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Friday, April 19, 2024
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TAMIL THILLU MULLU
EDITOR'S PICK
`Thillu
Mullu`: Half-hearted tribute to the original (Tamil Movie Review)
Rating: **1/2
Based on the 1981 Tamil comedy "Thillu Mullu", comes the new version
of the film with the same name that appears to be a half-hearted tribute to the
original.
One of the glaring differences between the two versions is the treatment of
comedy. While in the original it was sensible and funny, it is loud and
commercial in the remake. Despite a few rib-tickling moments between Shiva and
Prakash Raj, "Thillu Mullu" suffers due to extended running time and
skewed screenplay.
In search of a job to support his sister and find a groom for her, Pasupathy
(Shiva) lands in the office of Shivagurunathan (Prakash Raj), chairman of a
water purification company. With his obedience and piousness, Pasupathy wins
over Shivagurunathan and eventually lands a job as marketing head.
Pasupathy is not the same man when he steps out of the office. He smokes, drinks
and occasionally gets involved in bar brawls. When Shivagurunathan comes to
learn about his original identity, Pasupathy`s job is at stake.
To save his job being terminated, he convinces his boss that he must have
mistaken him with his cat-eyed twin brother, who is exactly opposite to him in
behaviour - rebellious and uncivilized.
The rest of the story is all about how Pasupathy continues to fool his boss
without blowing his own cover. Will Shivagurunathan ever come to know about
Pasupathy`s hidden identity? This forms the climax.
Some of the best moments and lines are between Shiva and Prakash Raj in the
film. Barring these moments, rest of the scenes don`t evoke laughter. In fact,
it turns annoying, especially scenes involving Kovai Sarla, who seems to be
getting louder with each movie.
Sequences in the original were genuinely funny and never forced you to laugh.
The remake fails miserably on this front as it attempts to make every single
line as witty as possible with cliched references.
Shiva and Prakash Raj shoulder the film with equal responsibility. I believe
they were brilliant in their respective roles, but hardly do they get any
support from the rest of the cast.
Isha Talwar, though, in her limited screen time, did her best to get noticed and
I think she succeeded.
Never ending second half and extended climax bores the audience.
"Thillu Mullu" would have been even more enjoyable if the running time
would have been shortened. Nevertheless, it was an entertaining watch.
''Thillu Mullu'' Audio Lanch in Geneva Stills