A multinational company tries to forcefully take over a village that was once a fertile agricultural land to make way for its commercial projects. Jeevanantham, a Hydrology Grad and probably the most educated person in the village, takes the fight to the MNC and vows to reclaim what’s their own. Does he deliver on his promise? Do his efforts bear fruit? – The answers form the crux of this sensitive-issue themed flick.
Language:
Tamil
Running Time:
165 min
Rating:
U
Release date:
22 October 2014
Directed by:
A R Murugadoss
Produced by:
K Karunamoorthy
A Subhaskaran
Written by:
A R Murugadoss
Starring:
Vijay
Samantha Ruth Prabhu
Neil Nitin Mukesh
Tota Roy Chowdhury
Sathish
Subbu Panchu Arunachalam
Sayaji Shinde
Music by:
Anirudh Ravichander
Shot by:
George C Williams
Editing by:
A Sreekar Prasad
Distributed by:
Ayngaran International
Eros International

What’s Hot

  • It is ‘Actor’ Vijay who is at the forefront in the first half of Kaththi. Be it the subdued performance or his eye-flicking, village-grown character, the actor in him is truly back. His emotional performances take one back to his Thullatha Manamum thullum days – we do wish he chooses more scripts like these that bring out the best in him. If the subdued Vijay stole the show in the first half, the second half is more about the ‘Entertainer’ Vijay albeit in a role that stands out and doesn’t get into the usual ‘Mass’ genre!
  • No loud intro song, no over-the-top action sequences, no larynx-wrecking dialogues, and no illogical sequences – does that sound more like an Art film – one made for the awards? A R Murugadoss does prove that he can make a commercial film without these elements. He has to be commended for treading on a topic of National Interest with such maturity and finesse – if Thupakki was about our Soldiers, Kaththi is indeed about the less portrayed plight of the farmers! He does seem to have learnt from the mistakes of his earlier movie and that by all means lands him in a win-win situation!
  • If Vijay, ARM & the story are 3 pillars – Kaththi is bolstered heavily by the fourth pillar Anirudh. His BGMs and compositions take one by storm and he has proved his mettle once again. His songs weaved magic among the fans even before the movie released and now he shows off his flair. This reiterates the importance of the background score in movies like these that involve such a big star. Especially when it works to lifts the mood of each and every scene, the fans are in for a big treat!
  • Neil Nitin Mukesh, Samantha, Sathish and all the village elders fit into their respective roles. In a movie that is dominated more by the story and screenplay, the actors have been aptly used. The action sequences do deserve a special mention too – the one right after the intermission is a real crowd-pleaser and the ‘coin’ concept is one to be watched out for.

What’s Not

  • Samantha’s role again raise questions on the role of a female lead in Tamil movies that grossly under utilize their capabilities to leave us wondering will they ever get to do anything other than glamorizing songs! Neil Nitin Mukesh sizzles as the cool and suave villain, but seems to lose out on screen space as the movie progresses and one feels that his role could have been made stronger and more prominent.
  • The emotional scenes do drag a little towards the end which delay the inevitable and make one realize the longish run time of the movie – close to 3 hours, but it doesn’t take the credit away from rest of the good work already done by the movie!

Badges

Verdict

Verdict Stamp

When you have an actor who is well known for mass entertainers and a director who is known for providing marketable scripts – what can you expect from the duo? If you are thinking of a movie that will be just for the eyes – you need to watch this to understand what the director wants to convey!!! ‘Kaththi’ starts out as a blunt piece of iron, but is honed all along and emerges as a Sharp Sickle!