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| KANDHA
KOTTAI MOVIE REVIEW |
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| Review
by : Behindwoods review board |
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Starring:
: Nakulan, Poorna, Santhanam,
Sampath Raj.
Direction:
S. Sakthivel
Music:
Dhina
Production:
ESK Films International |
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He
hates love, she loves it. He
loves her, but she is not sure
if she feels the same. That
is Kandha Kottai in a nutshell.
Nagulan plays a boy who absolutely
detests the very thought of
a young boy and girl falling
in love and getting married.
His dislike stems from the fact
that his parents were one such
couple long ago. But their married
life was not as rosy as their
love story. Their constant quarrels
lead their son to believe that
love can only be wrong. With
nothing but opposition for romance,
his only mission seems to be
to terminate all love stories
that he is aware of. That is
where Poorna enters. If Nagulan’s
character is from the South
Pole, Poorna’s ought to
be from the North. Their thinking
is diametrically opposite and
Poorna believes in supporting
every love story that she is
aware of. Expectedly, both of
them do not have a love story
of their own. While Nagulan
is at his regular job of mangling
up another love story, a very
drastic turn of events changes
his outlook towards love. He
starts believing that love can
be pure and true after all.
It is not long before he develops
a soft corner for the girl who
made him feel good about love,
which happens to be Poorna.
But Poorna, the constant advocate
for love, is not quite sure
about her feelings towards him.
Why? That is where a third
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person comes into the picture. Though he
exits soon after, it is his character that
is responsible for all the subsequent events
in a very ironical manner. What happens
to Nagulan’s love and how the events
affect their life is what Kandha Kottai
is all about.
At the outset, the concept is very interesting.
A young man who is totally against romance
is definitely a new mould for a protagonist.
We are usually used to seeing heroes who
constantly keep talking about the beauty
or pain of love. Here, Nagulan’s character
just does not care, he wants love to disappear
from earth. Nagulan’s and Poorna’s
characters represent a classic ‘men
are from Mars, women are from Venus’
clash. Both of them land on earth in a twist
of events. Things are interesting up to
this point in the story. One expects an
extension of this clash and their efforts
to cope with it in the second half. But,
a bit disappointingly, the script has swayed
to commercial commands. There appears a
regular villain with a ‘kill at sight’
philosophy who is out to avenge someone
dear to him. There is lot of running around
and action which takes away from the positive
impact of the unique theme that was established
in the first half. But, this is not to say
that the second half is completely boring
or predictable. Though unmistakably a commercially
driven sequence of fights and dialogues,
it has been executed pretty well. The viewer’s
patience is not tested, nor has the film
stretched unduly for too long. The action
sequences have turned out well, Nagulan
has worked hard for them
Performances have kept up to the demands
of the script. Nagulan continues the good
efforts that he put into his last two films.
Be it in the first half where he disrupts
many a love story, in the songs, or in the
stunt sequences, he has done all of them
well. He has shown his ability to grow into
a dependable action hero if the right scripts
are available. Poorna looks much better
than in her previous films. Her performance,
especially in the songs, makes her a possible
candidate for the top rung of Kollywood
heroines; especially because Asin is busy
up north. Sampath, as the stereotypical
villain is just right for the role. But,
it is Santhanam who steals the show throughout
the first half. The timing of his dialogues
is an absolute delight and lights up the
audience. At many points he reminds one
of Vennira Adai Murthy in his early days.
Music by Dhina is a positive for the film.
Two numbers in particular, ‘Eppadi
ennul kadhal’ and ‘Unnai kadhali
enru’ impress. The costumes and camera
are pleasing to the eye. Overall, the music
is very much unlike the Dhina we have known
till now. Other departments have done well
enough to carry the film through, though
there is nothing much of note. Debutante
director S Shakthivel proves that he has
got the mettle to make a name for himself.
He needs a few good scripts for that.
Kandha
Kottai is an interesting concept which
could have been sustained for the entire
length of the film. But, commercialism
and action take over in the second half,
robbing the film of its main theme. This
disappointment apart, Kandha Kottai is
a decent attempt at a youthful entertainer
with honest performances and hummable
music.
Verdict:
A love-hate relationship
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