Warning: Spoilers Alert

The following article is by a user and is not IndiaGlitz's take towards anyone or anything. Written by Bharath Vijayakumar

For starters Mounaguru is very different from the fares that we are used to in Tamil cinema. Director Shantakumar deserves applause far not succumbing to the pressures of commercial cinema. Thrillers are a rarity in Tamil Cinema. And more so is a well made one. Most of them try to include commercial elements thereby compromising on the pace of the movie. Even in the recently released Muran we had an item number thrown in. But Shantakumar has steered clear of all that.

Plot:

Karunakaran (Arulnidhi) is a normal college going student who often gets into trouble for his forthright boldness .Four corrupt cops commit a crime and as fate would have it, Karunakaran who has nothing to do with this, inadvertently gets into the picture. Whether he is able to get out of the quagmire that he is in is narrated as realistically as it can get. The film surprises you many a time. There is not even an iota of heroism (of the kind that we are used to in Indian Cinema) in Karunakaran's characterization. He is as helpless as any of us would be in such a situation. This is exactly where Mounaguru stands apart from the crowd. This is also exactly where the film scores. The 20 minutes leading to intermission is particularly riveting.

Performance:

Arulnidhi made a decent debut in Vamsam and then did Udhayan that sank without a trace. This time around the young man impresses us with his choice of story selection. But he should work a lot harder in emoting and voice modulation. That said the character of Karunakaran who is basically an introvert suits him well. John Vijay, Madhu, Balakrishnan and Krishnamurthy are brilliant in their portrayal of corrupt policemen. So natural is their performance that you really want to hurt them as the narration unfolds. Uma Riyaz as the sincere police official investigating the case puts in a restrained yet powerful performance. Murugadoss(the guy who played Dhanush's friend in Aadukalam) as the hero's mentally disabled friend makes his mark in a short but significant role .After the impressive "Vaagai Sooda Vaa" Iniya does not have much to do in this movie. But she puts up a neat performance within the space provided.

Technical team:

The movie has only three songs and one of them features in the opening credits. Thaman's background score with more emphasis on silence enhances the eerie feel of the movie. Mahesh Muthuswami's camerawork is noteworthy. The entire technical team of Mounaguru needs to be lauded for the feel that movie maintains throughout it's running time.

Bottom-line:

Ventures like Mounaguru needs to be welcomed with both arms. Mounaguru may not appeal to all. But for those who have an appetite for realistic thrillers that does not compromise on logic this one is definitely a feast. Don't miss it!

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