KABALI....DAwn...!
The Kabali fever touched its peak, making the entire world shiver and finally hit the silver screen on Friday to tremendously impressive openings.
The hype normally associated with a Rajnikanth flick is known, but this one was on a never-before scale. As Rajnikanth's contemporary image for the latest film generally turns out to be the mascot for the entire entertainment industry till the craze subsides, the grey bearded icon turned ubiquitous during the month-long promotional blitzkrieg. For the first time, Rajnikanth's image appeared on aircraft, SIM cards, limited edition cars, silver coins and where not?
A film buff can smell something fishy in the script or execution, going by the last minute (over) hype generated for the film. And unfortunately, it turned out to be true in this case...!
So much was told in the extended first half that the second half had literally very little to convey. It is perhaps for this reason that the film drifted directionless for a while. None expected a gangster movie to move on such a sluggish pace, sagging at various spots. Most of the time was spent in showing the larger-than-life Rajnikanth in slow motion, with the 'Neruppuda' BGS adding sparkle. The movie deserves to have been handled with more care and executed neatly.
The Super Star went beyond his regular stylish appearance and put in serious effort to act wherever required. Kudos to Rajnikanth and Radhika for the emotional scene when the couple reunites after 25 years. We find a lot number of characters in the film, some of them appearing from the flashback to the present. Suddenly we find it difficult to recollect their faces as well as their grey shades.
Pa. Ranjith has put in a lot of effort to extract acting from Rajnikanth. His fiery dialogues, which are known for questioning the rotten traditions, focuses on social upheaval against the bourgeois and Dalit empowerment in this film too. Rajnikanth wears suit for the entire movie and it is not without a reason. The excessive focus on Rajnikanth's attire indicates (as Radhika Apte mentions in a dialogue) that the attire indicates the growing stature of a man (read: a community as a whole). Rajni also states to the villian in the climax that his (again read: a community) development is indigestible to them. These scenes and dialogues inspire the downtrodden sections a lot.
Akin to 'Nayakan', Rajnikanth gets shot by his own, somewhat mentally unstable, man at the end. Does Rajnikanth die or not? The answer to this million dollar question is left to the viewer's imagination, as the screen darkens with a bullet sound. Though this anti-climax is against popular sentiment, Rajnikanth perhaps wanted to convey the message that gangsters will inevitably die at the end, in order to convey a message to the society.
Though endowed with enough technical values, the film grossly misses something. For the average viewer, the story is not narrated in a straight manner. And for the die-hard fan, 'that Thalaivar Rajnikanth' embedded in their mind is not fully unleashed. Finally, it satiates the thirst of neither...!
Having gone to the theatre amid darkness for the early-hour fans' show and after coming out after sunrise, it finally dawned on me that all's not as well as expected and as hyped...!
The Kabali fever touched its peak, making the entire world shiver and finally hit the silver screen on Friday to tremendously impressive openings.
The hype normally associated with a Rajnikanth flick is known, but this one was on a never-before scale. As Rajnikanth's contemporary image for the latest film generally turns out to be the mascot for the entire entertainment industry till the craze subsides, the grey bearded icon turned ubiquitous during the month-long promotional blitzkrieg. For the first time, Rajnikanth's image appeared on aircraft, SIM cards, limited edition cars, silver coins and where not?
A film buff can smell something fishy in the script or execution, going by the last minute (over) hype generated for the film. And unfortunately, it turned out to be true in this case...!
So much was told in the extended first half that the second half had literally very little to convey. It is perhaps for this reason that the film drifted directionless for a while. None expected a gangster movie to move on such a sluggish pace, sagging at various spots. Most of the time was spent in showing the larger-than-life Rajnikanth in slow motion, with the 'Neruppuda' BGS adding sparkle. The movie deserves to have been handled with more care and executed neatly.
The Super Star went beyond his regular stylish appearance and put in serious effort to act wherever required. Kudos to Rajnikanth and Radhika for the emotional scene when the couple reunites after 25 years. We find a lot number of characters in the film, some of them appearing from the flashback to the present. Suddenly we find it difficult to recollect their faces as well as their grey shades.
Pa. Ranjith has put in a lot of effort to extract acting from Rajnikanth. His fiery dialogues, which are known for questioning the rotten traditions, focuses on social upheaval against the bourgeois and Dalit empowerment in this film too. Rajnikanth wears suit for the entire movie and it is not without a reason. The excessive focus on Rajnikanth's attire indicates (as Radhika Apte mentions in a dialogue) that the attire indicates the growing stature of a man (read: a community as a whole). Rajni also states to the villian in the climax that his (again read: a community) development is indigestible to them. These scenes and dialogues inspire the downtrodden sections a lot.
Akin to 'Nayakan', Rajnikanth gets shot by his own, somewhat mentally unstable, man at the end. Does Rajnikanth die or not? The answer to this million dollar question is left to the viewer's imagination, as the screen darkens with a bullet sound. Though this anti-climax is against popular sentiment, Rajnikanth perhaps wanted to convey the message that gangsters will inevitably die at the end, in order to convey a message to the society.
Though endowed with enough technical values, the film grossly misses something. For the average viewer, the story is not narrated in a straight manner. And for the die-hard fan, 'that Thalaivar Rajnikanth' embedded in their mind is not fully unleashed. Finally, it satiates the thirst of neither...!
Having gone to the theatre amid darkness for the early-hour fans' show and after coming out after sunrise, it finally dawned on me that all's not as well as expected and as hyped...!
The good old proverb brass always surpasses the gold metal applies not only to Kabali but also to many films across states such as Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Sadly, publicity is over racing the performance, only to disappoint cinemaniacs who lose their purse. Commercial exploitation is the order of the day just like commercial spiritualism.
ReplyDeleteWith a few hard hitting dialogues and racy scenes, the first half of Kabali entertains the viewers to an extent. As one settles down for some real treat after admiring Thalaivar in his new look, the rest of the story only engages in parts. The second half is truly dragging with a series of flashbacks followed by long searches and fights. Except the reunion scene of Rajini and Radhika Apte, nothing actually connects with the story in the later part. She and Dhansika did a commendable job. However, too many dialogues on Rajini’s attire and irrelevant flashbacks could have been edited. I agree that the story fails to engage till the end. Pa Ranjith leaves viewers wonder why Tiger killed Kabali? Or is he planning for a sequel to answer this particular question? Though the teaser was quite instrumental in evoking craze among ardent Rajini fans like never before, the film failed to do so post its release. With a substantial degree of disappointment, Kabali is strictly a one-time watch.
ReplyDeleteWell Written, AD. A very good insight to someone who is yet to watch movie. Hype is overtaking the reality these days in every part of life, I think Cinema is in the front row from that perspective.
ReplyDelete