Mankatha :My review

The last time I wrote a review was way back in 2007 and that was for Billa. Being a fan of Ajith, I couldn't resist the temptation of watching the movie here in Mumbai. Here goes my review...

First and foremost, congrats to 'Thala' for his milestone of fifty movies. It is indeed a terrific achievement for a self-made man who has inspired many (me included) with his self-confidence and 'never give-up' attitude. Let me try to write this review not just like an Ajith-fan but also a matured movie lover.

Mankatha is all about Ajith. Thala's screen presence is enormous and its just to the likings of his fans all over the globe. But, Venkat Prabhu needs to be credited to cast Ajith in a negative role like this. He has indeed introduced the noir genre to tamil cinema (where every character has grey shades and deals with treachery, paranoia, cynic etc and everything revolves around money, selfishness, violence). This is indeed something new for tamil audiences who have been brought up on a steady diet of a 'good' hero bashing up a baddie and saving the world/his muse. The first-half drags a lot. Screenplay moves very slowly and the movie length definitely needs a trim for sure. Post-interval it gets racy leading to the climax with a nice twist. The fight sequences are one too many and lasts really long and boring at times. There is the thala-signature car chase and bike chase sequence which is hot and racy!

VP has casted most of his famed-team of Prem, Vaibhav, Premji etc. He has blended action with subtle comic-sense in his usual style. Prem's role is flat. Vaibhav and Premji has got good meaty roles and they should be grateful to share much screen-space with a top hero. Premji is a let down and he has become monotonous in all his movies. He fails to evoke laughter sans 2/3 scenes. Trisha's role is small one and she has made most of it. Lakshmi Rai get a wink and look role which doesn't warrants a review on her performance. She adds in the oomph-factor to the movie. Other 2 girls are just a fill in.

The movie scores when you start relating yourself with thala's character. He is devilish at his best. He carries us along the plot which otherwise was let down by a loose screenplay. Arjun needs a special mention and he has done a great work. His cat and mouse game with Ajith is really exciting.

This is definitely a fresh and bold attempt by a front-line hero like Ajith to come out of the usual framework meant for mass-heroes. I am sure this would inspire other peers of his to follow suit.

Mankatha = a win-win gamble for Thala!

Dasavatharam : Movie review

Saw the movie in Mumbai with my family yesterday and I must say it was a spendid evening indeed.
The film starts with Kamal (Scientist Govind) giving an thanks acceptance speech in a stadium... the film then darts back to 12th century and then follows a complex screenplay which leaves you a bit confused and mind full of chaos. Thats right! The chaotic screenplay is the base of this movie. To be more precise, the movie is loosely based on 'Chaos Theory' or the 'Butterfly effect'. The audience is presented with string of seemingly unrelated events; thereby portraying the ten avatars of Kamal.. and all these un-related & chaotic events/charecters converges in the end to the tsunami scene (in fact the scene where the film starts the narration with) .

Well, Kamal leaves you in awe with his breath-taking performances, be it the tough American ex-CIA, the telugu investigator, Dalit Leader etc.. This is a performance which cant be matched by anyone around in the planet. The body language, the voice modulation differs from each of the ten characters. We just cannot believe how this man can pull it off... Amazing performance by Kamal.

KSR adds all the required commercial elements needed for Tamil cinema. Apart from the ten charecters of Kamal; I enjoyed the work of Pattabhi (the driver/translator of CIA agent -Kamal). He excels in inducing belly-ache through his funny dialogue delivery. Only person who has failed Kamal is Himesh. His music is not upto mark. ;-(

The screenplay reminds you the screenplay of City of Gods. The cons are the length of the movie. But it doesn't bores you though. Finally, when you come out of cinema hall, you will be left in complete awe but still wont be able to recall a scene. The film has set the benchmark for its technical brilliance. I felt proud to see a Indian movie, so well made. Kamal's hardwork and dedication reflects in each and every frame of the movie.

If this was a Hollywood movie; the oscars would have been bestowed for the screenplay for sure. Overall, An excellent effort by Kamal. Kudos to him for taking tamizh movie to international standards.