FIlm Review:

Banner: Aascar Films
Cast: Kamal Haasan, Asin, Mallika Sherawath, Jayapradha, Rekha, K R Vijaya, Nagesh, Nepolean, Santhana Bharathi, M S Bhaskar, P Vasu, R Sundarrajan, Ramesh Khanna, Erode Sounder, Pandu
Direction: K S Ravikumar
Production: V Ravichandran
Music: Himesh Reshammiya & Devi Sri Prasad


One striking feature that hits you in the face once you have watched ‘Dasavatharam’ is Kamal Haasan's passion for filmmaking. All the ten roles he has essayed have been meticulously planned right from the body language to dialogue delivery. Be it the American president George Bush, the Vaishnavite priest of the 12th century or Fletcher, the American baddie.

The eyes are considered the most effective tools in creating the right kind of attitude for any actor and Kamal Haasan is a master at that. There are many a time in the film when the audience would have to force themselves to believe that it is the same actor who is the good guy as well as the bad guy.

The expressive and determined eyes of the priest, the mushy and yet funny countenance of Balaram Naidu, the hilarious CBI officer and the peaceful martial artist eyes of the Japanese character have all shaped up to fit into any acting text book. Hats off to Kamal Haasan on the acting front!!

Based loosely on Chaos theory, the narration of the film promises a lot of excitement and as the story unfolds, somewhere down the line there are a few missing links that have been forcefully stitched together. Govind, the bio-scientist in the United States of America has been wronged by his boss who has intentions of selling his invention to wrong hands. The determined scientist doesn't give up. He sneaks it away and after a few accidents the invention lands in India. The hunt and race against time especially with Fletcher, the ex-CIA baddie sniffing at his neck with murderous intent culminates into Govind meeting an irrationally sentimental and at times sweet Andal (Asin). The baddie with sizzling Mallika Sherawat for company proceeds along the vulnerable Indian security system and shows up at the right places at the right time.

The narration then makes sure most of the characters played by Kamal get into close proximity in terms of geography. The stunt sequences are quite professional with its share of thrilling moments, but then there are too many coincidences consistently. The protagonist and his slowly, but surely falling-in-love lady companion seem to be jumping off just about everything. Soft landing seems to be a predictable option at most times.

When it comes to action and stunt scenes, ‘Dasavatharam’ is head and shoulders above most Indian films. The music element in the film is passable with some breathtaking re-recording bits in patches.

Cinematography has been simply awesome. The heavy compositing and trick shots have not dampened Ravi Varman's innate talent at creating the right kind of mood the film depicts.

‘Dasavatharam's’ review can never be complete without talking about the makeup part. Apart from the desired result one can guess the kind of effort and hard work Kamal Haasan would have had to go through just to get them on and that too on a daily basis. Makeup has been good overall except for a few shots that show off a kind of plastic look.

Computer Generated Imagery plays a huge role in the film. When the same actor plays seven feet plus youth and an old woman who is barely five feet, one can imagine the kind of intensive scaling and image manipulation by the CG team. Recreation of the 2004 Tsunami is impressive and the action part weaves the intensity of the story.

The direction has been apt sticking to the script in the true sense of the term. K. S. Ravikumar known for his simple style of narration has not been himself with ‘Dasavatharam’, but has shown sparks of ingenuity.

Kamal Haasan has stuck to his favorite subject of the 'no God' debate in this film too and has glorified himself probably for the first time on screen with a dialogue directed at him as being the 'Ulaga Nayagan'.

With Kamal Haasan playing ten roles, all other actors have been completely overshadowed.


This is a movie that has highlighted a highly talented and passionate actor in his entire splendor. At the end of the film one tends to ask….has Kamal Haasan been so spectacular that he has overshadowed the script and story this time?

     

Review:
A lot has been told about the delay over Bheema. Some doomsayers even predicted that the movie would not see the light at all. But the team of Bheemaa was unperturbed. Vikram once said, "Bheema is a sure winner irrespective of when it comes. It is worth waiting for such a film".

Now the movie has seen the light and it has vindicated Vikram’s words.

