Bala's Naan Kadavul - Disappoints
Tamil movie director Bala is an eccentric genius. His movies are uniquely offbeat and to many he paved the way for the re-emergence of neo-realism in tamil movies providing an effective counter to the popular commercial 'masala' movies produced and which continue to dominate Kollywood. In the process he directly inspired several other new directors such as Ameer Sultan (Raam, Paruthiveeran) and Sasikumar (Subramaniapuram) , Selvaraghavan (Kadhal Kondein, 7G Rainbow Colony, Pudhupettai) amongst others to explore and bring out a freshness in terms of presentation, story-telling, dialogue etc. Bala's movies like Sethu, Nandha and Pithamagan were path breaking in terms of conceptualization and picturization, with the undercurrent of rawness and rage dictating the proceedings in each movie, striking a chord with the audience (and me personally). And his stories have no qualms about dealing with the characters outside the normal realm of Indian society and primarily present how the society deals with such individuals; for instance Sethu dealt with how society treat mentally unstable people, Nandha tackled the issue of juvenile criminals and Pithamagan had the audience mesmerized and empathize with an animalistic crematory caretaker. Highly unconventional indeed and as mentioned above simmering with anti-establishment fervour.
For instance here is a clip from the movie Pithamagan, where Vikram plays an individual who lacks social skills (for lack of better description) and is probably only a few notches above a savage animal, who beats up a couple of jail wardens and their enforcers in a prison!
The sheer raw anger and Vikram's powerful intensity in terms of body language (won him a national award) makes this an unforgettable scene in Tamil movie history.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VAOFld8cIcE
The success of Bala also provided the much needed break through for actors Vikram and Suriya (who were yet to establish themselves at that time) and helped them become the superstars they are today. However nothing was to beat the hype of director Bala himself, how he simply could not put a foot wrong, and his near 3 year production of 'Naan Kadavul' ( I am God) was eagerly awaited as the next masterpiece from the master.
But Naan Kadavul fails to create the same impact like Pithamagan. It starts off fine recounting the story of Rudran (played ably by Arya) who was left to fend for himself from a young age when his superstitious father abandoned him in Kasi due to some silly astrological reasons. When the father (after 14 years) realizes the folly of his deed, he goes back to Kasi in search of his young boy, only to find, to his dismay, that his son is now a Aghori saint, a recluse, who has acquired seemingly divine strength and knowledge through years of yogic meditation and intense Aghori training. Of course Rudran wants nothing to do with his family; "He is now a Aghori" whispers a trembling priest " they do not associate with this mortal world" he warns. Nevertheless Rudran reluctantly relents and travels back to his home town after heeding to his guru.
It is around here that Naan Kadavul starts to flounder. The aftermath of Rudran returning to his hometown and his dealing with the family would have on its own strength provided for riveting viewing, but alas Bala decides to switch tracks and shifts his attention to a rag-tag bunch of beggars, most of them either handicapped or freaks of nature (since they earn more) and the harsh conditions to which they are subject to by the beggar-mafia, ruled with an iron-fist by the cruel and equally cruel looking Thandavan. Bala introduces a blind girl (Fantastic performance by Pooja) with a beautiful singing voice, who is forcibly separated from her family of travelling artists, by one of Thandavan's goons, with the help of the local police, and thrown alongside the above mentioned rag-tag group of beggars, adds some macabre humor and bingo, you have, what can only be described as one "weird movie-going experience".
The entire second act, with the focus on the beggars and their universe makes for unpleasant viewing. Although history has taught us that Bala seems to derive sadistic pleasure from depicting unpleasantness. While it does not have the shock value of Slumdog Millionaire, nevertheless it is quiet disturbing. The third act, the decisive conclusion, where we expect Rudran (who was virtually absent from the second act either smoking the magic pipe to the chants of 'Jai Bholenath' or out cold) to save these beggars from their misery with a bang but ends with a whimper, all un-subtle symbolisms aside. Once again Bala misses a trick by tying things up rather abruptly. Pity, cos Thandavan deserved a more cruel death.
