Movie Review : Once More
Raghuvaran ( Arjun Das) is undergoing therapy due to a bad break -up from Indira ( Sona Olickal), eight years ago. The aftermath of her leaving him suddenly is so great that he has lost interest in life.
Into this scenario enters Anjali ( Aditi Sankar) quite by chance. She loved him as his junior from their schooldays, and this chance meeting gives her an occasion to profess her love for him. Though he is not interested, she convinces him to give things a try and see where it leads.
Slowly but steadily Raghu opens up, overcoming his past trauma. The relationship is all set to reach marriage, when the unthinkable happens. Indira re-enters his life.
What happens next? Does the past takeover his future? Or does his newfound love prove stronger?
The refreshing pairing of Arjun and Aditi works well for the film. The slow burn build up to their romance in a, light hearted way, interspersed with family scenes, moments at various dates, the understanding attitude of Anjali and the way Raghu opens up to let in freshness take over his life, Mahesh for a good watch. For Aditi Shankar this is a good role and she makes the most of it. The absence of unnecessary ' cutesy' behaviour is a plus, and her positive attitude towards working to achieve her love, is showcased well. Arjun Das perfectly brings out the layers of his character, from gloomy and lost to slowly getting to bask in the warmth of Anjali's affection for him, he brings it all alive superbly getting into the skin of his character. In the second he transforms yet again into a college student, discovering love, and those scenes, as he sings and dances on stage, the scenes on the beach and the discovery of deep love, showcase again the range of this actor.
Sona Olickal is well cast as his love in college and the actor speaks with her eyes and a quiet seriousness which is charming on screen.
But even as the first half is interesting sbd engaging viewing, the second half seems to slow down the film. The scenes dont establish a connect, and it's almost like stepping into another film. The reasons for the break -up and the reappearance of Sona after 8 years, and the are not credibly portrayed and this is where things go downhill for the film. The entire sequence seems staged and seems filmed just to add tension to the plot, without proper in depth writing. The dialogues too seem shallow there.
The Vaa Kannamma song is a delightful track. The music by Hesham is good, the visuals, locations and settings, all add to the film, taking you into the world of the characters in the first half.
The supporting cast is well chosen and Devadharshini leaves a mark with her portrayal of the therapist.
Despite hiccups in the second half which could have been better written with more depth, overall Once More, makes for an engaging, family entertainer.
Rating 2.75/5
Arjun Das as Raghuvaran
Aditi Shankar — Anjali
Sona Olickal — Indira Vasudevan
Dravid Selvam — Ibrahim
Anusha Prabhu as Sara
Jagabar — Gee Gee
Monish Elamaran — Srinath
Varnika Varad — Varnika
Phillipson Thomas — Philip
Arun Kumar Mani — Pearl
Soundarya Manoharan — Soundarya
Kannan T — Divakar
Richie Richardson — Kevin
Raksha Serin — Anu
Srikanth — Moj
Niaz Muhammad — Niaz
Chitra Lakshmanan — Song Lingam
Devadarshini Chetan — Therapist Lavanya
Jensen Diwakar — Father Edwin
Dayalan — Raghu's father
Maheshwar — Anjali's father
Rama Rajendra — Raghu's mother
Lakshmi Saravanan — Anjali's mother
Sudarshan Gandhi — Guruparan
Aarish — Kiki's boyfriend
Goodnight R. Nagarajan — Kumaran
Rithik Krishna — Kerala Volunteer
Pooja Surender — Indira's mother
Nirmal Kumar — Indira's father
Abhira Praveen — Young Indira
Harikumar — Mechanic
Somasurya — Assistant Mechanic
Technical Team:
Written and directed by: Vignesh Srikanth
Producer: Yuvaraj Ganesan
Production company: Million Dollar Studios
Music: Hesham Abdul Wahab
DOP: Aravind Viswanathan
Editor: Nash
Art: Raj Kamal
Lyrics: Vignesh Srikanth
Sound Design: Ranjith Venugopal, M. Saravana Kumar
Costume Designer: Navadevi Rajkumar
Choreographer: Apsar
Production Supervisor: A. Balamurugan
Production Manager: R. Nagarajan
Production Manager: D Prashanth, D Parthiban
Advertising Designs: Gautham j
Stills: Manian
Executive Producer: Harish Durairaj
Creative Producer: Vijay MP
Public Relations: Yuvraj
