When Vikram and Pa. Ranjith came together, there was a certain sense of excitement in the air. And when they came together with the first visuals of Thangalaan, a film set in the pre-independence era, it broke through as one of the most exciting films to come by.
Thangalaan comes off as a story where an oppressed community is the one working to dig gold out of the ‘real KGF’, and how they come across major challenges and problems in their path. Above the English rule and caste discriminations, they face a bigger threat in the form of a sorceress named Aarathi (Malavika Mohanan), who guards a gold mine from those it does not actually belong to. And now it is time for Thangalaan (Vikram) to break through the forces and win his way for his people.
The first half of Thangalaan sets the tone very well and presents us a proper look into the ideals of the characters and the world in which they operate. The film has a few missteps in terms of its pacing issues and has a few forced elements that it could have done away with, but still keeps us engaged through the characters and the action sequences. It is only in the second half that the film stutters and there is hardly anything going for it, and we have the same point being repeated over and over again. Despite a climax surprise that could work for some, Thangalaan ends up as a passable film, mainly due to its second half which is mostly flat.
The film ranks up high thanks to Chiyaan Vikram’s performance, who is once again excellent in a role that only he could do with so much perfection.
Ranjith has efficiently used the actor’s prowess to his best potential, and the second in command is GV Prakash who is on point with his background score and songs. GVP provides an international score to the film, which also gets good support from Malavika Mohanan and Parvathy.
Technically too, Thangalaan is great with the cinematography, set work and the editing being on point. The only factor rests with Ranjith who could have definitely used his resources better had he had a compelling story in hand.
Thangalaan could turn out to be a good watch for those looking for a Tamil parallel to international cinema, but it will find it a bit hard to satisfy those who are looking for an engaging movie watching experience. Vikram, GVP and the technical strength take it through.