When my friend called me for this film, I thought its name was ‘Kalaivani’ & assumed it would be a film on a woman. Such was the extent to which I knew about ‘Kalavaani’ when I reached the theatre. Another displeasure struck me when I saw the poster there. The hero was the guy who romanced Soppikannu in Pasanga. He was one of the primary reasons why I didn’t like Pasanga as well as many others liked it. So, I went into Kalavaani guessing that I would get a head ache after the watch and hoping against that. After three hours, I realized my guess was wrong and my hope had won. The film was a thorough entertainer and was neatly packaged with less ridiculous content.
There is nothing special with the story. It was just another ‘street-smart irresponsible hero loves a school heroine’ subject. Where it scores is the way the film is presented. The debutant director Sarkunam definitely deserves some appreciation. His first film is definitely a promising work. He goes the commercial way, but not in an inane sense. Another area where he scores is the casting. The only known artistes are probably the hero’s mother (Saranya) and father (Ilavarasu) & of course, Kanja karuppu. The three show how good a screen presence actors can garner with unsophisticated realistic performances.
The film isn’t exactly original. It has traces of films such as Paruthi Veeran and Subramaniapuram but the director has understood the limits to which he can follow these films and hasn’t crossed that. Some of the scenes were novel. For example, the scenes involving Kanja karuppu are conceptually the same as those that show him in Paruthiveeran but the way they are shown impresses the viewer, the net result being a scream from the audience. Another screamer was the scene where the friends of the hero show a cut-out made on him to his father.
The hero has performed very well, providing ample humor & fun. The heroine too has done a pretty good job. The witty dialogues are another plus to this fun film. Cinematography was neat, simple with no gimmicks and that was a relief. There are a very few properly placed songs in Kalavaani with no duets and that is another big respite. Background score was decent but everybody tries to be Yuvan Shankar Raja. Such is the impact he seems to have created with his films set in the rural milieu.
The villain is a big joke. He doesn’t seem to understand what he ought to do. He keeps chasing the hero whenever he gets screen time. He is your stereotype ‘Heroine Annan’ you get to see in tamil films.
The climax of the film is a long winding thing but is a definite delight and reminds one of the classic ‘Aan Paavam’. Kalavaani is not exactly a new age Aan Paavam but the fact that it reminds us of that film is an achievement in itself. If you want to have some good fun and if you are ready to try out a new unfamiliar film, Kalavaani is a safe bet!
Good entertainment guaranteed
No comments:
Post a Comment