Movie Review: Thangalaan
The story revolves around a group of village folk living a farmers life, in Veppur village in North Arcot district in 1850. One day Thangalaan ( Chiyaan Vikram) and his wife (ParvathyThiruvothu) and kids are taken as bonded labour by the local mirasdar after their village land is burnt down and are put under a heavy fine and debt.
Thangalaan often has violent dreams of a mountain filled with gold which his ancestors are fighting to get at.
One day, when a British Officer, Clement (Daniel Caltagirone) comes to the village to recruit labour to search for gold, Thangalaan and a few men join the group in order to earn money which they have to pay to the mirasdar.
As they make their way to search for the gold, Thangalaan has intuitions based on his dreams and guides the party to the gold filled mount.
But the task of digging is not easy. There are sudden dangers that emerge in the form of deadly animals and fighters. Surviving them all, Thangalaan goes back to his village, pays off the mirasdar and convinces the village folk to join him and Clement in digging for the gold, for which they will be rewarded.
The villagers agree. But a huge surprise awaits them all. What happens next?
The film is a magical reality meets adventure drama, in a period setting. Held together by a superb cast, with Chiyaan Vikram at its epicentre, Thangalaan is filled with magnificent set pieces, raw action, bloodletting and gore, with an emotional core that links the various parts together.
Chiyaan Vikram gives a stupendous, career best performance. His body language, diction, expressions and mastery over the dialect are a delight to watch. Particularly superb are his action blocks. The way he changes expressions from tender to fierce in seconds, going under the skin of his character and his incredible transformations into different age groups, or as husband, father and leader is amazing. The scenes with Aarathi ( Malavika Mohanan) are superbly played out by the duo. Its impossible to imagine any other actor giving so much of himself and transforming completely for this role, a visceral, ferocious , award- winning performance indeed.
The movie is filled with suspenseful and magnificent action blocks. Every fight and battle is rivetting in its concept and execution.
The period setting is extremely credibly portrayed right from costumes, look, the village dwelling and settings.
GV Prakash's songs are fantastic and his BGM is incrediby powerful and takes you back in time with its powerful crescendos, lows and highs.
The sound design is superb, elevating every scene be it the dialogues, sound of wind water, natural forces, or whispers. The synch sound works well.
The scenes between Vikram and Parvathy are so raw yet tender and full of fire and passion. Vikram's scenes with Aarathi are spellbindingly thrilling and suspenseful. For Malavika Mohanan it's a meaty and memorable role, to which she gives full justice. Parvathy Thiuvothu gives a powerful performance high on energy and drama and yet tender and emotional in places.
On the flip side, though the mounting and making are fantastic and the blend of real and fantasy is seamlessly done for the most part, the non -linear screenplay and repetitive encounters between Aarathi and her forces and Thangalaan, act like speed breakers. The powerful bgm drowns out the dialogues many a time. The dialect of the time in some scenes is not always understandable and when lines are whispered with the bgm roaring, it needs more concentration. The film deals with several issues, maybe one too many, but takes a meandering course to get its points across with its narrative techniques. There are dramatic moments aplenty and a run of emotional highs and lows, yet, the pace doesnt allow breathing space to feel an emotional connect with the characters. The bloodletting and gore scenes are not for the faint-hearted.
Overall, Thangalaan, with its magnificent making, period setting, stunning visuals, a plethora of characters and their powerful performances, blend of magical realism, drama and adventure, and above all, Vikram's visceral performance, makes for a thrilling, compelling and gripping watch.
Rating 3.75/5
