2.0 movie review
Costliest movie ever made in India. First movie, out and out shot for 3D viewing. Biggest ever technical crew assembled on par with blockbuster Hollywood movies and longest ever wait for a tamil movie, with never decreasing hype. All these hyperboles sum up the desperation to ensure the movie somehow manages to break even the production cost of about 400 crore rupees. Funnily this number started from somewhere around 300 crores and has now crossed 500 crores. The fans just couldn’t let go of any opportunity to bring in the superlatives when their idol is concerned, but this might be a matter of different concern for the producer if the IT department starts noticing. Come to think of it, it’s a significant FDI on one particular venture and should probably have the blessings of the government from a “Make in India” scheme perspective!! With the Superstar being open about his political ambitions and transforming his fans club into party setup, every single movie release is treated as a precursor to party launch. 2.0 is no exception. More than movie review, its seen as a political statement, mirroring MGR when he was about to make his political splash.
Story wise, it’s a major deviation from usual template of Shankar. There does exist a protagonist, the typical one man army who takes on the baddies and the system and comes up trumps. This time, instead of hailing him as the hero, he has been made the villain and the usual villains in his previous movies – the government, scientists et al, have all swapped roles. Had Rajini played the role of Akshay kumar and vice versa, things might’ve been different I guess. But with the superstar having already set his benchmark as the robot in the previous version of the movie, there was never a possibility. In fact, the only character, that has some semblance of likeability is Akshay kumar’s Pakshirajan – the ornithologist who takes up the crusade on behalf of the birds, that are pushed to near extinction by telecom operators, violating the transmission norms. He even gives up his life, succumbing to repeated failures. The disturbing trend of bad winning over good, creeps into commercial movies and that too by someone whose movies oozes with positivity and vigilantism. Age has finally caught up with Rajini and despite the mega budget allocation towards his costume and get-up he looks very old and tired. That, he was very sick for major portions of the movie, doesn’t make it any easier. The absence of master talent like Sujatha is extremely evident on the screenplay and dialogue departments. He has been the invisible pillar and secret recipe of Shankar’s success formula and Jeyamohan, for all his literary peaks, doesn’t manage the commercial mix, that is needed for movies. The much hyped 3.0, kutty chitti, looks more like a mock attempt on Rajini himself. Another disturbing hype around the movie is that, it’s being projected as a kids movie. Nothing could be far from the truth and those who spread the news are oblivious of what are “movies made for kids” or they are clueless on the content of this movie. It shows the person, who cares for birds and wants to limit technology related impact to nature and other living things as bad and shows those who support such heinous things as good guys. The final dialogue which praises the thoughts of the ornithologist but condemns the means to achieve it, doesn’t absolve the movie off its screenplay.
Gils verdict – Watch the movie for special day release on Sun TV.
Story wise, it’s a major deviation from usual template of Shankar. There does exist a protagonist, the typical one man army who takes on the baddies and the system and comes up trumps. This time, instead of hailing him as the hero, he has been made the villain and the usual villains in his previous movies – the government, scientists et al, have all swapped roles. Had Rajini played the role of Akshay kumar and vice versa, things might’ve been different I guess. But with the superstar having already set his benchmark as the robot in the previous version of the movie, there was never a possibility. In fact, the only character, that has some semblance of likeability is Akshay kumar’s Pakshirajan – the ornithologist who takes up the crusade on behalf of the birds, that are pushed to near extinction by telecom operators, violating the transmission norms. He even gives up his life, succumbing to repeated failures. The disturbing trend of bad winning over good, creeps into commercial movies and that too by someone whose movies oozes with positivity and vigilantism. Age has finally caught up with Rajini and despite the mega budget allocation towards his costume and get-up he looks very old and tired. That, he was very sick for major portions of the movie, doesn’t make it any easier. The absence of master talent like Sujatha is extremely evident on the screenplay and dialogue departments. He has been the invisible pillar and secret recipe of Shankar’s success formula and Jeyamohan, for all his literary peaks, doesn’t manage the commercial mix, that is needed for movies. The much hyped 3.0, kutty chitti, looks more like a mock attempt on Rajini himself. Another disturbing hype around the movie is that, it’s being projected as a kids movie. Nothing could be far from the truth and those who spread the news are oblivious of what are “movies made for kids” or they are clueless on the content of this movie. It shows the person, who cares for birds and wants to limit technology related impact to nature and other living things as bad and shows those who support such heinous things as good guys. The final dialogue which praises the thoughts of the ornithologist but condemns the means to achieve it, doesn’t absolve the movie off its screenplay.
Gils verdict – Watch the movie for special day release on Sun TV.
Comments
The man should have retired long long ago. There's nothing sadder than seeing somebody keep dragging on way past his sell by date.