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A twisty tale of two friends |
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| Behindwoods
Movie Review Board |
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Cast:
Narain, Prasanna, Vijayalakshmi, Ajmal, Ponvannan, Pandia
Rajan
Direction: Mysskin
Music: Sundar C Babu
Production: V. Hitesh Jhabak |
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Mysskin’s eagerly awaited follow up to Chitiram
Pesuthadi does not disappoint. Anjathe, a tale of
two friends Sathya & Kiruba played by Narain and
Ajmal (debut), defies plot synopsis with its many
twists and turns. The lives of these friends take
turns they least expect - at times by destiny and
at other times by desperation. They take paths so
different from each other that when their paths cross
accidentally; it results in a big loss for one of
them.
Narain and Ajmal are sons of two police constables
living in the same colony. They are the best of friends-but
the similarities end there. While Ajmal nurses a sub
inspector dream by day and night, Narain is a guy
with a conscience but with no aim in life.
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In
an interesting turn of events, a bit of luck, ‘under
the table’ dealings and ‘influence’
leads Narain rather than Ajmal to bag the SI post.
A naturally disappointed Ajmal is further hurt by
the change of attitude towards him at home. A brooding
Ajmal slowly loses his grip on life and slips away
into the dark lanes of intoxication in spite of Narain’s
efforts. Crime comes as a natural consequence of events,
with money being the motivation. These are the sequence
of events that have been set forth in Anjathe. How
well has this been narrated?
At the outset, the story is pretty interesting with
enough events to keep you hooked for over three hours.
The high point of the movie is definitely the casting.
The crew must be lauded for showing the courage to
think beyond the Daniel Balajis’ and other typical
bad guys and casting Prasanna (the chocolate boy)
as the lead baddie with comedy veteran Pandiarajan
keeping him company. How Prasanna fares as a ‘no
holds barred’ criminal is interesting to watch.
Prasanna is the one who woos Ajmal into the world
of crime by throwing easy and fast money and convincing
him that life on the wrong side of the law is possible.
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The
kidnapping racket that they run in the city and the ensuing
events have been niftily narrated. The police investigation
that has a tough time tracking them down also forms an interesting
part of the narrative. All this builds up to the climatic
sequences where the two old friends have to face each other
once again. |
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The
highlight of Anjathe is definitely the performances.
Prasanna, Narain and Ajmal carry off the main roles
very convincingly, with Prasanna finally looking like
he has managed to pull out of his ‘chocolate boy’
image trap. The way Vijayalakshmi settles scores at
the end with Prasanna is also worth a mention. However,
it has to be pointed out that the characters, particularly
that played by Narain contain contradictions. In one
scene Narain shirks from confronting violence, in another
he’s fighting with all his heart. Pandiarajan’s
character also disappoints a little. After being introduced
as a hardcore criminal, the element of toughness in
his character has been sacrificed for some customary
Pandiarajan brand of comedy that fails to work; a waste
of what could have been an interesting character.
The rest of the cast -Ponvannan (as the investigating
officer), Livingston and M.S. Bhaskar, have all played
their roles neatly. The script is a good piece of work;
keeping an |
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audience
interested for more than three hours is not an easy task,
but the film pulls it off rather neatly. However, there are
certain issues that could have been polished and rounded off
before the climax. These loose knots remain untied till the
end of the movie. The other pitfall is the seeming nonchalance
with which Prasanna and Ajmal dupe the entire police force
while kidnapping sons, daughters and others related to big
shots of the city. This bit is a little hard to swallow, especially
since you know that they don’t have much of a criminal
network within the city.
Camera by Mahesh Muthusamy is interesting, there seems to
be a touch of P.C. Sreeram inspiration here, especially in
the lighting (some scenes that are half-lit and shaded dark
for atmosphere). Out of the three songs scored by Sundar.
C. Babu, one stands out. The background score just passes
muster.
Anjathe looks and feels good. The tempo rarely slackens, remaining
consistently interesting and seldom boring. This, and the
good performances in Anjathe, makes it more than just watchable
fair. |
Verdict:
Not a bad follow up to Chitiram at all.
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