Raayan

Just watched "Raayan", marks Dhanush's second directorial venture, where he excels in both execution and performance. The meticulously choreographed action sequences offer a visual treat, AR Rahman's music elevates the tension in this modern action-thriller.

However, the writing department seemed to have large room for improvement, particularly in the conflicts between brothers, which feel lackluster, the villain arc, especially for a performer like SJ Surya, seemed underdeveloped, diminishing the overall impact the story could have delivered, making the film a one-time watch for its impressive performances and technical brilliance.

It all starts with anticipation. Dhanush sets the tone, the plot, the characters, and the setting with ease; he's learnt from the best. Plus, nobody needs to tell him how to act, right? Well, yeah, right, but the film doesn't only start with anticipation, it ends with it. An eager audience shuffling in, with a tired one shuffling out. Raayan definitely starts strong, with powerful cinematography, as cinematographer Om Prakash shines with a gritty and dark take on Northern Chennai. While it is a plot point that has been done before, we don't feel as though it's a copy, simply a shade of a rehashed story.

Starting with the performances, they're beyond criticism. Dushara Vijayan stars in a rural dialect, playing a character similar to hers in Saarpatta. Sundeep Kishan, Kalidas, and Aparna Balamurali - I have no qualms, the young men never fail to amaze, and as for Balamurali, she's been the brightest of sparks in every film, regardless of how dull the script can tend to be. In the case of Dhanush, playing a tight lipped role similar to that of which we've seen in Nobody, he portrays everything flawlessly. So, if they can all act well, and of course, the script isn't torturous, then we're all good right? Wrong. The lack of villainy, and the resounding dull atmosphere, almost repeated like a broken radio, leaves the audience craving more - me especially. At times, I remember checking my watch in anticipation of dinner, as frankly, that was more exciting than watching Dhanush and crew walking down an alleyway to an unimpressive A. R. Rahman score for the umpteenth time.

Perhaps over-criticism is the bane of this film's existence, but perhaps Dhanush has released something unworthy of a second-time watch - rare for his stellar filmography. While drab, it's definitely worth a watch (if, of course, we lower our expectations to the ground). To sum up, the film holds its ground, barely, but surely. It suffers from a stellar cast and crew attempting to make the most out of a lacklustre script.

I'd recommend watching this film with an open mind, then forming your negative opinions afterwards, as I have, since you'll surely have many.

Action-gangster-dramas tend to follow a pattern of origins-rise-conflict-resolution, and Raayan is no different. It, in fact, has a fantastic first half. There is style oozing in every frame, and Dhanush the director takes precedence here, over the writer and performer. Some interesting-yet-familiar conflicts are established, and it gave off the feeling that the Dhanush the writer may at least have a few tricks up his sleeve in the second half (this is such an Indian movie thing - the whole first-half second-half breakdown, i.e.). But then, the writing is really loose; twists happen for the sake of twists - nothing much makes sense. The style quotient still remains on the higher side - the music (Rahman in GOAT mode), the edits (GK Prasanna), and the cinematography (Om Prakash) are top notch. I strongly believe Dhanush benefited from working with his regular collaborators, and that's visible in the film's audio-visual output.

Dushara Vijayan gets a meaty role and she even gets a fantastic set piece in the second half. However, the writing of almost every character (except the protagonist) is two-dimensional, and this includes the primary antagonist played by SJ Suryah. He brings in the eccentric mannerisms (that we didn't get to see in Indian 2), but the writing doesn't elevate him to a major threat. The metaphor of a wolf in the jungle is used to good effect, though I like to believe some Selvaraghavan interventions in the script could've helped. The brothers, played by Kalidas and Sundeep, are also well portrayed, even when their parts are badly written in the second half. Overall, it's still a fine effort from D, the director.

Good attempts but failed to touch.

Honestly it was getting in to the life but then slipped again.

No matter what, its always a pleasant experience to watch Dhanush's acting.

The side role guys were good enough but I think the story lacked what required to be a punch in the stomach it was kinda like a facepalm. But I didn't find anything that will make me want to whistle at any scene for the movie. But again there were no place where I felt bored too much to sleep. It was kinda same but it made me feel a bit different. Different enough to watch it thoroughly.

Its about struggle of an elder sibling to be a family man and support and love his family but fate had a different plan and they got stumbled in a clash between 2 rival gangster group. The movie is all about how a brother attempt to save his sister.

RATED 6/10 Language: Tamil Source: nil

The cast, production and all technical aspects are perfect. But failed to connect the character and emotion to audience with the writings. The sentiment sequences, action blocks are crafted very well, but as a WHOLE movie it failed miserably.

Looks like all characters are in confused state in second half. There are lot of decisions taken by character just to move the story towards climax, in real/cinematic life no one will do such actions/decisions.

Compared to this second half, the first half was better. Even the great interval block failed to give goosebumps, as that block is so illogical.

Failed to impress, even if you lower your expectations.