The whole team deserves applaud for providing us a neat entertainer. Lingusamy, Vikram, Prakash Raj, Ashish Vidyarthi, Raghuvaran, Kanal Kannan, Harris Jayaraj, R.D. Rajasekar and S. Ramakrishnan have done their best to make it a smart and stylish action film. And you have the charming Trisha as a gentle breeze amidst a powerful storm.

The story is all about a tug of war between two underworld gangs trying to outsmart each other. Periyavar’s (Raghuvaran) group is bigger and more powerful, while Chinna’s (Prakash Raj) group is struggling to gain strength.

Enters Shekar (Vikram). The powerful man adds new life to Chinna’s gang. He challenges Periyavar’s powerful troupe and puts China on top. He is the man who grew up seeing Chinna as his ideal. He is a man of steel - physically and mentally. He, as Chinna tells once, bears everyone on his powerful shoulders like the Bheema of Mahabharatha.

The gangs are targeted by the new police commissioner (Ashish Vidyarthi) and the three pronged hunting begins.

Lingusamy has worked out a strong script and executed it with aplomb. He has excellently handled his cast to make it an entertainer. He has to be commended for not restoring to any gimmicks in the pretext of providing entertainment. He is also bold enough to avoid a comedy track, which would have been an irritant in the script.

The characterization is near perfect. Like the legendary Bheema, Shekar is always ready to attack, unmindful of who stands against him. If he puts a step forward, there is no looking back. Powerful, straight forward, and fearlessness. Lingusamy, with the able support of dialogue writer Ramakrishnan, has shaped the character remarkably well. The relationship between Shekar and China is well portrayed.

Likewise, his handling of the track of gang war, entwined with police action, is quite smart. The climax is something unexpected. The picturisation of the songs is spectacular.

Vikram has lived up to the expectations with a dominant and flawless performance. If his hard work to become physically strong is praise worthy, his efforts to transform himself as the character are stunning. He reflects the essence of the character both physically and mentally. His body language - particularly his eyes - is awesome. He breaths fire in the stunt scenes. The fights in the rain and in the construction site (intermission point) are astonishing. He also scores in romantic sequences, which are very less in this action packed movie. He brings out the transformation in his character because of love in a lovely manner. Hats off to Vikram.

Trisha gets her share in the action movie and succeeds in adding colour to the film by spreading her charm. She looks ravishingly beautiful in songs. Her eyes and minute facial expressions are pleasing.

Prakash Raj comes through out the movie. His character is so powerful that he looks like a second hero. The versatile actor has brought a new dimension to the character of a gangster.

Ashish Vidyarthi in a small yet significant role is competent. His portrayal of a smart police officer, who means business, is flawless. Raghuvaran as Periyavar impresses but his histrionics have become predictable. Sherin in ‘Rangu Rangamma’ is impressive.

Kanal Kanan (action) and Rajashekhar (camera) have added immense value of the film. Kanal’s setting up of the fighting sequences is certainly a treat for action movie lovers. Rajasekhar’s camera work is brilliant. The shooting of intermission fight in the darkness stands out. Harris Jayaraj’s music, which is already on top, fits well in to the movie. Almost all the songs have come out very well.

Overall, Bheema has lived up to the expectations up to a large extent. Lingusamy and his powerful team have succeeded in presenting an action oriented entertainer. True to its name, Bheema is a power packed action entertainer.

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Featured Billa Review

To remake a 27-year old Rajinikanth film with another actor at a time when he is still the superstar, is a major challenge for any director. But Vishnu Vardhan is a daring young man who took up the challenge along with Ajit and they have come out with a fresh new Billa, an escapist comic book like fantasy film, which has been faithful to the original in spirit and soul. Spiffily shot and stylishly packaged, the remake is slick and will certainly appeal to today’s youth audiences.

