Virumandi

I was watching this movie in Bombay on cable nearly 6 yrs after its release. I was blown to smithereens.Its so far ahead of its time. I kinda guessed this must have been directed by some genius( later i found out it was Kamal himself). Now, i'm a guy who watches very few Tamil movies ( cos they are very unrealistic, for my liking( i mean no offence) In my college days I watched Mahanadhi, what a classic that was. I bow to u Kamal sir, if u r reading this. I bow to the editor/ sync-sound /sound designers. Even though the use of violence is wrong , its completely justified in this movie.

Very sleek,stylized.

A typical combination of great story telling, a worthy message, remarkable acting, music, cast.. no wonder he's a legend in world cinema The first time i saw this movie, was a theater with no special sound effects. The entire picture was noisy and the dialogues were not clear. Real sounds were recorded in the shooting spot for this movie, which had made this impact.

But then when i got to watch it for the second time in a good theatre.. i was awe struck by the minute details that were hidden within the scenes.

Kudos to Kamal Haasan!! I'd invariably give a 10/10

At a time when cliched tamil/indian movies are being made, one could only Kamal Hassan to come up with something innovative and striking!

What is most exciting is the narrative set-up from two angles, two very different versions of the same story, a crime committed, 24 murders in a village in Tamil Nadu (kamal hassan and pasupathy). The underlying tension throughout this morbid tale is effective. In fact very difficult to make out who is good and evil, till the very end. Fantastic Characterization's.

Excellent photography, background score. Direction by Kamal is first rate, with an interesting screen play.

Regarding performances, pasupathy steals the show, along with Rohini. Abhirami as the main female lead is impressive. Kamal, the actor is not at his best, but makes up enough with his direction.

It falls short of a great movie on account of a poor climax and excessive violence. Not a great movie, but definitely a good one.

Great editing, music, photography, and screenplay. The movie and the scenes are very consistent as the movie progresses with multiple versions of the same story. Each one of supporting actors have done a stunning job. The movie has mined some interesting new talent.

The movie is too rooted in the culture of south Tamil Nadu for it to receive universal acclaim. Non-Tamil Speakers, Urban Tamil folks might have serious difficulty understanding the language and culture depicted in the film.

The movie is about a brash, honest, foolish bumpkin who is caught up in the politics of two warring villages. The rivalry between castes, which is a highlight of South Indian politics, has been etched out neatly.

The jail riot scenes remind you of Natural Born Killers vaguely but the jail set, actors and dialogues fit to the T. The capital punishment angle seems a tad bit forced into the movie as the movie doesn't really have anything to do with capital punishment apart from the cameo by a former Indian Judge. That apart, Virumaandi is one of the finest movies to have made it to Indian screens.

The Pros: Brilliant acting, Clever dialogues, Interesting narration, Good Music The Cons: Made for a very niche audience