An engrossing beginning, Arya impresses with his presence, a meandering second half, sparkled with bits genuine dark humor, great performance by Pooja, and a frustrating conclusion. Overall disappointing.
Here is a review by the noted critic - Bharadwaj Ranjan of the Indian Express and I was happy to find atleast one other person who was equally let down by Naan Kadavul as I was.
http://www.desipundit.com/baradwajrangan/2009/02/12/conversation-with-the-creator-of-naan-kadavul/
For instance here is a clip from the movie Pithamagan, where Vikram plays an individual who lacks social skills (for lack of better description) and is probably only a few notches above a savage animal, who beats up a couple of jail wardens and their enforcers in a prison!
The sheer raw anger and Vikram's powerful intensity in terms of body language (won him a national award) makes this an unforgettable scene in Tamil movie history.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VAOFld8cIcE
The success of Bala also provided the much needed break through for actors Vikram and Suriya (who were yet to establish themselves at that time) and helped them become the superstars they are today. However nothing was to beat the hype of director Bala himself, how he simply could not put a foot wrong, and his near 3 year production of 'Naan Kadavul' ( I am God) was eagerly awaited as the next masterpiece from the master.
But Naan Kadavul fails to create the same impact like Pithamagan. It starts off fine recounting the story of Rudran (played ably by Arya) who was left to fend for himself from a young age when his superstitious father abandoned him in Kasi due to some silly astrological reasons. When the father (after 14 years) realizes the folly of his deed, he goes back to Kasi in search of his young boy, only to find, to his dismay, that his son is now a Aghori saint, a recluse, who has acquired seemingly divine strength and knowledge through years of yogic meditation and intense Aghori training. Of course Rudran wants nothing to do with his family; "He is now a Aghori" whispers a trembling priest " they do not associate with this mortal world" he warns. Nevertheless Rudran reluctantly relents and travels back to his home town after heeding to his guru.
It is around here that Naan Kadavul starts to flounder. The aftermath of Rudran returning to his hometown and his dealing with the family would have on its own strength provided for riveting viewing, but alas Bala decides to switch tracks and shifts his attention to a rag-tag bunch of beggars, most of them either handicapped or freaks of nature (since they earn more) and the harsh conditions to which they are subject to by the beggar-mafia, ruled with an iron-fist by the cruel and equally cruel looking Thandavan. Bala introduces a blind girl (Fantastic performance by Pooja) with a beautiful singing voice, who is forcibly separated from her family of travelling artists, by one of Thandavan's goons, with the help of the local police, and thrown alongside the above mentioned rag-tag group of beggars, adds some macabre humor and bingo, you have, what can only be described as one "weird movie-going experience".
The entire second act, with the focus on the beggars and their universe makes for unpleasant viewing. Although history has taught us that Bala seems to derive sadistic pleasure from depicting unpleasantness. While it does not have the shock value of Slumdog Millionaire, nevertheless it is quiet disturbing. The third act, the decisive conclusion, where we expect Rudran (who was virtually absent from the second act either smoking the magic pipe to the chants of 'Jai Bholenath' or out cold) to save these beggars from their misery with a bang but ends with a whimper, all un-subtle symbolisms aside. Once again Bala misses a trick by tying things up rather abruptly. Pity, cos Thandavan deserved a more cruel death.
An engrossing beginning, Arya impresses with his presence, a meandering second half, sparkled with bits genuine dark humor, great performance by Pooja, and a frustrating conclusion. Overall disappointing.
Here is a review by the noted critic - Bharadwaj Ranjan of the Indian Express and I was happy to find atleast one other person who was equally let down by Naan Kadavul as I was.
http://www.desipundit.com/baradwajrangan/2009/02/12/conversation-with-the-creator-of-naan-kadavul/
Labels: Bala, Naan Kadavul, reviews, Tamil Movies
posted by Nav at 3:25 PM
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