Arrambam has a vague reference to Hollywood flick Swordfish. I wouldn’t call it a copy, but as most of our filmmakers like to say ‘I was inspired’, Arrambam falls in that category. It’s a story about one man (Ajith) who with the help of his team, attempts to bring down all those responsible for an ugly scam.
It’s not an extraordinary film. I don’t think any Indian superstar needs an intelligent film because most are content doing hero-worshiping scripts. Ajith is no exception in this regard. Arrambam is a stylish film with some good action sequences, and Ajith has pushed himself to the edge to give it his best shot. I don’t need to rave about it because regardless of whether you’re his fan or not, I’m sure you will like the action in the film.
The film has a good first half that pretty much keep you glued to your seats, but you can feel the boredom in the second half, which is merely aspiration and a result of bad screenplay. It was like writers ‘Subha’ didn’t have a clue how to take the story forward and try to keep us engaged.
In the cast department, Arya and Rana were good enough to be appreciated. Although they play minor roles, Vishnuvardhan has given equal credit to both. One particular scene between Ajith and Rana is worth looking forward to. Tapsee and Nayanthara are merely used as dolls with not much scope to perform.
Arrambam reeks of panache, heroism and lot of scenes that will make Ajith’s fans go crazy, but it doesn’t demand your attention. I would still revisit Mankatha, which I thought was made with style, wit and gusto.
Vishnuvardhan is a very aspirational director, who likes to place his heroes next to god, and expect audiences to worship. In the process, he compromises on churning out an interesting story. I think his best film still happens to be Pattiyal. Whatever he made after that including Billa was just an exercise of cashing in on the popularity of a star and giving in return a mediocre product. Even his Telugu film with Pawan Kalyan turned out to be a disaster.
I wouldn’t talk about the music because I didn’t even like a single track when I first heard the audio. I strongly feel the film could have been shortened by at least good 15 minutes. Is there a hard and fast rule that all films featuring stars need to be more than two and a half hours?
In essence, Arrambam is the beginning you wish had not started. It’s a highly aspirational film that’s hollow from the inside and flamboyant on the outside.
by Saumya Chowdary
