Naan Mahaan Alla

Naan mahan alla, is an attempt to make a movie that stands out differently from the rest, but I think that aim may not have been achieved all that well. The serious tone of the storyline is hardly revealed until the interval except for glimpses of it here and there from the opening sequence. I’m guessing the director tried to go for a compromise between family entertainment and a thriller, but like I said it may not have perfectly reached the target. Yet, I think this film might be the best compromise, thus emphasizing the fact that the two genres can never really go hand in hand.

Karthi reprises the role of a happy go lucky youngster with no airs about himself. All is hunky dory and he even meets a girl and falls in love with her successfully. At this moment, Please take a few seconds off as I reminisce on the beauty of the pretty lady in question. :D Kajal Agarwal. Pretty as ever :D.  Of course the course of events in the first half are quite like any other romance film with the usual elements of fun and frolic among friends and family. The first half of the film will have you in smiles and occasionally laughing at the medium humour being dished out which makes it a thoroughly enjoyable family experience.  Of course this is interspersed with scenes of a bunch of criminals indulging in unlawful activities and though there is no direct cross of path, we see a shade of the hero’s character when he reacts to the scenes by the road side.

The second half is completely faced paced and has sufficient suspense. Of course you know the end, the good guy wins and bad ones meet epic fail :P. The suspense is all about how it exactly happens, and that way this movie ends on a slightly interesting note. The shade of grey we see in Karthi at the end I guess sums up the title. The fun elements are completely missing in the second half with the friends and Kajal and pretty much all the family having no role to play. As you dissect the movie, one tends to feel that the first half and second half have absolutely no co-relation to each other, but somehow the director makes them stick. That vouches for good screenplay I guess. Overall; a movie definitely worth watching once. Btw, I like the way the grey characters are portrayed specially towards the climax without overtly making the hero seem like a superhero. Tata to the “transformer electrocuting, dead-sea killing, destroying a car with the flick of finger” antics of our yesteryear heroes. Tamil cinema is coming of age. I can see the signs.