PORALI MOVIE REVIEW

Sasikumar and Samuthirakani are back again with Porali this time. Their last work "Eesan" was a success critically wise but failed to set the cash-registers, ringing. Due to poor release timing, they're movie faltered. This time they are once again offering another hard-hitting film but it's Samuthirakani's turn to do the direction. His "Nadodigal" was a super hit and was much appreciated by all section of fans and much is expected from this film.

Starting with the cast, the soul of the film is the protagonist, Sasikumar and he has done a good job. Nothing outside of his regular acting as he had replicated the same mannerisms, dialogue delivery style and body language as he did in "Nadodigal" but with less fire, due to the characterization. His plus is his look and the beard and it complements the intelligent/smart persona of his character very well and the whole film is carried by him. The changeover from rural to city background was smooth, though there are some questions which can be raised with the transition. Allari Naresh was fine and the scenes which required the tough emotions, were neatly done though his mannerisms were similar to what Bharani did in "Nadodigal". Heroines Swathi and Niveditha has not much to do and only the former has more screen space as Sasikumar's pair. Nevertheless, they were well used but the surprise package is the appearance of Vasudhara in a very short role in the second half. Her's was a meaty role which demanded some physical struggle but it was a short-lived one. Job, well done. There are a plethora of extras in the film like Jayaprakash, 'Ganja' Karuppu, 'Parotta' Suri, 'Badawa' Gopi, Prof.Gnanasambandhan, Namo Narayanan and etc. The comedy portions in the first half was neatly done and evokes a few genuine laughter, thanks to the fine timing by 'Ganja' Karuppu and in the second half it's 'Parotta' Suri's turn to entertain the audience with his dialogue delivery.

On the technical front, the movie is quite simple. S.R Kadhir is brilliant as usual with his wide angles, top angles and angles from tight spots which he squeezes into the frame. His brilliance is evident in the scenes captured in the small housing colony. Nice work, all the time. Keep it up, Kadhir! Sundar C.Babu's music is disappointing this time with non of the songs really catchy and only the background score was done well, thanks to his effort of recording it in the Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra. A.L Ramesh should have done a better job with Samuthirakani as the screenplay was sloppy. R.K Naguraj's props and sets in the barren land was well done. Dhilip Subbarayan's stunts were tad a bit disappointing this time as some stunts were not neatly executed. Technical wise, the film had average work except for SR Kadhir's contributions.

Samuthirakani, who always comes up with fiery screenplay with full of enthusiasm and angst at times, misses the plot this time. His screenplay was very sloppy, as mentioned earlier and there was no coherence in the flow of the story with various flashbacks of different timeline. The movie started off very well, with all the necessary grip and anticipation but slowly rolled out to be a moderate product. His dialogues though were intelligently written with doses of angst, pain, emotions and sarcasm and even cheeky, by making reference to their previous film and personal opinions as well. The first half had the right portions of suspense, comedy and emotions but the second half was slow and confusing. Besides that, a few proceedings or events in the film are questionable which seems to be out of logic or should be said as out unjustified. The scenes depicting the patients in the mental asylum looks a bit disturbing and it might not be fathomable for a few.

In the end, the movie turned out to be a below average film and it's disappointing to see it coming from a very talented team of film-makers. Samuthirakani had a very good message and theme to play with, but his screenplay was a big letdown and some issues were not properly looked into.


Ratings: 2.5/5 STARS

BY:TAMIL

Eesan Movie Review..

After the trend-setting/ path breaking smash hit Subramaniapuram, Sasikumar is back once again with his second innings as a director.. I was eagerly waiting for this flick because Sasikumar made name as a producer in Pasanga and as an actor in Naadodigal in between. He scored a hat-trick, sort of.. But I really wanted to see the director Sasikumar to really see the quality of his work, whether Subramaniapuram was a one time wonder or not. Eesan, a city-based flick contrary to Subramaniapuram, is a well-made dark film which is very hard hitting.. Although, it's not on the levels of Sasikumar's earlier film, it's still a very riveting and well made movie..

What really caught my attention was that, there's no typical hero or heroines involved and all the characters in the movies had a role to play in the story. Coming to performances, each and every one of them deserves a pat on their shoulder for brilliant performances but the special kudos to Samuthirakani and AL Azhagappan for their outstanding acting. Samuthirakani as ACP Sangaiah played his cop role wif conviction and determination and the angst he portrayed when his hands are tied by political connections were class.. Surprise packet is AL Azhagappan who did the role of a corrupted politician who's willing to do anything for the sake of his beloved son and at the same time be cold blooded, was really brilliant and almost life like. All the others like Vaibhav, Blessy, Aparna, Abhinaya, Namo Narayanan and the guy who did the title character were very good.. When it came to performances every scored in their respective scenes. Vaibhav as a party animal, Blessy as the father of Abhinaya, Namo Narayanan as the right hand of Azhagappan and Abhinaya as the mute gal portrayed good emoting skills and kudos to Sasikumar for bringing out the best from each of them.

Camera by Kathir was apt for the film especially the movement of the camera in important scenes and the tight angles complemented the grim and dark look of the film. Kathir has proved that he's the man to handle this type of stories in the cinematography department. James Vasanthan was a letdown here except for the Jilla Vittu song and the bit-song played when Vaibhav eyes his gal. Kannil Anbai was not bad either and James did good work on the BGM especially in the flashback and the climax scenes. Art direction was fine especially when it came to depicting the posh houses of the rich kids and the clubs. Editor should have done a better job by trimming the film as that was the setback for the film because if at all it was shorter it would have been a taut and tight film.

Coming to the captain of the film, Sasikumar, he should have made the first half shorter and more direct towards his main theme. Why I am mentioning this is that, until interval we're not sure where the movie is heading into or what the director really intends to show us, as the first half has shows the life of the spoilt rich brats and some political chess game played by the bigwigs of the society. Only after the interval, Sasikumar made the screenplay more racier we were able to grasp the theme of the film and finally he nailed us with a stunning and intense climax filled with violence. Im not sure whether all the violence shown was necessary but it can be justified with all the emotions running in the minds of the characters strewn together in the end. Besides that Sasikumar's 'kusumbu' and subtle mannerisms instilled in the characters, which blended into the film flawlessly, shows the directing skills of Sasikumar.

Sasikumar deserves appreciation for bringing another quality film and for outlining an important message to the society. The film would have been more riveting if it was shortened but then after watching Eesan, I am officially a fan of the Sasikumar, the director. Thanks Sasikumar for sharing the same angst which I have inside me..

Rating: 3/4 (stars)

BY: TAMIL