Trailer:



Vishnu’s Billa is the first designer-look Kollywood film with classy action cuts. It's a technically chic, racy, engrossing entertainer with a Hollywood look. The director wears his Hollywood DVD influence on his sleeve, the way a shot is framed, and with black and white colours dominating as the camera angles convey style! Ajit looks sensational and clearly he is at home, playing dual roles of Billa and Velu. He is suave, dashing, and debonair and has terrific screen presence which makes the film work big time. You just cannot think of any other actor in Tamil donning the role made memorable by Rajinikanth


The film is set in Malaysia to give it a rich look. Billa (Ajit) is a modern day suited and booted underworld don who moves around in the company of two glamour girls Sasha (Nayanthara) and CJ (Namitha) who are part of his gang. Billa deals in all nefarious activities like gun running and drugs and has connections with international mafia gangs. The police force in 11 countries is in hot pursuit of Billa who they feel will lead them to Jagdish, the kingpin behind all the illegal operations. After successfully dodging the cops across the world, Billa is eventually pinned down by a sincere DCP of the Malaysian police Jaiprakash (Prabhu) after a spectacular car chase in which he is fatally injured.

Now Jai (Prabhu) sees Billa’s death as an opportunity to uncover the entire mob ring by replacing him with a look-alike Velu (Ajit) a petty small time crook and a simpleton to infiltrate into the mafia. Velu alias Billa is able to do the impossible by getting all the information that Jai wanted except about Jagdish the master brain of the underworld. But it's when Jai gets killed, that the real problem arises because he was the only man who knew that the real Billa is dead, and that Velu is actually a police mole. The other police officers investigating the case Gokulnath (Rahman) from the Interpol and the local police chief Anil (Aditya) refuses to believe Velu’s statement that he is not Billa when he is caught and interrogated. Velu escapes from police custody and with the help of Sasha uncover the shocking truth about the identity of Jagdish, which leads to a stunning climax.

The director and his team change the norms of commercial Tamil cinema and breaks new ground by having a script comprising of no more than six- seven dialogue tracks, there is no lengthy dialogues, mush or melodrama, all essential ingredients for mass masala films. The EQ (emotional quotient) which is there in large doses in Tamil films is absent here as Vishnu and Ajit are targeting only the multiplex audiences and they are quite honest about it. Yuvan’s title track and theme music is one of the highlights of the film, though the songs fall flat! The re-mix title song My name is Billa… is no patch on the original and lacks its fervor, while the other re-mix number Vethalaiya Pottendi… has a good beat that makes you dance and is well shot The only mass number is Seval Kodi.., with Vijay Yesudas’s striking voice and colourful picturisation .

For Vishnu Vardhan, a one-time assistant of the guru of cinematography Santosh Sivan, everything is visual and is dictated by the camera. Billa is a film where characters are playing mind games. So Vishnu’s cameraman Nirav Shah has used the super 35 mm and his camera is brilliant displaying an array of flourishes- freeze frames, optical dissolves, colour saturated images, giving a static energy to the frames, aided by Sreekar Prasad’s razor sharp editing. The action scenes have been superbly choreographed by William Ong and are a major highlight.

Billa is an out and out Ajit film. Don’t forget to carry a whistle with you when you watch Ajit meld into two characters- Billa with his Armani suit, Rayban glasses, has a Bond look about him and is cucumber cool while Velu is a riot as he brings the house down with typical one-liners (Athu aaru thalai, Naan oru thalai). Ajit brings to Tamil cinema a desification of Steven Segal, Van Damme style of pure high octane action and humour. He seems to be telling the audiences to just sit back and enjoy the fireworks. In short Ajith as Billa is a rocker!

Nayanthara has given her famous six-yard saris a miss and has decided to go full throttle to look her sexiest best in sizzling hot micro-mini shorts, leather jacket, tall boots! The gorgeous Nayan as Sasha is a show stopper and no Tamil heroine has looked so glamorous on screen in recent times, thanks to her right attitude and stylist Anu Vardhan. Her tan make-up and her costumes are designed with the intention to make your jaw drop. She has a beautiful body which she flaunts daringly and has no qualms about appearing in a two-piece string bikini and is also able to bring out the cold aloofness and bitterness of her character.

Namitha as CJ oozes sex appeal, is surprisingly restrained and her silences give meaning to the deep loyalty and devotion that her character has for Billa. Prabhu as the police officer is a delight while Rahman and Aditya are adequate. New girl Rose Dawn is a disappointment in the item number and is no match to Helen or Kareena’s sensuous jig.

Billa delivers the goods with its great star cast, a designer look, technical glitz, perfect chemistry making it an entertainment extravaganza. Fasten your seat belts and enjoy the ride. Don’t miss it.


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