Movie Review : Dragon
D.Raghavan ( Pradeep Ranganathan) a gold medallist student in school turns into a firebrand rebel and acquires a hip nickname, 'Dragon' in college, after a girl in school rejects him for being too good a boy.
Despite his middle class parents gathering hard earned funds for college, he refuses to study, and leaves with over 48 arrears, preferring to get into brawls and fisticuffs and spending time with his love Keerthi (Anu Parameswaran) and enjoying being the 'bad boy' that girls seem to love.
But 2 years later, when the same Keerthi leaves him as he has no job nor future goals and calls him failure, he gets motivated to become a success in life in order to prove himself better than her fiancé.
But since he has no college degree, he gets a fake one, lands a high paying IT job and is all set to marry a rich industrialist's daughter Pallavi ( Kayadu Lohar).
But one fine day, his past catches up with him, when his college principal Mayilvahanan (Mysskin) happens to run into him and threatens to expose him. What happens next? Does 'Dragon' manage to save his future ?
Dragon is a slick entertainer, with superb casting and solid performances. The racy screenplay ensures there is never a dull moment on screen. Livewire performer Pradeep Ranganathan lives his role to the T and pulls off a gamut of emotions, quirks, rage, frustration and remorse with utmost ease, taking the viewer into his life journey and making you stay invested in and curious about it. The climax scene with his father is moving and superbly written and pulled off . His chemistry with Anupama and Kayadu adds to the mix and both heroines bring their best act to the screen with their presence.
Mysskin gives a solid performance as a key person in the narrative and Gautham Vasudev Menon adds his panache and swag to every scene he is in. Every supporting actor is well cast.
The songs add to the appeal of the film, the visuals are easy on the eye, and locations aptly chosen adding value to the story.
There are umpteen scenes that will appeal to young audiences while mature adults and families with connect with the emotional portions. The social message in the film is a much needed, positive one, which strikes a chord with the viewer thanks to the intriguingly unfolding screenplay by Ashwin Marimuthu.
On the flip side, some portions in the latter half in the college campus, could have done with somse trimming to make for a crisper feel. While Kutty dragon concept appeals, a little editing would have been welcome to move the story forward faster.
Overall, with his livewire, consummate performance, a solid story and screenplay, quirks and fun galore couching am emotional core and much needed messags, Dragon, is a winning, trendy, engrossing and engaging entertainer from AGS Entertainments.
Rating 4/5
