After a reasonable comedy in Aambala (2015) and a well-narrated film like Paayum Puli (2015) I was expecting good cinemas from Vishal, but he has disappointed with Marudhu (2016), and I haven’t seen Kathakali (2016). The first visual you see in Marudhu is of the casting of billhook, indicating clearly this is a full and full fight movie with lots of blood. It turned out to be accurate, in fact, there is nothing else in the film other than fight scenes. Vishal has really developed his psyche very well and doesn’t hide it in the film.
Vishal is an uneducated and a local porter in Rajapalayam lorry depot, who is a young firebrand who stands up wherever atrocities are committed, in one such encounter he opposes a local gangster and Municipality Chairman. The villain Rolex Pandian (played by R.K.Suresh) is the hitman of a wealthy businessman Bailwan played by veteran Radha Ravi, gets a big build-up initially but fizzles out as a dummy. Soori, is Vishal’s friend and (cousin) brother and surprisingly delivered a watchable performance, with no irritating dialogues or monotonous accent. Sri Divya is the daughter of a lawyer fighting to get the killer of his wife punished. I fail to understand why in Tamil cinema a firebrand has to be a blue-collar worker, that too a porter and how educated heroines will fall in love with such a character.
In the first 1 hour of the film, you get a feeling that you have been slapped many times, that is because every character on screen keeps beating every other character.
விஷால், ஸ்ரீ திவ்யா – மருது (2016)
The actress Kulappulli Leela who plays Vishal‘s grandma (Appathaa) is the film’s star, she has delivered a brilliant grounded performance. Nothing more to say about the movie other than that it had more sickles, hooks and blood for my liking.