Dasavatharam

Movie Review

So, here i pen down my views about the magnum opus of Thamizh Cinema - DASAVATHARAM. There has been a lot of hype and hoopla through the years this movie had been in production. Did the movie meet the expectations?

The answer is a resounding YES.

Here's my comment on Kamal's avatars and the various departments of the movie.

1. Kamal

Kamal rocks in all his avatars - this movie is yet another showcase of his talent and what he is capable of. Kamal has given a new definition for 'Versatility' - the way in which he portrayed the various roles with due diligence. Each of the characters (Rangarajan Iyengar, scientist, villian, RAW chief, Singer, Dalit leader, old lady, Afghan, Japanese fight master and George Bush) are etched out well and twined into the script perfectly. Kamal was identifiable in 5 of the roles - the rest, you wouldn't have identified him unless you were told it was he. The perfectionist he is, Kamal has worked hard on all the aspects of each character - voice, accent, body language, emotions, etc. My faves are Bush and the villian. Though Bush comes only for a short time, Kamal's ingenuity is in display as he perfectly imitates Bush's mannerism and his tradement gaffes. And the villain is a perfect cool guy, who chases the scientist all the way to India to possess the bio-weapon. The means and techniques (Agreed! Those soaked in Hollywood CIA flicks won't find this much impressive) he uses to go after the chip makes up for a perfect edge-of-the-seat thriller through the entire 3 hours.

The other roles are equally good, however we have seen Kamal don them in some of his previous movies. If there is any role that could have been avoided, it's the Afghan role that could have been trimmed off to make the plot more crisper.

2. Story, Screenplay, Dialogue

That's Kamal's 11th avatar - and, i would rate it higher than any of his other avatars (Kamal himself says so). The story has a near-perfect plot - hero tries to prevent a bio-medical weapon from falling into the wrong hands. Kamal has evidently put in all his experience and knowledge to pen down this - the story is a blend of science, religion and meta-physics. The crux of the story revolves around 'Chaos theory' of Henry Poincare. And Kamal has spiced up the story with action, thrill, comedy - however, no romance here :) Also, Kamal has tried to bring in some social issues like sand smuggling and caste divide into the plot. The dialogues are too good - however some of them are too hi-fi and intellectual for first-bencher viewers. You would need to at least watch the movie a couple of times to understand the dialogues better (and their inner meanings). The director KS Ravi Kumar should be complimented for making the story gripping and entertaining throughout.

3. Other characters
Asin comes in two characters - one as wife of Rangarajan and another as Andal who along with Govind(scientist Kamal) goes after Venkatesa Perumal's idol (and the bio-weapon tucked inside it). The first role - she does with perfection. The other was a nuisance. Her shrill screaming voice and constant innocent banters makes for an irritating character. The director could have mellowed her down a bit.

Mallika Sherawat gets a meaty role and does it well - she doesn't bother the censors much this time. Other characters in the movie - Jayapradha (Singer's wife), Nagesh, KR Vijaya (Afghan's parents), P Vasu, Santhana Bharathy (sand smugglers), Napolean (Chola King) all have done their roles aptly.


4. Music, BGM
The songs look good on the movie. 'Kallai mattum kandal''s depiction was excellent. It reverberates around the 12th century temples and the turbulent days between Shaivites and Vainavites. Background music was in sync with the pace of the movie - however, felt it could have been more gripping.

5. Graphics
CG was stupendous. What else can you expect when Brian Jennings (of 'Exorcist' fame) from Hollywood heads the CG team. The depiction of tsunami was amazing - the waves crashing into the buildings and the shore - it brought back memories of the 2004 tsunami.

On the whole

On the whole, this is yet another master piece from 'Ulaga Nayagan'. The producer of the movie, Aascar V. Ravichandran should be appreciated for supporting Kamal and the director in this mega-budget flick. Kamal has not let us down after all this long wait.

PS:
Some controversies (i pray they don't) are likely to creep up for the heavy agnostic essence that Kamal spruces up in the movie. The saffron cordon is all likely to raise the red flag against this.
However, the movie is good food for intellectual thought.


~ Arun KK