Madras Cafe (2013)

The events leading up to the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi, India's ex-PM whilst he was campaigning for re-election in Sriperumbudur District, near Chennai in south India on 21 May 1991 by 'Dhanu', a female suicide 'Tamil Tiger', is the subject of this latest attempt at gritty political Bollywood cinema.

Told largely in flashback, we follow Indian army officer Major Vikram Singh (John Abraham) who is appointed by the Research and Analysis Wing ('RAW'), the Indian equivalent of the CIA, to conduct covert operations in the then on-going civil war in Sri Lanka in the late 1980s.

Patriotic Vikram ('My country's security is my responsibility!') leaves his teary but dutiful 'army' wife Ruby (Rashi Khanna, in her debut) and travels by boat from south India to the war-torn 'island of jewels'.

En-route, he encounters a no-nonsense (she smokes!) British journalist, Jaya (Nargis Fakhri, last seen in 'Rockstar'), who speaks with an inexplicable American twang.

Both are on the search for Anna (Ajay Bhaskaran) the leader of LFT which is clearly modelled on the real Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam ('Tamil Tigers') who are fighting for a separate Tamil 'Eelam' ('homeland') for the Tamil minority away from the rest of the largely Sinhalese majority.

Vikram wants to eliminate Anna; Jaya simply wants a scoop! A plot to assassinate the ex-Indian PM is discovered ('decoded') but will Vikram be able to save the day and more importantly, did 'RAW' and the then Indian government do enough to prevent their ex-PM being blown to bits? With the exception of some pre-credit titles explaining about the then on-going civil war in Sri Lanka, the film is not interested in any meaningful attempt at a socio-historical-political explanation of the bloody civil war which had been brewing since the 1950s and, up to the cease fire in the early 2000s, claimed hundreds of thousands of innocent lives.

Instead director Shoojit 'Vicky Donor' Sircar is intent on making an unapologetic, almost propaganda piece with the clear intent of absolving the Indian authorities of any mismanagement in the build up to and the prevention of the assassination. This has been a contentious issue in India: a 1992 Commission Report concluded that security arrangements for Rajiv were adequate but blamed local Congress leaders for disrupting and breaching these arrangements.

No subsequent action was taken of the Report's recommendations but it looks like Sircar and his lead man (the film is co-produced by Abraham and there is an unconfirmed rumour it is funded by Sonia Gandhi!) have taken it upon themselves to dispute this finding. This cinematic liberty could be forgiven if the film itself was not so shallow with the complex conflict reduced to a straight 'cops n robbers shoot-em-up'. Sircar is clearly influenced by 'Apocalypse Now' with its iconic helicopters against the sun shot reproduced at one point.

Characterisation is also dosa-thin with Abraham's damaged victim persona conveyed via a bearded unshaven look. With the exception of the aforementioned 'Dhanu' (who did a lot!), the women have little to do. Sircar incorporates an unnecessary and clumsy 'kiss n sex' scene.

Some dialogue ('this is going to be a long war!, 'the first causalities are always innocent civilians', 'this conversation never happened!', 'You cannot give up on the system!

Fmovies: There is absolutely no reason why you should not watch this movie. It is by all means a pretty decent thriller. Utterly devoid of the superfluities and terse to the point of being of labelled as "un-bollywoodish" the movie represents all that is desirable in an entertainer.

My brother quite ably put it into words when he declared that the charm of the movie lay in it's abstinence from over indulgence.

John Abraham does a commendable job (except for , may be a few scenes, where it is his bad make up and hair do which need to be blamed more than him) .

He is supported by an able cast of actors who deliver credible performances.

The script isn't circumlocutory and the Director isn't shy of laying down facts and opinions in an unequivocal and objective manner.

The absence of songs , does wonders for the health of the audience and the movie too. Needless to say there is no parallel romantic plot disturbing the flow of the narrative.

In fact the movie checks itself every time there a temptation beckoning it over do things.

The Director is honest and doesn't mince his words when describing the situation as as he sees it.

If you have stepped out for a movie and are thinking about catching the last express to chennai , believe me , you ought to change your itinerary and catch a cup of coffee in the café.

Madras Cafe is a wonderful representation of Sri Lankan civil war from the viewpoint of India. Critics state that it fails to capture the emotional aspect of the war but it was never meant to be viewed from the Lankan point of view.

It is a non Bollywoodish movie where we find no songs, dancing etc. There is no stupid romantic crap in the movie which other Indian political movies show. Relationship of John and Nargis is strictly professional(the way it should be).

One of the best Indian movies of the year after probably D Day and Ranjhaana. WATCH IT PEOPLE!!!

Madras Cafe fmovies. Rather than writing a long review explaining the Pros and Cons this is Indian Cinema which now is evolved.

Rather than pleasing the masses they have now gone ahead and showed the truth.

The beauty is that even when the audience knows that what has to happen in the end The director still holds us to the movie.

It can be said now that filmmakers in India can boldly make real-life stories without fear of controversy or censorship, this may be the best way to approach important stories that must be told.

A Must Watch film and good job by Shoojit Sircar.

Well Done Team of Madras Cafe.

Madras Cafe is a kind of political and espionage thriller that Bollywood never tried before. First half requires your patience. It is a mix of striking visuals, haunting sound design, introduction of key characters, their motives and the felling that something is not right. Second half is a piece of cinematic perfection where characters gets meaty dialogs, feel of danger keeps growing and finally in the climax you feel helpless like our hero. Based on actual events mixed with fictitious characters, Madras Cafe becomes a very important movie that should be watched by every Indian. Acting is top-notch. You won't be able to forget the imagery of first half and tension of second half long after the end credit starts. Director Shoojit Sarkar provides the ample conviction and uniqueness to whole idea and surprises you with his versatility (he directed Vicky Donor before). The movie has little flaws like packing too much information in first half and few key details not described clearly. But I can say with full comfort that it would be a mistake if you give this movie a miss.

I'm a stranger to Indian cinema, other than being familiar with the usual clichés of Bollywood-style song, dance and drama.

I read some reviews here, recommending this movie, and calling it a genuine political thriller. Well, it is. Sort of.

It's hard to describe what I feel is wrong with the movie. The plot is believable, and you want to see more. Not being intimately familiar with the horrible history of the Tamils, and having read only scattered articles here and there, I did not have any way to determine whether the movie was true to facts or not, and for this I apologize.

So, what's wrong? Well, it feels like there is an entire plot here. There is. But it feels like someone sat down, wrote a list of "what makes western political thrillers good", came up with 10-12 key scenes, and made those. Without really bothering too much with tying them together. It feels not so much rushed as uncohesive. And that's a shame, because ..

The visuals are nothing short of stunning. Excellent camera-work, glorious colors, scenery, and almost worth watching for this alone.

But ultimately, for me, the story is where the substance is. And in this one - perhaps this is due to me being unfamiliar with Indian cinema - it just feels cut to pieces and abrupt. Key events just "happen" from one scene to the next, and if you want to keep up with who's who, and who's pulling what strings, don't blink for a second.

Given that I don't know the material intimately, like I would with say a WWII movie, or a typical cold-war spy movie, and the actors were all unfamiliar to me, this movie was hard to follow. Perhaps for a more local audience, it would be infinitely more enjoyable. I do hope so, because it is a gorgeous movie, and I desperately wanted to like it.