Kannada, and Hindi. From my point of view, I feel that Shobhana and Jyothika were nice and I liked acting of both of them equally. But, Soundarya and Vidya Balan was not appealing for me. Dr.Vishnuvardhan was the most disgusting element in the Kannada version. Soundarya was not that nice in the scene where she lifts the bed.
Deeply discussing, I’m not completely satisfied with any of these films. Even Malayalam version has some flaws. The scene where a pot of water, the plates and the clock breaks , does not seem realistic to me.
Anyway, I love watching Manichitrathazhu and Chandramukhi more and more.
Hope no one have hard feelings!!!
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Hi Asif,
Thanks for the clarification about Unnithan. I think the subtitles just call him brother 🙂
Also nice to know it’s not just me after all who found some of the comedy annoying! Most people disagree I know, but the comedy in this film (any version!) just doesn’t work for me.
It’s still a wonderful movie and I love watching and re-watching Shobana – always happy to hear of others who love it as much as I do 🙂
Cheers, Heather
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of course unhappy with ur taking on dr sunny. u can’t complain a doctor to be witty and wacky. sometimes the costumes (the shots which he wear on his journey to avoor in a cycle or the multicoloured shirt when he speaks to nagavally pretenting to be sankaran thambi), or some unnecessary comic sequences may make you feel irritated, but never felt like mohanlal to be overplaying dr sunny. it is his screen presence which can make us still enjoy watching the movie on t v. you can never underrate the comic timing of mohanlal. the opinion to replace rajnikanth for mohanlal is just terrible. but happy to see people follow such well made movies. it is always difficult for a non native to understand
malayalam comedies which are subtle and which originates from its culture and lifestyles. hope to see you with more reviews on other well made movies keeping in mind above mentioned facts.
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Hi James,
Thanks for your comment. I think comedy is very much to do with culture which is one of the reasons why it doesn’t translate well. I tend to find most American humour too OTT as well – Irish humour seems to be more understated and dark, at least the comedy that I find funny 🙂
It’s been great to read all the different comments though and get an understanding of why other people find the character of Dr Sunny funny rather than irritating 🙂
Cheers, Heather
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shobana is the heroine of film and hero is the story itself, Mohanlal is just a supporting actor, he was portrayed so, that may be the reason you dont like mohanlal. In tamil and telugu versions, the hero was doctor himself, and no importance was given to story. Chandramukhi only showcased rajnikanth style.
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Hi Afsal,
Thanks for your comment 🙂
It’s not that I don’t like Mohanlal – there are some parts here where he is fine 🙂 It’s the style of the comedy that I feel didn’t suit the rest of the film. And I totally agree with your point about the Tamil and Telugu versions 🙂
I’m enjoying the different points people raise about this and it has made me go back and rematch the film with new eyes – I still find the comedy annoying, but can see why other people don’t 😀
Cheers, Heather
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Hi,
Happy to see a review about this movie, and that too by a non malayalee,awesome..
By reading the comments, most of the malayalees have disagreed ur review about dr.sunny, cant complain, because we malayalees cant even imagine dr.sunny’s character in any other way or being done by any other actor.i remember watching this movie in theatre, and people enjoyed each and every joke in this movie, and mohan lal’s performance as both comedy and serious shade in this movie was well appreciated, and we used to use the comedy dialoges of mohan lal in our real lifes( like “kindi” and “vellam vellam”).
But i respect your review and i can only say, i wish you were a malayalee to change your opinion about mohanlal and enjoy the comedy..
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Hi Maanu,
Thanks for your comment and for stopping by to read the review 🙂
I do really like Mohanlal – just not his character here 🙂 but it’s a general dislike of the character in all versions of this story as the humour just doesn’t work well for me. Even worse is Akshay Kumar in the Hindi version!
I love this film though – still one of my favourite Malayalam movies and Shobana is just amazing.
Cheers, Heather
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Hi Heather! Delighted to read your reviews as well as your patient replies to all comments. Everyone is entitled to their opinion about the versatile Actor Mohanlal; so most malayalam- speaking connoisseurs would have accepted Dr. Sunny as yet another addition to his histrionic cap. Seeing your patience, can I interest you in my rather elaborate review of Manichithrathazhu on http://nishith-allthingsbrightandbeautiful.blogspot.in/2010/01/manichitrathazhu-classic-sans-parallel.html?m=1
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Hi Nishith,
Thank you for your link to your interesting and very detailed review of the film 🙂 You’ve really thought about the different character motivations and have given me a different perspective on the role of Dr Sunny.
The comedy was still too OTT for me, but I do like that you’ve reasoned through the characters motivations and thought processes which make it possible that there was an actual treatment plan there!
Great analysis of the others too 🙂
Cheers, Heather
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Rajinikanth in place of mohanlal,thts the dumbest thing i heard ths summer mam.i too find mohanlal character too odd nd wont seem to be worked out for adults but neither akshay nor rajini can do any better than him,perhaps u couldn hav said tht the character should hav been different .
With all respect do u think rajini is better than mohanlal?
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You telling me to change my mind because your opinion is a fact? THAT’s the dumbest thing I’ve heard this week.
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Dont agree with the comments by “Temple” .. I have seen the Tamil version and it was nasty… couldn’t tolerate Rajinikanth antics..more focussed on Rajini heroics like general tamil movies..
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Totally Disagree with the point that Rajanikanth is better Than Mohan Lal 😇😇😬😬…
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