Ensemble comedies are not the easiest to pull off and one must give credit to director Madhumita and the crew of Kola Kolaya Mundhirika for having attempted a genre as difficult as a comic caper.
This family entertainer banks heavily on some classic Crazy Mohan one-liners and PJs hurled at the audience almost relentlessly in its pursuit of the laugh-a-minute promise.
The story is replete with bizarre coincidences and glaring loopholes, a liberty that is often stretched to the limits by movies in the genre.
It follows the twists and turns that two petty thieves — Krish (Karthik Kumar) and Veni (new comer Shikha) — encounter in their bid to steal an antique chair of a zamindar that has some diamonds stashed in it.
Also in hot pursuit of the chair is the villain Veerappan (played wonderfully by Anand Raj), who has been after the hidden diamonds for years, and police inspector Mathrubootham (Jayaram does an Inspector Clouseau), though for an entirely different reason.
The supporting cast is quite elaborate — M.S. Baskar, Vaiyapuri, Vasu Vikram, and brief appearances by Sarath Kumar, Radha Ravi (in a reprisal of the role of a fisherman chief Dada Thulukkanam from Kadhalukku Mariyaathai ), Pandiarajan and Delhi Ganesh.
Despite getting some of the elements of a comic caper right — from the dialogues to some heavily-caricatured villains (Anand Raj deserves special mention here), the movie lacks the elaborate set pieces that this genre warrants.
The screenplay does not quite engage, and there are no standout performances that could have maybe added KKM to the list of must-watch comic capers this summer.
Though comparisons are odious and almost unfair, one cannot but wonder how past masters such as Thengai Srinivasan and Muthuraman lifted an almost similar ‘leave-your-brains-behind-and-enjoy' movie such as Kaase Thaan Kadavulada .
It is evident in probably the only standout sequence of the movie when Dada Thulukannam tries to settle a dispute in a 'kangaroo' court. Radha Ravi is almost effortless in his comic timing.
KKM is still a decent fare that one can take the family to. On the technical front, the film seems to have got most things right. V. Selvaganesh passes muster with his background score, and has a potential hit in the melodious 'Oru Varam'. Cinematography by L.K. Vijay and editing by Vijay Venkatraman are good.
