Nov 16, 2011 12:45 PM
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7am arivu is a very good attempt at exploring new areas, but falls flat after promising a lot. I gathered that the reviews were mixed. I wanted to check this out and my verdict is that it just passes muster. There is nothing spectacular about this movie. Let me explain.
The plot: Wikipedia has a detailed write-up on the plot and the story in general. So I just summarize the plot here. Bodhidharman masters the martial arts, is a renowned medicine expert and can control the five elements. He sets out to China to spread his teachings(why China and why not some other place - well, thats folklore). He encounters some hostile locals who view him as an enemy. But a dreadful disease starts spreading in the village which Bodhidharman helps in curing. The village is ready to accept him. The village then stares at an invasion when Bodhidharman again comes to the rescue and displays his knowledge of the martial arts and its forms. The villagers urge him to teach them his skills. He stays on and later expresses a desire to leave to India. The villagers then try to poison him in the hope that he be cremated there so that no ills befall them. Bodhidharman knows he is being poisoned, but agreed to sacrifice his life.
Fast forward to present when China decides to launch a bio-war on India by unleashing a virus in Chennai. They send Dong-lee(junglee would have been better) to India. He injects a dog with a virus. Dong Lee is very skilled in HYPNOTISM and the martial arts too. His target is to kill Shruthi Hassan since she is doing extensive research on DNA mapping and is studying Bodhidharman's past. Bodhidharman is reincarnated as Surya, a circus artist, as studied and revealed by Shruthi Hassan. How they escape Dong Lee and how they counter the virus thats spreading forms the rest of the story.
Highs: The narration is crisp in the beginning and then starts losing steam. Surya as Bodhidharman has performed very well. His body language and his expressions are very good and the first 20 minutes are the highlight. Shot in exotic locales and narrated beautifully, this traces the historic occurences and origin of martial arts etc. This surely is the highlight of the movie and is a very very good experience. The stunts are very well co-ordinated though it starts becoming an overdose towards the end when the director tries to hypnotise the audience by stunts involving flying bikes, cars et al. The climax is poor and really tests the patience of the audience.
A big plus for the exotic locations and the smooth executing of Boddhidharman. Those 20 minutes were truly good and set expectations higher. Tamil movies will be better if such quality execution were to become frequent.
Lows: The biggest low in the movie is SHRUTHI HASSAN. Her accent and expressionless acting is irritating. You start wondering how she, studying genes, learns everything about Bodhidharman and tries showing her skills on the screen. She has a genetic defect - she did not inherit the language genes from her dad(kamal is awesome when it comes to dialect and dialogue delivery). There is a scene when she argues on why she will not be allowed to speak in Tamil and why the others run away to other countries when India is their home land - thats the boomerang - she must ask all these questions to herself - her accent is poor, her talent is barely worth mentioning. A heroine who knows a few things about expressions and dialogue delivery would have been better. If Shruti hassan thinks that she can just sport short dresses and try a few jigs on screen to show her talents, she is mistaken. She is pathetic and drags the movie down - a complete misfit.
The songs are terrible - except for the music in the intiial 20 minutes, its nothing worth writing about. Lousy songs that irritate and the timing when these songs are introduced in the movie is very poor. In a script like this, songs are not at all important. However the director wanted that masala factor - hence the lousy songs interspersed with ridiculous dance steps. Dont see any point in it.
Stunts towards the end is too exaggerated. Though well executed the stunts seem too ridiculous. And the movie has too many loose ends - how does a sleeping surya suddenly become Bodhidharman? How does Shruthi hassan find out who Dong Lee is? Can dong lee hypnotise anyone from any distance? A good concept but poor execution.
My Verdict: Just passes muster. I am giving it 2 stars only because the first 20 minutes was very good - truly good cinematography and neat execution, not to mention skilful acting and a surreal feeling of being carried along with the narrative. The music and Shruthi Hassan are big let downs. Just passes muster - watch for the first 20 minutes, else this is only masala - not worth a second glance. Lousy after the initial euphoria.
