Far better than the gamut of commercial potboilers, with fantastic performances in a milieu most of us would ordinarily choose to ignore (and blame the remote control).
Still, it cannot be denied that this has been done before, and has been done better, with more feeling (Kannaththill Muththamittall, by Mani Ratnam). Not as layered or polished as that far-superior effort, one strong point of this one is its relentless focus on the fates of its protagonists, using a flashback narrative that does not aid in any way.
The cinematography is good, but not to the level of some of Sivan's efforts for Ratnam. Same goes for the score.
Sugandha Ram owns it throughout, though Star S Karan threatens to overshadow her sometimes, courtesy of the more powerful character that's been written for him. Karunas and Saritha lend additional weight, but there's nothing special either of them bring to the table that could have been done better/worse by anyone else, no discredit to them. The version I watched did not have the censor cuts mentioned, and I think they'll take effect later this week. One of those scenes, IMO, is real powerful, and it'll be disappointing if someone takes it out. It will almost nullify the director's intended impact. But this is a geography where 'Paanch' is yet to release theatrically, so that should not surprise/affect many movie aficionados.
Worth a trip to the multiplex, mainly for effort, but there've been better, and this could've been much, much better.
Still, it cannot be denied that this has been done before, and has been done better, with more feeling (Kannaththill Muththamittall, by Mani Ratnam). Not as layered or polished as that far-superior effort, one strong point of this one is its relentless focus on the fates of its protagonists, using a flashback narrative that does not aid in any way.
The cinematography is good, but not to the level of some of Sivan's efforts for Ratnam. Same goes for the score.
Sugandha Ram owns it throughout, though Star S Karan threatens to overshadow her sometimes, courtesy of the more powerful character that's been written for him. Karunas and Saritha lend additional weight, but there's nothing special either of them bring to the table that could have been done better/worse by anyone else, no discredit to them. The version I watched did not have the censor cuts mentioned, and I think they'll take effect later this week. One of those scenes, IMO, is real powerful, and it'll be disappointing if someone takes it out. It will almost nullify the director's intended impact. But this is a geography where 'Paanch' is yet to release theatrically, so that should not surprise/affect many movie aficionados.
Worth a trip to the multiplex, mainly for effort, but there've been better, and this could've been much, much better.
