RAAVAN Movie Review (All Members+Critics Reviews) - Page 15

What a disaster, Sirji!

Such a pity, the much-awaited 'Dus Sarwalla' turned out to be an unmitigated disaster! If only Mani Sir had made better use of his own 'sar', perhaps 'Raavan' would have fared better. A friend from Bangalore sent me a message that was pretty telling, when I mentioned I was watching the movie that evening. " Do take a torch and a good book with you, dear," Prasad advised. I got the message but ignored him, telling myself ( as countless Ratnam fans must have ), nothing Mani attempts can be all that bad. In fact, Mani doesn't fall into the 'mediocre' category - even at his most uninspired. That's his genius. I hope this garbled and confused movie does not permanently tarnish the reputation of one of our most talented film makers. Simply put, it is a bloody bore. Too long, too tedious and too pointless. As for the performances , poor Abhishek dives down nose first in the very first scene – he doesn't come up for air after that. Not his fault ( I'm partial !). He is just such a loveable, good natured sort of chap, one just doesn't associate brutality and violence with someone like him. And if his dark side is meant to hit audiences between the eyes, it seems childish to underline the point via black make up smeared all over his face and body, just in case we dummies don't get the point. Between assorted face packs of haldi, ash ( not his beauteous wife, but 'raakh'), keechad and other muck, this Ravan ( Beera) grins goofily through his evil deeds and seems incapable of hurting a makhhi'. Meanwhile, it is Dev ( Ram, played by Mr. Scowl), who does little more than glower into the camera, his expression disappointingly blank thanks to those strange brown cosmetic lenses ( the sort starlets use for portfolio pics). No wonder his lovely wife ( Ragini alias Sita ) makes cow eyes at Raavan and treats the besotted villain to glimpses of her creamy cleavage to torment and tempt the man further.
Forget all that Naxalite-waxalite, Aryan-Dravidian, Good Vs. Evil conflict or symbolism. Mani can't seem to make up his mind about far more elementary issues – where the hell is the movie located and who are those strange looking tribals? Sometimes, the crowd scenes feature buxom village belles with streaked hair , super sexy backless cholis, city make-up, like extras from a Bhojpuri film. At other times the same bunch is dressed in sack cloth, but with colour coordinated accessories. Aishwarya's iridescent beauty is exploited in close- up after close- up, while her jungle make up goes from just mascara and the perfect lipglossed pout, to heavy duty eyeliner and blush on. But at least the make up is waterproof. Which is a good thing, since almost the entire film is shot under lashings of rain or a waterfall. As for the divine Ash's performance – what can she do if her director has her gagged (literally!) through most of the film? Worse, any self respecting heroine would also have lapsed into stupefied silence had she been forced to wear what must rank as the worst costumes ever! Sabyasachi…. really!!! First you do it to poor Vidya. And now Ash.
Moral of the story : One head is better than ten.

June 22, 2010, (Sawf News) - Raavan is soaring with weekend box office collections of Rs 68 crore worldwide, claims Reliance Big Entertainment, the film's global distributor.

The difference in perceptions could be because Reliance includes the tax collection in its projections, something Boxofficeindia.com doesn't do.

There has to be something really flawed about a film which is based on Ramayana, has Mani Ratnam at the helm of affairs, stars the Bachchan couple, boasts of music by A.R. Rahman and has the who's who from the technical department. Still, Raavan hasn't worked with the audience. We analyse why!

Boring narrative?
Everyone understands that Ramayana was about the triumph of good over evil. As an audience you are prepared to see what is going to unfold. But pray, why make it all so boring? This is where Raavan falters because a one-dimensional storyline just doesn't translate into a two hour film, which could hold your attention. All one gets to see is every actor in the film getting wet in the jungle and slipping or running through the rough terrain.