Movie: Enthiran
Cast: Rajinikanth, Aishwarya-Rai Bachchan, Danny Denzongpa
Where do I even start about this movie… If you want me to be honest, I love Rajini movies for the sheer entertainment factor. I do not go into his movies expecting logic or a serious story line.
As for Shankar, I thought his proper movie making days are over after his recent fiascos; box office hits they may be, but they never made a lasting impression. So I went in again expecting some campy cheesy robot that is going to entertain us in the usual manner but, boy, was I wrong!
The bad news first…
Before I get to the good parts of the movie, here's the bad news. There were the little things, and of course a few big ones too.
Firstly, none of the songs was warranted. They were practically useless. The Chitti dance showcase (probably the only one that blended with the situation) was catchy and a bit of it stays at the back of your head.
Second, the VFX. Granted it was really good but it could have been better. There were certain sequences which were just a little painful to watch.
Third was the set. I'm sorry to say that the sets were just BAD. They had to be natural, even for a science fiction movie; it had to look like it belonged. But sadly that wasn't the case. The building and the lab of Dr. Vaseegaran (Rajini) looked way too artificial, like they were just put there. The minor mistakes involved a few action shots during the car chase sequence where in a convertible and all those haphazard shooting did not kill Sana (Aishwarya). The handful of soldiers robots there were present somehow manage to form a bigger robot that is just too big. However, this was the same problem that bugged me in “Transformers” — as to how a normal car becomes a robot at least three times its size; so I guess we can let this go. And the cinematography wasn't outstanding either.
Despite all these errors and mistakes the movie is still a must watch!
The good news
There is a solid story line, and it is not bothered by silly comedy tracks and useless banter, every part of the story seems connected, I wouldn't be able to cut this film short in anyway except the songs and one scene involving Kalabavanmani which is a prelude to a song and another scene where Chitti talks to a swarm of mosquitoes (this was another prelude to a song). The ending was a little similar to the “Anniyan” court drama at the end.
But other than that, this is one movie where everyone who watches it will have a different feel altogether from any other Tamil movie, heck any Indian movie that they might have seen. It has a very true and a very sensible message and it wasn't ruined in anyway through a poor story or screenplay.
The supporting cast did their roles properly. Aishwarya was as graceful and beautiful as ever. You cannot actually pin point the villain's (Danny Denzongpa) devious plans. He was perfect in proving why Chitti must be denied clearance by the Board (reminds me of Lex Luthor actually). None of that mattered though. The entire movie just screamed ‘Rajini'! Nothing gets as big as the Rajinikanth that you get to see in “Enthiran”. Forget everything that you know about his previous movies; this one is different — things like only the robot Rajini fights while the scientist Rajini runs away.
This is Rajini at his best — no ‘punch' dialogues, no mannerisms and no unexplainable physics-defying action sequences... He is into the character as written by writer Sujatha and does justice to the role. He literally carries the entire movie on his shoulders.
Bottomline: Go watch this movie. You can make all the fun you want but at the end of the movie, what Sujatha implied in his story and the way this movie took you through the journey will make you think, at least for a little while.
MAHESH RATNAM is an engineering graduate
