Vikram is back with a bang! Returning as a silent but deadly blind revenge seeking hero, he takes centre screen to kick butt. Infusing a credible premise with honesty, and peppering the film with tender moments, director Vijay creates an engaging drama that you’re happy to emotionally invest in.
Technically, Thaandavam is one of the best films to have emerged out of Kollywood in a long time. Add to that some peppy melodies from GV Prakash and comedy that goes with the narration makes it entertaining.
The film is set in London, with Thanjavur and New Delhi coming only in flashbacks. It opens with Kenny (Vikram), a Pianist in a church and a blind man who is on a vendetta mission in London, which has been ravaged by a series of bomb blasts.
Technically it is Vijay’s best film with superior eye-catching camera by Nirav Shah and peppy melodies by GV Prakash with ‘Oru Paadhi Kadhavu’ being the pick of the lot. The action choreography by Manohar Verma is awesome especially the fast paced fight scene when a blind Vikram is attacked by six foreigners in a London park.
On the downside, logical loopholes are quite obvious. Here’s a little sample -An intelligent doctor Anushka thinking that her husband who goes to office in suit and drives a high end SUV is an inspector or SI and recommends to the police commissioner for his promotion is hard to digest. The London police is made to look like a set of idiots. The film is a tad too long at 156 minutes, and at times taxes the viewer’s patience especially the ‘Roja’ like village wedding scenes.
Anushka is a breath of fresh air, and you wish she'd been given more screen space. Amy Jackson looks gaunt; Santhanam looks uncomfortable. Nasser looks like he could have done more but again, the screenplay gives him no space. Jagapathy Babu acquits himself quite well under the circumstances.
Nirav Shah's cinematography is sparkling when it showcases London, but the movie's screenplay drags it down.
G V Prakash's numbers barely pass muster and sound like his previous songs; they're inserted so randomly in the movie that except for one, they don't make much sense and hamper the pace.
Manohar Varma, who has choreographed the action sequences, and Daniel Kish himself, who provided the inspiration for the film, are the ones who deserve genuine kudos.
Verdict
