Arun Vijay is one talented actor who is long over due to come in to his own in Kollywood. After many sincere efforts 'Kuttram 23' could well be the solo break he has waited for.
The film opens with a priest murdered in a church after hearing the confession of a pregnant woman who is chased after by unknown men. Arun Vijay is the Assistant Commissioner who takes over the case of the missing girl whose husband has lodged a complaint. The only witness is Mahima Nambiar a kindergarten school teacher for whom the hero falls for. Meanwhile Arun Vijay’s brother Amit Bhargav’s wife too gets pregnant after six years of marriage. More pregnant women start committing suicides and it all leads to a large ring of medical crime and how Arun Vijay brings it down forms the rest of the screenplay.
Arun Vijay fits the role of a young AC to the T and has given one of his career best performances and he is excellent when he becomes a normal family man when interacting with his sister in law and family. He is one of the best action exponents in Kollywood and Stunt Silva has provided ample opportunities to show case his talent to the hilt. Abhinaya as the sister in law has once again given a credible performance as the girl pregnant after a long time who has to face an ugly situation. Mahima Nambiar has nothing much to do but is a pleasant presence in the proceedings. Thambi Ramaiah the bungling cop has one scene to redeem himself and he does it with élan when he takes charge to save Arun from a damaging situation. Arvind Akash as a ruthless killer is convincing while Vamsi Krishna in a confusing role only scores in the climax fight scene. The actress playing the fertility doctor is very well cast.
The biggest strength of 'Kuttram 23' is cinematographer Bhaskaran KM who dishes out one amazing visual after another which even hides some gaping loop holes in the script. Editor Bhuvan Srinivasan has complemented him with seamless cuts. Vishal Chandrasekhar has scored one duet and another lilting melody which are good on the ears and his BGM too is worth a mention. The story has been adapted from one of Rajesh Kumar’s novel and one can say that it is not going to win any awards in that category. Director Arivazhagan begins the film with a sperm finding its egg shown in graphics and ends it on a little girl and what happens in the middle is engaging with a lot happening and curiosity sustained.
On the downside, the cop does not use any brilliance to find the culprits and most of the mystery unravels by itself. In fact the audience guesses the medical connection well before the hero does. It is questionable whether some small time criminals can walk into an ACs house and murder so easily. Similarly there is a lack of a powerful antagonist and the fertility doctor and a psycho who wants to inseminate women are not so menacing. The blackmail angle is also far fetched and the murders and suicides are quite unconvincing.
Verdict : Its worth a watch for Arun Vijay's acting and the action.
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