Jun 18, 2008 05:41 AM
3865 Views
(Updated Jul 15, 2008 12:56 AM)
*Dasavatharam - 10 times better than any recent Indian movie
Here is how I will recommend Dasavatharam to those who have not seen it yet...
a) Do you want good care free family masala entertainment with a simple story?
......go for it!
b) Do you like intelligent cinema where you can get involved in understanding & interpreting?
......go for it!
c) Do you want to see a human drama for award winning performances (like Mahanadhi)?
......here the focus is on entertainment. However, you should also go for it to appreciate the effort**!
*d) Are you a Rajni Fan? (Partly I am!)
......go for it and appreciate Kamal's efforts and creativity just like Kamal fans admire Rajni's charisma and style!
I think Dasavatharam is a complex concept told in a simple story with primary focus on entertainment and what more! you don't need any prior understanding on Chaos theory or Butterfly (or dragonfly or Kuruvi) effect at all! Just see it for the entertainment value. If you are able to spot the nuances then it is an added bonus.
Story: In one line the story is about how one man (Kamal-Govindarajan Ramasamy) saves the world from a potentially deadly biological weapon, a virus with another man (Kamal-Christian Fletcher) is trying to take control of it.
Screenplay: The story is played out with Govind running right from the beginning of the film to the end chased by Fletcher. All the other avatars (except nambi) come at one point or the other during the chase. Are all the 10 avatars required? and Did Kamal had to play all of them? These questions are debatable. But, Kamal playing 10 roles is the biggest USP of the film.
This is not the most perfect screenplay for showcasing Chaos Theory or Butterfly effect but I think the message is there for everyone to see if you delve a little. The screenplay could have been a bit more tighter with the dots more well connected (especially connecting the Nambi episode with the climax) but even without that I feel it is still a commendable effort for someone attempting it for the first time with no local help.
Avatars / Quality of the make up / Rating for the performance
1. Rangarajan Nambi (12th Century Vaishnavite) / Good / 5 stars
- Govindarajan Ramasamy (Scientist - The main character) / Regular Kamal / 4 stars
3. Christian Fletcher (ex-CIA agent - The bad guy) / Good / 5 stars
George Bush / Average / 3 stars
Balram Naidu (RAW Officer) / Excellent / 5 stars
Krishnaveni Paati / Excellent / 4 stars
Narasahi (Japanese Martial Arts Expert) / Excellent / 3 stars
Avtar Singh / Average / 1 star
Vincent Bhoovaragan / Excellent / 5 stars
Kalifullah Khan / Average / 3 stars
Support Staff: This is an out and out Kamal movie where he occupies all the frames. There is not much scope for others. Asin is fairly ok and probably comes second in terms of screen time. Nagesh, KR Vijaya, Vaiyapuri, Ramesh Khanna etc. have no scope. Mallika does her bit as expected. KS Ravikumar's flavor is very much there in making the movie entertainment oriented. I am sure there would have been lot of "creative" differences between Kamal and Ravikumar during the making.
Positives: Simple storyline and lot of entertainment for the entire family, packaged in less than 3 hrs. Some avatars will remain in people's mind, I liked Fletcher (inspired from Terminator?), Balram and Bhoovaragan. Sequences that involved multiple Kamals are technically brilliant, especially in the climax when Fletcher, Narasahi and Govind fight.
Negatives: The special effects for Nambi's drowning / Tsunami and Makeup for some avatars were below expectation. Screenplay could have been a big more tighter.
Verdict: Dasavatharam is fast paced action adventure and a very entertaining movie that can be seen with the family. It has very subtle underlying messages and hints that is only for the those who are interested to dig out such messages. Go for it! But, don't buy the hype. Worth multiple viewings!
Rating: Ideally this should be rated 4 stars but I am giving it 5 stars for the sheer complexity of the screenplay and Kamal's effort over 2 years.
I saw some extremely biased and negative reviews by some. I felt that those reviewers were either carried away by the hype or were over-critical of Kamal or did not understand the movie at all! I feel those reviews do not reflect the movie correctly.
Box Office: Blockbuster! https://behindwoods.com/tamil-movies-slide-shows/movie-2/top-ten-movies/tamil-ci
nema-topten-movie-dasavatharam.html
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/Entertainment/The_Happening_grosses_315_mn
_in_US/articleshow/3135416.cms
