Yavarum Nalam
Info
Manohar, an upwardly mobile middle class Indian, moves into a new apartment - 13B on the 13th floor with his family fulfilling one of his life's biggest dreams. But the family is greeted by a series of small trivial incidents that could be regarded as inauspicious but are shrugged off by the excited Manohar. The women in the family oblivious to any unseemly coincidences get hooked on to a new TV show "Yavarum nalam" (All's Well).
The show is about a family eerily similar to theirs who have also just moved into a new house just like they have. As the serial unfolds, Manohar notices that the incidents that happen in the serial are a reflection of what has happened to Manohar and his family. Initially all the episodes are happy with all good things happening, reflected similarly in Manohar's life. The rest of the family remains oblivious to the similarity and Manohar prefers it that way to avoid panic.
As Manohar fights the uneasy feeling in his mind, things start taking a turn for the worse in the serial. He is now terrified that the same would happen to his family as well. Manohar now wants to know who is behind the making of this serial and what their intentions are. As Manohar explores the mysterious happenings, he unravels a deep and unholy secret.
Editor review
Reviewed by ApnaCafe-Team March 25, 2009
Last updated: March 25, 2009
Top 10 Reviewer - View all my reviews
The right chills and thrills just when you don’t expect them.
Indiaglitz
‘13B’ is one such unforeseen flick of horrendous genre that remains in your minds post-the show… It’s a best ever-made Horror film of the decade.
Sify
13 B doesn’t convince you of the story and you don’t really care about the characters. And so, all you have is a rather underwhelming attempt at a supernatural edge-of-the-seater.
Real Bollywood
Just don’t miss 13 B, it not only engages you but also gives you the right chills and thrills just when you don’t expect them. It is one of the most intelligently made thriller in recent times in Bollywood. Go watch it.
Rediff
From the sound design to the performances to some of the camerawork, 13B plays like bad late night television or graduate school theatre.
Times of India
13B promises big entertainment while weaving a story around the small screen.
User Review
-Excellent Cinematography
User reviews
Average user rating from: 1 user(s)
Super Thriller
First things first: Does Yaavarum Nalam give you the heebie-jeebies? It does and is an enthralling edge-of-the seat taut horror thriller that keeps the mercury rising throughout the 2 hours 15 minutes.
What elevates Yaavarum Nalam from your average spooky thrillers is the fact that there are no usual clichés that one associates with films in this genre. The film does not use conventional and predictable spook effects like a creaky doors, ghost jumping out of the boxes, tables and chairs moving about, an in your face scary encounter, head turning around, blood dripping from pipes, ghost attack etc..
However, without any horror props, the film keeps you glued to your seat for most part of its running time, and that are both its intention and its success. The film's about an upper middle class joint family consisting of our hero Manohar (Madhavan), a construction site engineer and his newly married wife Priya (Neetu Chandra) who moves into their new apartment on the 13th floor with his elder brother, his wife and two children along with their mother (Saranya) and a sister.
Slowly, Mano notices and realizes that some horrible things are happening around him though other family members are not aware of it. The number 13 is significant as the crucial things happens at 13.00 hrs (1 pm), at flat number 13B on the 13th floor in the building number13! He is unable to understand the weird happenings, as he confesses about it to his good friend Siva (Ravi), a police officer and then they consult the family doctor (Sachin Khedekar). Slowly the uncomfortable truth is unraveled and a mood of tension is created.
The film works because of director Vikram Kumar’s plot and tight narration. Today horror flicks are set around a doll, a tree, a mansion and here for the first time a television set, as a television serial starts controlling the family without their knowledge. The concept of objects in our daily life taking control of our life may have been seen before (The Ring, One Missed Call etc), but here the story telling and presentation are innovative.
Madhavan carries the entire film on his shoulder and he delivers a measured and meticulous performance which will stay in your minds long after you leave the cinema halls. Neetu Chandra and Saranya as women who spend a large part of their life watching television soaps are very good along with Sachin, the guy who plays Maddy’s friend and the blind old man with the black Labrador. But the real hero of YN is writer-director Vikram K Kumar who makes a great impact with a story that truly pushes the envelope.
Technically the film is very good with P.C Sreeram’s lighting and camera which dictates the mood and look of the film, Sreekar Prasad’s editing without using any gimmicks normally seen in a horror film. Shankar Ehsaan Loy’s music especially the background score and Thamarai’s lyrics raise the bar. What the film needs is a bit of trimming in the second half to make it slicker.
Watch the film for its daring attempts to break moulds and don’t say, “It reminds me of a Hollywood flick, I can’t remember its name…” On the whole YN is a film you'll find hard to get out of your head, days after you've leave the theatre.
Source:Sify.com
