Movie Review : Captain Miller
CAPTAIN MILLER CAST WITH CHARACTER NAMES
Dhanush - Analeesan / Miller
Dr. Shiva Rajkumar - Sengolan
Priyanka Mohan - Velmathi
Sundeep Kishan - Rafi
Elango Kumaravel - Kannaiya
Nivedhithaa Satish - Thenpasiyar
Aditi Balan - Shakunthala
Vinoth Kishan - Daniel Muthuswamy
Abdool Lee - Semmbattai / Stephen
Viji Chandrasekhar - Pechamma
John Kokken - Senathipathi
Jayaprakash - Rajathipathi
Pintu Pandu - Kali
Rajarishi - Kaangai Karuppu
Kaali Venkat - Kanagasabai
Asuran J.K. - Vincent Pillai
Swayamsiddha Das - Anusuya
Bose Venkat - Oththaikan Kollaiyan
Arunodhayan - Ayyavoo
Swathy Krishnan - Kuyili
Antony - Aandiappan
Aishwarya Ragupathi - Raakkaayi
Edward Sonnenblick - Andrew Wandy
Ashwin Kumar - James
Alexx O’Nell - Riley
Mark Bennington - General Buller
David Harrison - Thomas
Murugan - Mannaangatti
Ashraf Mallissery - Chetta / Ollaka
Stunt Ganesan - Odukku
The much awaited Dhanush starrer Captain Miller, directed by Arun Matheswaran, hit theatres for the Pongal weekend on January 12th.
The film takes us back to the early 20th century India, under British Rule. Analseelen (Dhanush) leaves his village and in search of getting a better identity, joins the military under the Brits and adopts the name of Miller. But to his horror his first assignment is to kill freedom fighters protesting peacefully. This scars him further when he is told his brother Sengolan ( Dr Shiva Rajkumar) was amongst them. Disillusioned by the cruelty of the British against his own people, he then becomes a forest brigand, joining a group of dacoits led by Kannaiya (Kumaravel).
As luck would have it, he returns to his own village again, due to an assignment by the local raja to loot a diety forcefully taken away by the British.
And it's then that he is forced to face his past and revisit painful events. Does Miller succeed in getting the diety back? Who is diety and how is it connected with Miller's life? Does he survive the revengeful onslaught of the Brits?
The performance of Dhanush is outstanding. He lives the character, taking us through his journey every step of the way, every raw emotion conveyed superbly. He shines even more in the action sequences, be it combat or gun fights. Gruesome, raw and real, Dhanush brings to life his character's every emotion and seems to have put his heart and soul into it.
The cast is well chosen. Priyanka and Nivethithaa are superb in their roles which bring out the strong side of women. Their dialogues and performances leave a mark . John Kokken though aptly cast in a key role, but not been given much to do, shines in bringing out the core of his character, especially near the climax. Dr Shiva Rajkumar, as always, makes his presence felt, with a lengthier act in the second half.
The bgm by G V Prakash is a highlight, knitting together instruments and sounds that carry you on the rising and falling waves of emotions and action on screen. Silences are also used effectively, giving time for viewers to absorb the emotions.
The art, costume and camera department deserve mention for recreations of the period which draw us into their world.
On the flip side the gun fights can get a tad tiresome on repeat mode. The violence especially towards the climax on a big scale, though dramatic in effect, is not for the faint hearted. The film could do with a few cuts for a crisper feel.
But Arun successfully transports you to a different era and keeps you engrossed in the lives of the characters and peels off the layers in a slow and steady manner, and therein lies the film's strength.
The interval block and the climax portions are to watch out for. An engrossing film with a gripping screenplay and raw performances, for Dhanush, yet another award worthy performance.
