Iruvar

Iruvar is a kind of movie only Mani can make. It is an experimental work with almost true storyline, mellow music score and wonderful performances from the cast.

The movie might not be of interest and significance by the audience who aren't familiar with the political history of Tamilnadu. Before watching this piece, the viewer needs some knowledge about the relationships and friendships of Ex-CMs of Tamilnadu.

Mohanlal, Prakashraj and Aishwarya Rai are the main leads in this movie. Lal and Prakash have done their best. However talented actresses like Tabu and Revathi appear in few scenes and don't have much scope to show their acting skills. But this is one movie they would not have regretted acting in. The art direction, camera-work and costume design are excellent.

An outstanding experimental work though not a huge commercial success. A must see for the film institute students.

actually while writing this,i was trying to find out any faults with the Mohanlal,Aishwarya Rai,Prakash Raj stare'IRUVAR',a film by the Indian Spielberg 'manirathnam'.but i couldn't find anything wrong because the film is superb.first to talk about the star cast,it was one of the most biggest performer studded movie in Tamil cinema.stars other than the above mentioned include Gowthami,Revathi,Tabu,Delhi Ganeshan and more. the movie is based on the real life story of legendary actor mgr,Jayalalitha and Karunanithi.as the title says, the story is about the relationship of mgr and Karunanithi.the names were changed in the movie to avoid controversy but still the movie brought out some political problems in Tamilnadu.the opposition from party of Karunanidhi,led the movie to fail in the box office. one of India's greatest actor MOHANLAL plays the lead, Anandan who is from middle class family in 1940's.his ambition was to be a hero in Tamil films and with the help of his friend as well as writer, Tamil Selvan,who is also a politician,he becomes superstar.the party of Tamil Selvan,takes advantage of Anandan's popularity to get votes for the election and later they succeeds.this eventually leads anandan to come to politics.and gradually the ideas of Anandan and tamilselvan differs and they form separate parties.due to anandan's popularity and kindness to people,anaNdan gets crowned.this leads Tamil to think of killing Anandan and some how Anandan survives from the attempt. in this movie,story moves on character of Anandhan from his young age to his old age.Mani Rathnam decorates the IRUVAR with a love story of Kalpana with Anandan.Anandan falls in love with Kalpana,who resembles his late wife Pushpa. the movie scores one gr8 star for the genius actor MOHANLAL for his extraordinary performance.two stars for the director MANIRATHNAM for his good written script.a glowing star for AR Rahman,proving that he is really GOD OF MUSIC.an exclusive star for AR Rahman's back ground score.Prakash Raj as Tamil selvan is also worth a proud star because of his acting excellence.Aishwarya Rai also gets a superb star for her good acting in her debut film.rest of the three stars are given to the dialogues,camera and art direction. A MUST WATCH FOR ALL.

I have seen this movie about 10 times in the last 5 years. One of the most inspiring movie ever made in Indian movie history. The best part which sets this movie apart is the fact that it is in Tamil and about two of the greatest pioneers of Tamil Nadu, yet it is unbiased and brings out the psyche of two of the greatest minds of Tamil Nadu. Although the movie claims that it is not a true story (in the very first scene), it is intuitive to anybody who lived or are aware of the golden age of Tamil Nadu.

Mohanlal and Prakash Rai play Anandan and Tamizh Chelvan respectively. Impeccable performances by them portraying the real life characters. Every bit of this movie says that it is a classic and this will only be realized in years to come. The film showcases the kind of films Maniratnam is capable of making. A.R.Rahman's music will haunt the ears of the viewers.

This movie was not appreciated by the movie goers in India as it was a little too slow. There are no racy songs, unwanted characters or unrealistic scenes to woo the viewers. Suhasini Maniratnam's dialogues in Tamil takes this movie to a pedestal where only the connoisseurs can admire. A very straight forward approach by the best film-maker in India.

Arvind Swami lends his masculine voice to Vairamuthu's verses to bring out the intensity in the scenes that show Thamizh Chelvan's prowess as a poet.

On the whole, a wonderful movie to have in your DVD rack. A classic that will only reveal itself in the years to come.

Undoubtedly the best movie i have ever watched. Mani Ratnam, Mohanlal, Prakash Raj, A R Rahman & Santosh Sivan at their best. Mohanlals act in this film is a guide for all budding actors. The soundtrack of the film is amazing. Every shot of this masterpiece looks like picture postcards. Thanks to Santosh Sivan. I don't mind watching this film a hundred times. Iruvar is Aiswarya Rai's first film & its definitely her career best film. Mani Ratnam , Mohanlal & Rahman deserved national awards. Its a pity that they were not given national awards.Another thing which surprises me is that the movie was a flop, which is a wonder aspect of Tamil Cinema.

Mani Rathnam has told a fine story about two friends. One who is a film actor whom the people love dearly and harbours political ambitions. One who is an accomplished writer, poet and politician. sounds familiar?

Anand is played by Malayalee actor Mohan Lal and Tamil Selvam's role by the very talented Prakashraj.

One cannot miss the resemblance to the real lives of M.G. Ramachnadran and Karunanithi. However very little is revealed of Pushpa who plays the love interest of Anand. Perhaps Manirathnam was playing his cards carefully, avoiding possible repercussions from Ms Jayalalith, who was the real life mistress of MGR.

There is also some fine acting by Naser who portrays the real life Tamil leader, Anna Durai. Indian cinema has few directors who can make a film that will stand the test of time. Manirathnam is one of them. The story for this film has been well researched and planned. Most Indian films skip these vital steps prior to production. Some may complain about the typical indianess of the film with the usual song and dance sequences in a good film like this. But do bear in mind that the intellectual crowd who sees the usual song and dance as a distraction is a minority. Majority of our desi brothers go to see Aishwarya Rai shaking about. And a movie can make money only by pleasing the Lowest common Factor of the society: The typical desi. Unless Mani Rathnam entertains them we won't have the opportunity to see more movies from this fine director.