Asal Review

He's the ultimate star and he sure has lived up to the name. Ajith is the man of the moment and he totally deserves to be. After a long time, Director Saran has offered us a true action movie. Perhaps the last talked about action movie was Kamal Haasan's starrer `Vettaiyaadu Vilaiyaadu' (VV) by Goutham Menon, though `Asal' is completely different from `VV'.

`Asal', the latest and classy flick by Sivaji Productions is a feast for all you Ajith's fans. This is the fourth movie by the Saran- Ajith- Bharadwaj trio, after Kadhal Mannan, Amarkkalam, and Attagasam. However, you won't find a trace of those movies in this. Saran has totally reformed his creativity in `Asal'. Along with screen play writer Yuhi Sethu and few vital inputs from Ajith himself, Saran has made a platter of serious action story in this movie.

Yuhi Sethu's writing skills and Saran's movie making skills probably have taken inspiration from a few famous Hollywood flicks and this is a `little' evident in the movie. The story narration can be correlated to many Hollywood gangster flicks that have come in the past.

Asal- the story is based in France, where most action has taken place. Talking about action, the car chase sequences in France designed by stunt master William Ong are sure to make you feel awe. Ajith's doing a double role in this movie after `Attagasam'.

He plays the father and son. Ajith as the father, is serious, composed and has done this role with elegance. Though you won't see him through out the movie, the senior Ajith's character would be resonant in your mind.

Lets move to the gist of the story now. The movie's all about Sons-Father relationship, Brother-Brother relationship and how evil forces enter to change their lives forever. Jeevanandham (Senior Ajith) is an arms manufacturer running the Eurasia Trading Company in Paris, and his consignments are mainly for defence purposes to countries and not to others. He has 3 sons. Shiva (the junior Ajith) and as his half brothers, the slowly growing actor Sampath and `Aahaa' Rajeev portray their wicked roles to perfection. A baddie Shetty played by Kelly Dorjee, who's a Don back in India has other plans. The other villain is Pradeep Rawat, who plays the role of the dreadful uncle to Jeevanandham's sons. How the brothers are pulled into the Don's web, how the uncle tries his evil pranks on them and how the junior Ajith saves wrap up this exciting flick.

Now, are we missing the ladies? Sameera Reddy after her brilliant performance in `Vaarnam Aayiram' is playing the role of the Cultural Attache in the Indian Consulate in Paris. She's doing a serious role as a diplomat, and it completely suits her. Dubbing for her by Chinmayi should definitely be commended. The other lady is Bhavana, who works for Prabhu back in India. Her innocent role keeps the audience in dilemma as to who ends up winning Ajith's love.

Giving company as character artistes are producer Prabhu as a friend of the Senior Ajith, and yesteryear hero Suresh as a French Police officer makes a comeback. The other characters for you to look out for are Yuhi Sethu and his accomplices; their raunchy comedy makes the hall have a healthy laugh.

Ajith's performance is admirable. He appears to be still under the hangover of `Billa' yet he has quite gracefully differentiated his characters as the father and son. Talking about characterization, Ajith is loaded with absolute style and has carried away his costumes to flawlessness. His clothing in this movie is simply superb. Although the cigar in his mouth conveys a wrong message to the youth and his fans, it completes the chic look.

Fight masters Kanal Kannan, Thalapathi Dinesh and Patrick Bruneton have all done a brilliant job and have made Ajith appear superior. The fight sequences are amazing, and director Saran has not shown much of blood shed.

Saran's hard work is obvious in the movie. But the length and the narration of the story could have been further sliced. In every other scene, dialogue writer Yuhi Sethu, has made fans of Ajith go ga-ga as Ajith's label Thala has been reiterated plenty of times. The movie has fared well in most departments, but the music has been a cropper. Music director Bharadwaj could have done better work as his combination with Ajith and Saran in the past has been remarkably successful.  But solace is offered from Prashanth D Misale, the cinematographer, who has shown us Paris so beautifully in the movie.

According to Asal's tag line "The Power of Silence", Ajith has limited dialogues but loaded with action and of course guns. The end product is a true offering for the die-hard Ajith fan.  If you are not a die-hard fan of Ajith, after watching `Asal', you'll unquestionably become one.

Asal - FANcy treat