Nothing is what it seems. Four short stories as a way out of the pandemic state of stagnation and the almost complete collapse of the film industry. If you can’t work on a full-length movie, why not go to the short meter? Thus, “Short Love Stories” was born to become part of the anthology film. The advantage of such a project is the ability to evaluate the work of several directors on one given topic. Love. What could be more beautiful and more dramatic at the same time? The film was not prepared specifically for the Day of all lovers, but so successfully it turned out that at the time of the forced release on online platforms, the opportunity to fully start in theaters in the state . The hope of distributors for a massive influx of viewers pressed on all projects of the beginning of 2021 with a vengeance. The first shot was Lokesh Kanagaraj’s Master, who, according to local media, successfully resurrected the Tamil film business. And the fact that it was Short Love Stories (which were ready to be released in 2020) that pulled up after this was not an accident, but a thoughtful plan. In the cast of this film almanac was listed the name of Vijay Sethupatha, brilliantly played the antihero in the very “Master”. Audiences were not supposed to go and run to his new film, but something went wrong.
The film was the victim of an unreasonable rental, nothing more. Just compare the scale of a criminal action movie and tiny romantic sketches. To exhibit an anthology after a hit and expect that it will bring a weighty, if not comparable, income is unimaginable nonsense. Sethupathi had to save the situation with his presence, and he did so with director Nalan Kumarasami. All the positivity on the part of the audience focused on the two of them, and everything else was seen as a clumsy addition. Critics, in turn, were more loyal, showing a slight interest in the rest of the stories, but without special merit. Low rating, small box office – and the film failed miserably at the box office, without even having a chance to show how interesting content it possesses. Focusing on famous people, both viewers and critics for some reason did not pay attention to the design and inner potential of all the stories taken together. After all, if you look closely, it turns out that they complement each other so well that there are no unnecessary pieces or giant differences between the parts. But the most important thing is a clear unified structure of narrative and musical accompaniment. How did four completely different directors manage to come to such a consensus? An issue that needs attention.
So, the first story from Gautam Vasudeva Menon. His reflections on the reality of friendship between a man and a woman are voiced by him himself, so he is the hero of his own novel. The project also featured Vinod Kishan, who played Gautam in his youth. Vinod undoubtedly became the highlight of this story, even in spite of its short appearance. The actor is extraordinary, memorable and rarely indulges in romance. Gautam put here on the male character, on his development and at the same time on the immutability of his views. The heroine was typical for all love stories, but it was thanks to her that the ending turned out even original.
The second story from A. L. Vijay. More often in his works he adheres to the social direction, and this time he did not change himself. Vijay took as a basis the problem of parental love and its consequences for the child. The topic is sensitive, the fact of a large number of abortions and refuseniks in maternity hospitals will be touched upon. Viewers have developed a misconception that films by February 14 should carry only pink and vanilla positivity, and, based on this, this segment was considered as an unfinished format of a love story. They complained that the relationship between the characters was not properly disclosed, no one sympathized with them and therefore the story failed. In fact, the story of Vijay is absolutely not about this, and those who voice such claims simply did not understand the true meaning of what they saw. In the final, the director even demonstrates a certain way out of the situation, how to bypass the ossified foundations of society. Maybe it somehow affected the negative assessment of the viewers. Who knows?
The third story of Venkat Prabhu also addresses the dramatic side of the relationship. The story seems to be conducted from the universe of a computer game, which is more characteristic of Chinese-Korean cinema. Viewers appreciated only the innovative concept of the plot, but the story itself did not hook them in any way. Again, the final chord gives a completely different conclusion from everything seen, but no one paid attention to what the author wanted to say. Maybe from the perspective of acting, this segment is really weaker than others, but the climax smooths out this flaw. And for a short film, this is probably the best that the director could offer.
The fourth story of Nalan Coumarasami is the most discussed of all. Cinema masters almost worked on it, so success was almost guaranteed. Nalan works only with Sethupathi, so the main character was not chosen by chance. The cameraman is Shanmuga Sundaram, who worked with Seth on the popular film '96', and editing was done by the giant of the entire Indian film industry Srikar Prasad, who edited 'RPP'. The half-hour segment looks like a full-fledged film with all the dramatic twists and turns. Sethu, along with Aditi Balan (his on-screen wife), showed a real hot marital battle. Inside the plot fit everything - betrayal, hurt male ego and female cunning. A high level of tension in the course of events was supported by impeccable acting. Weaknesses in the overall work of the entire team are not identified.
Now that brings all these stories together. First of all, great music and soundtracks. The four composers were created as one, but only for different segments. Sounds "agreed" unspoken words, created the right atmosphere and remembered, which is the most important thing. And the second thing that all the directors adhered to is the presence of unexpected plot twists. Each story can surprise in its own way. See at the root and catch a wise message, as their creators tell us. The film can be seen in its entirety and in parts, it will not become less interesting. A worthy representative and successor of the anthology line at the moment. I recommend it!