Tsk. Tsk. Why do they make me take the gun everytime?

Yesssss. I wached it! I loved it!

Its definitely not in the league of Narasimma or Gajendra, but ample care has been taken so that the movie will be an affront to anything with half a brain.

There are two Vijaykanths in the movie. One is Perarasu or 'Chinnayya', a villager out to avenge his father’s death and the other is a CBI aapeesar who wants to prevent Perarasu from taking the law into his own hands.

There is a fantastic flashback sequence where the 7-8 year old twins are shown leading a happy life with their father when fate tragically intervenes to separate them. However, the CBI gabtan still needs a flashback to know about his past life!!!!! I wonder if gabtain is trying to spoof himself. He has ESP like powers as usual which makes it all the more surprising that he needs a third party to narrate his past. Awesome stuff!!!

The director has dutifully made a to-do list and checked these entries off:

Superb twists. Gabtan is introduced as a thoziladibhar who reveals he is CBI to catch a fake CBI aapeesar.

Character's faithful to gabtan utter 'Chinnayya' rather than 'Ayyo', 'Amma' or 'Appa' indicating their affection for gabtan even in their dying seconds.

Gabtan kicks the goondas and they fly and fall 100 meters away.

Gabtan’s gun always fire bullets in slow mosson.

There is a female lead whose presence feels like an afterthought (she has exactly 3 scenes, one of which has her calling gabtain's cell phone immediately after gabtain CBI proclaims that only his team has his cell phone number).

There are no bakistan dheeviravaadhis, which is disappointing (two times in a row [Sudesi inclusive]). Gabtan seems to have made up his mind that evil politicians are first priority now.

I think Prakash Raj is utterly broke from having produced ‘Poi’. I can't think of any other reason for him to stoop to this level.

Anand Raj has a 'different' role. I mean, he is not a bad guy this time. But he wins the award for the 'Second most irritating Malayalam speaking character in a tamil movie'. The Most irritating prize is firmly with Sathyaraj for his soporific 'Malabar police'. Of course, this means we'll hear 'aayaalu' (that man), 'eeyaaalu' (this man), ‘ivvade’ (here) and ‘Saaarrey’ (Sir..) only a thousand times each.

I think the next Vijaykanth movie should be extremely easy to make. They should do a highlights segment from each of his last 4-5 movies and we’ll have another feast.

The bike and the Thatha

Movies like 'The World's fastest Indian' come and go every year. Most of them are sports movies and repeat the same 'Triump of Human Spirit' tale. Some play it to the hilt, some are above average, and there are a few that you don't mind sitting through. ('Dogeball - A true underdog story' is an exception from this general classification, probably because the sport is run by the ADAA - The American Dodgeball Association of America).

In TWFI, Anthony Hopkins plays ... no not the Indian (Not that he wouldn't try it. He has played a black guy before). He is Burt Munro from a place in Newzealand that most Kiwis havent probably heard of. His dream is to do a speed trial at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah on his 'Indian' (a bike from the 20s). It is a classic tale of the spirit being so willing, that it drags the flesh along.

He has waited all these years. He is living on welfare and spends most of his time on his bike even if he is not on it. He is too devoted to the Indian that when neighbors ask him to maintain his lawn, he decides to burn it down, so he won't have to. An angina attack later, he decides it is time to go to Utah for he may not have the time.

Like I said, you know this story. Thats not the main thing. What is worth watching is how Burt Munro endears himself to everyone he meets and sometimes gets things done by using his age and helplessness in a smart way. Some of the things he does are so outrageous that the people who stare at him in helplessness do so only because they do not want to shout at a very old person. There are some fun moments between Burt and his neighbor's kid.

The movie mixes the 'fish out of water' (Kiwi in the US) and 'triumph of human spirit' situations in a good way and although it is a drag at times, it doesnt get to the point where you want to skip chapters.

Serial Repetition

Recently, I read an interview of Gautham (by Sudish Kamath, me thinks) where he spoke at length about VV and cop thrillers in general and among other things, he suggested that there would be a third cop movie from him thus completing a trilogy like (Ram Gopal Varma, Kieslovsky, Satyajit Ray etc.) I dont understand this 'trilogy' concept. Is there something unique to the number 3 that I don't get? Comments welcome.

Anyway, after watching 'Policekkaran -2: Trials and tribulations of DCP Raghavan' I hope there isn't a third installment ever. Its a funny feeling. I did not like this movie for the same reasons that made Kaakha Kaakha stand out. The KK hangover is everywhere to be seen. Gory shots of dead bodies, Long-haired bad guys, Upright police officer hero, even the names of characters (Maya, Ilamaaran) keep reminding you of KK. Did Gautham think this would help?

Other things that don't help the cause - Kamal's english dialogues. Its never been the grammar. Its just that the choice of words are straight out of some James Hadley Chase pages. Referring to the killer's (male) partner as his 'Kadhali' are homophobic at best and in bad taste. This reference to the sexual orientation of the killers could have been avoided for one reason and one reason only, which is that it plays no visible part in the crimes or choice of victims. And they do rape only their female victims.

I was told that the cinematography was a highlight. Sadly, I could only watch a thiruttu print. (No shows in Salt Lake City. If only the producers associations could do something constructive rather than fighting over election issues, I would be happy to pay 5 bucks for a download). However doing a full 360 with a camera can only "be confusuing", which is not a substitute for "depicting confusion".

The editing is good at places. There were a couple of wows in the title sequence, but for the most part, the editing only manages to give u the feeling that you are in a 'masala' picture. The lesser said about the chase sequences, the better. Haven't these guys seen Ronin or the Bourne movies.

Verdict - Very average. Like the average of 'Kaaki Chatti' and 'Kuridipunal'.