THEEYAVAR KULAIGAL NADUNGA - Viewers are the Actual Victims!
Introduction: Theevayar Kulaigal Nadunga is a whodunit thriller starring Arjun and Aishwarya Rajesh in the lead roles. The film is directed by debutant Dinesh Lakshmanan.
Premise:There occurs a brutal murder in the middle of one night, Arjun is the investigation officer for the case who finds out the victim is a novel writer. The clues are spread across his last book which helps Arjun to solve the mysteries behind the crimes.
Writing/ Direction:The core is a revenge saga that takes the whodunit route where the vengeful killers, the pitiful victim and the actual criminals are unveiled one by one in the progression. A much-seen plot that has the potential to be moving, but the story has been portrayed in the most absurd way possible. Plenty of contradictions between the intent and the screenplay, we get to see some disgusting aunty jokes in a film that talks against women abuse. Showcasing a sleep specialist is undergoing a torturous time due to the patient’s snoring problem in the name of fun. Let us cut to the chase leaving political correctness aside. There is not even a single interesting moment in this so-called thriller with mockery dialogues, poor directorial skills that seem to fail even in getting the basics right. Arjun’s investigations lead nowhere, as everything is revealed from the director’s point of view. While the first half is a waste of time with Prankster Rahul’s annoying comedy track and Aishwarya Rajesh’s cringe romantic portions. The second half is a yawn-fest where the crime scene is showcased and the revenge angle getting a closure. Such careless script development where most situations are so conveniently written just to fit in the shoes of the pre-determined end point. Zero logic in the presentation, not just the face but the killer covers the entire body with a black attire in the first half, the character’s identity is suddenly revealed just for the interval punch and post which they roam around freely on-screen with no covers and nothing. A victim’s flashback is meanto disturb the audience emotionally, but here it disgusts because of the way the voyeuristic sequence has been exhibited.
Performances:Arjun plays the role of a sincere cop who does not have much scope for acting yet delivers what is required, but simply keeps uttering his trademark ‘Therikke’ word. Aishwarya Rajesh proves once again that she is not just a routine heroine material by taking up this gutsy character, overacts in some emotional stretches, still her performance is justifying on the whole. Barring the leads, the director has extracted such absurd expressions from both familiar artists and the new faces. Prankster Rahul’s has to be the most irritating on-screen presence in recent times. Poor casting choices in the first place, filled with supporting actors who have all been acting since the 90s as if it is a period flick and hence it gives an age-old feel. The girl who plays the crucial special child has done a perfect job, it is a worrisome question if she is truly one, to have been made to do a deeply disturbing role without the kid’s concern.
Technicalities:A couple of mediocre montages songs placed as hindrances to the already intolerable flow. Stock background score with no creativity to set the mood, in fact the rhythm is absent and just abrupt sounds are played resulting in noisy circumstances. Terrible camera work with zero consistency, even the basic artists close up shots are bad with monotonous angles. Dull editing with so many lags left as it is that makes the screenplay a patience testing one. Overpowering fight sequences for both Aishwarya Rajesh and to our beloved action king, the buildup shots are a huge misfire lea leading to sarcastic laughs.
Verdict:The flashback has an inbuilt emotion, but even that is not filmed well to give us an impact. Instead of creating an organic story around the plot, the team has just constructed random fillers and mixed it with the template thriller format. Unbelievably bad direction and screenwriting.
THEEYAVAR KULAIGAL NADUNGA - Viewers are the Actual Victims!
Rating - 1.5/ 5.