Good going

jkysharma

Ayan has quite a few things going for it. I went for this one, not knowing what to expect (which nearly always seems to work for me). The first half took me by surprise, owing entirely to a brilliantly crafted action sequence set in Congo. K V Anand (Director), M S Prabhu (Cinematographer), Franz Spilhaus (Stunts) and Suriya Sivakumar (Lead) manage to pull off what is easily one of the best staged action sequences in the annals of Tamizh cinema. Featuring Yamakasi, a form of free running or parkour, distinct from its roots in that it accentuates the aesthetic aspect of surmounting obstacles, the sequence has Suriya race through lanes and alleys in a bid to retrieve diamonds from a mob relaying it with ease. Strangely enough, the other action sequences lack the same degree of polish (a car chase later on comes close enough though).

Prabhu Ganesan dons a role that suits him and the Suriya - Prabhu dynamic works. Akashdeep Saigal of 'Kyunki Saas Bhi ...' fame playing the villain is a weak link even if the Sowkarpet locality demands such a casting. Tamanna Bhatia as Suriya's love interest has a pleasing screen presence, although there isn't much else to her stint here. The wit and humour in the film are the dicey elements - leaves you in splits one moment and comes across as droll the next. Where it does succeed is to Jegan's (Suriya's sidekick in the film) credit. The songs (Harris Jeyaraj) didn't really register for me. Halfway into the second half, one has the inkling that this might be a loose (very) take on a Hollywood movie (will refrain from revealing it here since it is nothing short of a spoiler). The movie demands frequent 'suspension of disbelief' and I found it wasn't a particularly difficult thing to give. It's primarily intended as a summer blockbuster by AVM, with a smattering of the new and the ground-breaking here and there. Entertaining fare, all-in-all.

score 6/10

jkysharma 6 June 2009

Reprint: https://www.imdb.com/review/rw2077840/