I never thought I could watch Dasavatharam in the first week of release. So when one of my TSOs got tickets for the entire team on first day evening show, it was a pleasant surprise.
Awesome movie! - lives up to the high expectations it came with. Iam no great shakes at movie reviews, so I would just limit myself to sharing some of my thoughts on the movie:
(i) Kamal Hasan - Arguably, the best actor in Indian cinema and probably world cinema. The kind of effort he has put in for each role is simply outstanding. Of all the roles, I liked the american ex-CIA agent and Japanese Master the best - The former for the characterisation and the latter simply for the make-up. (The grand-mother and Afghani make-ups were probably not done very well). It's one thing to don ten roles and entirely another thing to do justice to each character and this is where Kamal stands apart from the pack. Hats off Kamal!
(ii) The Plot - A Hollywood style save-the-world plot is a little kiddish but it provides the opportunity for Kamal to weave the other characters around the protagonist. From the surface, spotted a couple of logical flaws. Need to watch it closer next time around.
(iii) The Screenplay - Another highlight of the movie. The first half moves at break-neck speed. It slightly slows down after interval to introduce a couple more characters but once again picks pace towards the end. Overall, a brilliant job again by Kamal who I guess (missed the first 2-3 mins) handles story, dialogues and screenplay for the movie.
(iv) The Stunts - For once, an Indian movie matches/ gets close to Hollywood level action and chase sequences. A lot of good effort has gone into making the climax sequence between the hero and the villian at the construction site.
(v)Dialogues - The same problem that 'HeyRam' had continues here. Each one speaks a different language or a different dialect which is perfectly acceptable from the creator's point of view but for the masses watching it in theatres, it becomes difficult to follow the proceedings. One of the few reasons why I suspect the movie may not do that well in B and C centers. Need to watch the movie once just to listen carefully to the dialogues.
(vi) Music - A big disappointment and Kamal has erred by picking Himesh. A couple of songs seem good when we watch the movie but the truth comes out when we listen in Winamp later.
(vii) Direction - K.S. Ravikumar ensures that the movie is on the right track and not just a parade of the ten characters. Ensures the commercial side as well with Mallika and some comic interlude. The only other guy who could have done a better job with the same story is Shankar.
Overall, a landmark movie for Kamal - probably his best effort so far! Watch it purely to get a glimpse of what he is capable of. And you will not be disappointed.
P.S - I plan on watching the movie a number of times. Definitely need to watch once at Sathyam cinemas, Chennai to get that experience - Complimentary passes are welcome :)
Awesome movie! - lives up to the high expectations it came with. Iam no great shakes at movie reviews, so I would just limit myself to sharing some of my thoughts on the movie:
(i) Kamal Hasan - Arguably, the best actor in Indian cinema and probably world cinema. The kind of effort he has put in for each role is simply outstanding. Of all the roles, I liked the american ex-CIA agent and Japanese Master the best - The former for the characterisation and the latter simply for the make-up. (The grand-mother and Afghani make-ups were probably not done very well). It's one thing to don ten roles and entirely another thing to do justice to each character and this is where Kamal stands apart from the pack. Hats off Kamal!
(ii) The Plot - A Hollywood style save-the-world plot is a little kiddish but it provides the opportunity for Kamal to weave the other characters around the protagonist. From the surface, spotted a couple of logical flaws. Need to watch it closer next time around.
(iii) The Screenplay - Another highlight of the movie. The first half moves at break-neck speed. It slightly slows down after interval to introduce a couple more characters but once again picks pace towards the end. Overall, a brilliant job again by Kamal who I guess (missed the first 2-3 mins) handles story, dialogues and screenplay for the movie.
(iv) The Stunts - For once, an Indian movie matches/ gets close to Hollywood level action and chase sequences. A lot of good effort has gone into making the climax sequence between the hero and the villian at the construction site.
(v)Dialogues - The same problem that 'HeyRam' had continues here. Each one speaks a different language or a different dialect which is perfectly acceptable from the creator's point of view but for the masses watching it in theatres, it becomes difficult to follow the proceedings. One of the few reasons why I suspect the movie may not do that well in B and C centers. Need to watch the movie once just to listen carefully to the dialogues.
(vi) Music - A big disappointment and Kamal has erred by picking Himesh. A couple of songs seem good when we watch the movie but the truth comes out when we listen in Winamp later.
(vii) Direction - K.S. Ravikumar ensures that the movie is on the right track and not just a parade of the ten characters. Ensures the commercial side as well with Mallika and some comic interlude. The only other guy who could have done a better job with the same story is Shankar.
Overall, a landmark movie for Kamal - probably his best effort so far! Watch it purely to get a glimpse of what he is capable of. And you will not be disappointed.
P.S - I plan on watching the movie a number of times. Definitely need to watch once at Sathyam cinemas, Chennai to get that experience - Complimentary passes are welcome :)
