YAAN MOVIE REVIEW

R.S Infotainment's Elred Kumar combines with noted and ace cinematographer Ravi K.Chandan, who makes his directorial debut in Tamizh cinema. The two names, promise us a sleek, stylish and lavishly produced film and to top it off, we have Jiiva and Thulasi Nair of 'Kadal' fame as the lead pair. Extensively shot in Mumbai and Morocco, what does 'Yaan' hold for us and can it justify the hype and curiosity it evoked among audience ?

Jiiva is a solid performer and needs no introduction. He carries off his role with consummate ease and the transition from a happy-go-lucky chap in the first half, to an distraught convict in the second half, was very smooth and convincing. As for Thulasi Nair, she gets more prominence with her role and screen timing and is very expressive nature. She looks good and confident as well, but the pairing does not look compatible. Thulasi's bigger body frame doesn't complement Jiiva's lean and athletic physique. The main antagonist played by Nawab Shah, is a huge disappointment and is a complete miscast. He sticks out like a sore thumb and has a poorly written role ! The rest of the cast such as Nassar, Jayaprakash, Karunakaran, Thambi Ramaiah, Arjun Nandakumar, Bose Venkat, Dhanush Bhaskar, Oormila Unni, Neha Chauhan, Rishi and etc had minimal scope to perform and the veterans' acting talents, were completely wasted !

The film has fantastic technical output and the result of the a lavish budget, was apparent on screen. Prime Focus (Mumbai), which takes charge of the VFX, has done a brilliant work, especially in the initial action sequence, which incorporated the freeze-frame technique. The lead pair looked cool and stylish, thanks to the costume designing by Mandira Shukla. The number of clothes for the song sequences was very high and aped the Bollywood style of glitz and glamour. More attention could have been given to the dancers, though ! 'Yaan' has some pumping, spectacular and pulsating action sequences, which were wonderfully and stylishly shot. The initial shootout sequence was fantastically staged and is a visual splendor. Kudos to Palli Harpal Singh for the extensive work and clean execution of that scene. Abbas Ali Moghul choreographed the action scene involving Jiiva, in the busy lanes of Mumbai, which was also good and neatly executed. Kecha Khampakdee of the 'Jaika Stunt' team, choreographed the jail fight sequence between Jiiva and a foreign artiste and Kecha's unique style and choreography was evident in that sequence. The chase scenes shot in the narrow and tight lanes of Morocco was choreographed by Hollywood action choreographer Mustapha Touki and it was finely staged, with an hide-and-seek element attached to it. As mentioned earlier, the film has a very glossy look, thanks to Sabu Cyril's production design and Suresh Selvarajan's art direction. Every frame in the film has plenty of details, from the posh Mumbai homes, the Moroccan prison set-up, the huge ballroom like set- work for a song, intricately detailed shoot-out scene and an entirely imaginary Gulf nation surrounding. The high-budget was justified in the final output ! A.Sreekar Prasad's editing speaks volumes, especially in the action sequences. The presentation was good and neat but the length of the film is a big turn-off. The veteran should have definitely trimmed the film's duration by 20 minutes, at least ! Cinematography by Manush Nandan and additional camera work by Hari Vedhandham, Ayananka Bose and Ravi K.Chandran himself, was superb. The thought process for the shootout scene was remarkable and their execution was fantastic. Mumbai and Morocco were wonderfully shot on camera and this entire team of cinematographers deserves appreciation. 

Harris Jayaraj delivers another album which is experimental yet has the quintessential "Harris Jayaraj" template and stamp all over. "Hey Lamba Lamba" is the opening song shot on the lead pair, with several montages of various Mumbai locations. The urbane shopping malls, modern coffee houses and restaurants, clubbing arena and the beaches become the backdrop for the song. The cool choreography and color tone complemented the song's mood. The pick of the lot from the album, "Aathangara Orathil" is a unique mixture of gaana and hip-hop/rap music. The lavish ballroom set and the colorful dancers, adds more zing and energy to the song, along with Jiiva's smooth dancing moves. "Latcham Calorie" is a simple and sweet melody, shot on the lead pair, in colorful localities of Switzerland. Besides that, there are some montages of funny moments, interspersed with the dance sequences. "Neeye Neeye" is a pathos song, shot on Jiiva in the imaginary "Balichistan prison" (Moroccan locations) and also with some few montages shot on the lead pair, interspersed along with the original track. "Nee Vandhu" has a tinge of Trance music in it and the lead pair was seen canoodling in scenic and panoramic locations of Iceland. The cinematographer captured the beauty of the lush and green highlands of Iceland, and the lighting added more beauty to the picturization. Harris Jayaraj's background score sufficed the needs of the script and is catchy in the action sequences. Lots of hard-work is put in the mixing and is evident in the background score. The flute piece of "Aathangara Orathil" is instantly likable ! 

Ravi K.Chandran's directorial debut, co-written by Adithya Roshan has a very contemporary and exciting template of drug mules and trans-border smuggling. The script had scope for some very good set of sequences and placements for the artistes to score. Unfortunately, Ravi K.Chandran's writing is no where as good as his cinematography sense. The film's basic story-line and some sequences bear's striking resemblance to the 1978 American/British film, 'Midnight Express' which was written by Oliver Stone and directed by Alan Parker. The original film starred Brad Davis, Randy Quaid and John Hurt and was based on Billy Hayes' 1977 book, Midnight Express. If it was an American smuggling hashish out of Turkey in the original, its an Indian unknowingly smuggling drugs into Balichistan, in 'Yaan' ! The ace cameraman's script is full of inexcusable flaws with unforgivable, gaping loopholes. The film has a very straight/linear story-line and the absence of twists and turns, make 'Yaan' a very dull affair. The entire first half is a complete waste and has no bearing on the overall story. The comedy and love tracks did not work out and falls flat, completely.  For the extensive budget, high production value and glossiness employed in the film, the writing completely lets down all the brilliant work, put in by the technicians. This film deserves some save-facing ratings only for the technical works and not for the art of film-making. 

'Yaan' - A cavernous yawn !


Ratings: 2.25/5 STARS

BY:TAMIL