Director: KS Ravikumar Story: Kamal Hassan Cast: Kamal Hassan, Thrisha, Madhavan
I loved Pachathantiram, the 2002 superhit by the KS Ravikumar, Kamal Hassan duo. It was a laugh riot. Panchathantiram was witty, spontaneous and non-stop comedy. Before you think I am reviewing the wrong movie here, let me get straight to the point. The first thing that came into my mind when I saw the promos saying story by Kamal Hassan and direction by KS Ravikumar was ‘Panchathanthiram’. That was the urge for me to watch Manmadhan Ambu. Though it dint meet my expectations (expectations are a vice for any movie buff), Manmadan Ambu is a good movie.
Plot:
Manmadan Ambu deals with relationship problems. Relationship problems between a big Tamil actress and her equally rich fiance. Madan (Madhavan) begins to doubt Ambu’s (Thrisha) reel life. As doubts are a baggage in any relationship they decide to take a break. Major Mannar (Kamla Hassan) is the private detective assigned to follow Ambu by Madan. Soon things start to mess up and go hay wire.
Plot was interesting enough. It had clearly well defined characters to play out the story, it had that peppiness and humour sprinkled here and there. Towards the end of the first half the movie unravels something wow and then all the characters seem so entangled. From a serious note for the better or for the worse the movie shifts gear and the humour kicks in. It winds up making you ponder about something amiss.
Direction failed to grip you in the first half. It was smooth, the movie played by the rules of the script, that was it. The humour lacked the wittiness and swiftness of Panchathanthiram, but I should not compare though I’m forced to. As I stated, the humour is sprinkled in the first half, it kicks in full force in the second half. That part was engaging. But sadly, it doesn’t leave you wanting for more. You get your laughs, but you realize there is something wrong and amiss and then the movie concludes. An interesting script, that is all what it looked like.
There were a lot of characters who were introduced but heavily under utilised. This only showed the movie had potential for even more fun but the script did not need these characters. I was talking about the Panchathanthiram team itself in the movie, who dint, according to me, get meaty roles to play in the film. Also it has some cliche too. I will not reveal it and act as a spoiler.
The movie had its moments I should mention. The humorous second half, some sensitive acting from Kamal Hassan (as expected from the best actor in the nation), some friendship intensive scenes, a really good song sequence inspired from ‘The Scientist’ by Coldplay.
Its not a must watch movie. You can make do even with the DVD release. It is a peppy movie you can enjoy with a cup of tea and 50-50 biscuits. Beautiful holiday destinations of Europe are picturised wonderfully. The kids in the movie are a fun to watch. I rated the movie 3.1/5 in my tweet, but giving a second thought I will give it only a 2.9/5 right now.It does not cross the 3 point mark due to the cliche it has. 😛
Verdict: A good movie with an interesting script. One time watch.
PS: Still thinking whether Majors become private detectives after retirement and still seem so young ???
Re-Vi-You 