Starring : Sivakarthikeyan, Aathmiya Direction : Ezhil
Music : D Imman
Production : Ambeth Kumar, Ranjeev Menon, Ezhil
Although Sivakarthikeyan’s rise to stardom was not quick, it wasn’t scripted meticulously either. He has not yet established himself as a comedy star, a genre in which he started out, but he has graduated to acting in lead roles. Ezhil’s Manamkothi Paravai has him in lead role and he more or less has the huge responsibility to carry the movie on his rather slight shoulders.
Manamkothi Paravai is director Ezhil’s experiment with romance. You would think Ezhil, noted for Thullatha Manamum Thullum, knows how to deal with the subject. But he has hardly treated the subject well in this one. The problem with Manamkothi Paravai is that it does not take itself seriously, ever where it ought to have been. And the fact is that Ezhil did not set out to make a light hearted movie. Effectively, you end up with a caricature of characters who are being made fun of, presumably for the comic effect, even when they are supposed to be taken seriously. That, we think, is the major issue with Manamkothi Paravai.
Otherwise, the movie has a decent enough storyline of that a one-sided love story of a middle class boy and his rich neighbor. The boy, Kannan, played by Sivakarthikeyan nurtures love for his neighbor Revathy, Aathmiya. Although Revathy is aware of Kannan’s silent advancements, she enjoys it secretly. But when Kannan takes things seriously, when Revathy’s wedding is planned, his friends inadvertently commit the error of kidnapping the girl to marry her off with Kannan.
All hell breaks loose when parents get to know this and this sets off a series of incidents. The couple separates and Kannan is sent to a different city for two years. He comes back, however. And his love is resilient. But will Revathy and his family accept him?
Sivakarthikeyan’s success in television catapulted him to movies. Although we are fairly aware of his abilities in comedy, having seen him in numerous TV shows, he only has had two movies so far to prove his comic potential. And he has assumed the responsibility of a lead actor already. Does he pass with flying colors? Hardly, but it’s not all that bad. He is promising and shows that he can act – at least give it a try. His comical abilities are muted in Manamkothi Paravai as Singam Puli and Soori have taken that over from him here.
Aathmiya and others have done a good enough job but the problem with Manamkothi Paravai is that it never lets you root for any character. For instance, as Aathmiya is getting all serious about her undying love, her character is instantly bullied with wisecracks. There goes your empathy to her role. Same applies for all the characters in the movie. In the conundrum of keeping the movie an entertainer, and not a serious one, Ezhil seems to have arrived at a confused decision of blending the two. Blending the two wouldn’t have been a bad thing if the movie is a spoof. It is not.
Manamkothi Paravai has the potential to be an earnest love story but that is not to be. There is ample scope for comedy and that comes through – sometimes at the cost of the dignity of its characters. There is also a perceptible lull in the movie’s script that is so painfully evident even comedy is not able to lift up.
Watch Manamkothi Paravai if you have nothing else to do. It’s not a heartwarming love story, neither is it a laugh-out-loud comedy. It’s somewhere in between.
Manamkothi Paravai is director Ezhil’s experiment with romance. You would think Ezhil, noted for Thullatha Manamum Thullum, knows how to deal with the subject. But he has hardly treated the subject well in this one. The problem with Manamkothi Paravai is that it does not take itself seriously, ever where it ought to have been. And the fact is that Ezhil did not set out to make a light hearted movie. Effectively, you end up with a caricature of characters who are being made fun of, presumably for the comic effect, even when they are supposed to be taken seriously. That, we think, is the major issue with Manamkothi Paravai.
Otherwise, the movie has a decent enough storyline of that a one-sided love story of a middle class boy and his rich neighbor. The boy, Kannan, played by Sivakarthikeyan nurtures love for his neighbor Revathy, Aathmiya. Although Revathy is aware of Kannan’s silent advancements, she enjoys it secretly. But when Kannan takes things seriously, when Revathy’s wedding is planned, his friends inadvertently commit the error of kidnapping the girl to marry her off with Kannan.
All hell breaks loose when parents get to know this and this sets off a series of incidents. The couple separates and Kannan is sent to a different city for two years. He comes back, however. And his love is resilient. But will Revathy and his family accept him?
Sivakarthikeyan’s success in television catapulted him to movies. Although we are fairly aware of his abilities in comedy, having seen him in numerous TV shows, he only has had two movies so far to prove his comic potential. And he has assumed the responsibility of a lead actor already. Does he pass with flying colors? Hardly, but it’s not all that bad. He is promising and shows that he can act – at least give it a try. His comical abilities are muted in Manamkothi Paravai as Singam Puli and Soori have taken that over from him here.
Aathmiya and others have done a good enough job but the problem with Manamkothi Paravai is that it never lets you root for any character. For instance, as Aathmiya is getting all serious about her undying love, her character is instantly bullied with wisecracks. There goes your empathy to her role. Same applies for all the characters in the movie. In the conundrum of keeping the movie an entertainer, and not a serious one, Ezhil seems to have arrived at a confused decision of blending the two. Blending the two wouldn’t have been a bad thing if the movie is a spoof. It is not.
Manamkothi Paravai has the potential to be an earnest love story but that is not to be. There is ample scope for comedy and that comes through – sometimes at the cost of the dignity of its characters. There is also a perceptible lull in the movie’s script that is so painfully evident even comedy is not able to lift up.
Watch Manamkothi Paravai if you have nothing else to do. It’s not a heartwarming love story, neither is it a laugh-out-loud comedy. It’s somewhere in between.
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