Time travel has always fascinated man for centuries and extensive movies have been made in several languages depicting the complex and confusing concept of travelling back and forth through time. Even the Tamil audience are not new to the concept of Time Travel as clearly explained and shown in the successful comedy Sci-fi 'Indru,Netru, Naalai'. But, what happens when the time machine is desired to be in possession by a depraved, unconscionable and an utterly diabolical person? It's not only hell that will break loose but also heaven as well!
After a string of fine performances yet badly misfiring films like Maatran, Anjaan or Mass engira Maasilamani, 24 is Surya's redeemer to what he had lost in his previous 3 outings - A Good Script! . He simply sparkles and sizzles through all the roles with elan and panache especially the spine-chilling Athreya.
The director wastes no time in coming to the story straight away without any deviations or circumlocutions in his screenplay. Dr. Sethu is experimenting on a device in his lab with which one can tinker and navigate through time. He also accomplishes the Project 24 - where you can mess up with time up to 24 hours. Like every doting and caring wife, Nithya Menen warns her husband to discontinue the project as it might harm them and their child, Mani. Unfortunately, it is more than harm. They end up losing their lives in the process because of the terrifying and monstrous Athreya - Sethu's twin brother. Did Mani escape? Does he get to know his father's groundbreaking invention? Despite his cripple, will Athreya find out the existence of Mani's presence? What happens after that? Thes rest of the complicated story is loaded with enough twists and turns that will definitely keep the audience involved and engaged till the end credits.
Surya has gone beyond the call of duty in his portrayal of Athreya. We saw glimpses of his negative shade in "Perazhagan" where he simply kills with his eyes! However, in 24, Surya explores the full depth and dimension of the negative persona as Athreya in a thoroughly mind-boggling manner. Just head to the nearest theatre to immerse yourself in the Athreya experience. Such is the remarkable performance of Surya!
Saranya Ponvannan does more than enough justice to her role as a mother who did not marry for Mani's sake and who hadn't seen her own kith and kin for 26 years just to keep her promise intact to Dr. Sethu. She still manages to bring a tear or two in the eyes whenever she plays the mom's role! Samantha is as ever drop dead gorgeous but she could have been utilized further especially with a notable talking point of the film that her family doesn't speak on Fridays upto 6pm. In such an interesting narrative, this great piece of idea is worth a gold mine yet it is literally wasted. It could have been taken advantage and brought to full effective action for a much bigger twist in the movie instead of the speed breaking songs. Though the BGM is completely in sync with the mood of the movie especially the scenes involving Athreya, AR Rahman's music is a big let down when compared to his other masterpieces. 24 would have been racier sans the songs though the exotic locales were a treat to watch!
The director really showed his mettle and prowess in handling such a complex subject without making anyone to scratch their heads. He really deserves a pat on the back! What about us? I can hear the camera man and the VFX team bellowing vociferously and unanimously. Cool guys. The last is always reserved for the best. Right from the first scene where Dr. Sethu's mansion is showed till the last scene, the visuals were lavish, stunning and mesmerizing. 24's goes up one level above simply because of the cinematographer's breathtaking work behind the camera.
Sometimes, the beautiful cinematography would be let down by terrible and substandard VFX. It was not to be the case with 24. The VFX team have worked tirelessly and seamlessly to bring the director's dream ideation onto the big screen in a very elegant and captivating manner.
So, only positives and no negatives? Oh yes.There is. The romantic scenes between Surya and Samantha is a bit overdone. The first time funny dialogue "Nan oru watch mechanic. Enaku Idhellam Sahajam" (I am watch mechanic. This is a piece of cake for me!) really gets under your skin and drives you crazy beyond a certain point when it is laboriously repeated to boredom by Mani. However, the positives are so much in 24 that these trivialities can be ignored when considering the larger picture.
24 is the rare breed of Sci-fi Tamil movie which is like a bolt out of the blue in Kollywood. The marvel of the film's wondrous nature can be magnificently seen on the big screen instead of "India tholai katchigalil mudhal muraiyaga" (For the first time on Indian TV!).
Signing off with easily the best and beast of a scene in the movie that happens to be my personal favorite too - Surya finds out that he can go back in time when he activates the device. He plays with the keys and discovers that in addition to hiking a journey back in time, he can also freeze time. It was indeed a splendiferous and a moment to behold in 24 when Surya experiments with freezing the time option and creates a temporary willing suspension of disbelief by playfully indulging luxuriantly with the suspended rain drops. It is a scene worth repeated watching many times instead of the soul-destroying one-liner!
The director wastes no time in coming to the story straight away without any deviations or circumlocutions in his screenplay. Dr. Sethu is experimenting on a device in his lab with which one can tinker and navigate through time. He also accomplishes the Project 24 - where you can mess up with time up to 24 hours. Like every doting and caring wife, Nithya Menen warns her husband to discontinue the project as it might harm them and their child, Mani. Unfortunately, it is more than harm. They end up losing their lives in the process because of the terrifying and monstrous Athreya - Sethu's twin brother. Did Mani escape? Does he get to know his father's groundbreaking invention? Despite his cripple, will Athreya find out the existence of Mani's presence? What happens after that? Thes rest of the complicated story is loaded with enough twists and turns that will definitely keep the audience involved and engaged till the end credits.
Surya has gone beyond the call of duty in his portrayal of Athreya. We saw glimpses of his negative shade in "Perazhagan" where he simply kills with his eyes! However, in 24, Surya explores the full depth and dimension of the negative persona as Athreya in a thoroughly mind-boggling manner. Just head to the nearest theatre to immerse yourself in the Athreya experience. Such is the remarkable performance of Surya!
Saranya Ponvannan does more than enough justice to her role as a mother who did not marry for Mani's sake and who hadn't seen her own kith and kin for 26 years just to keep her promise intact to Dr. Sethu. She still manages to bring a tear or two in the eyes whenever she plays the mom's role! Samantha is as ever drop dead gorgeous but she could have been utilized further especially with a notable talking point of the film that her family doesn't speak on Fridays upto 6pm. In such an interesting narrative, this great piece of idea is worth a gold mine yet it is literally wasted. It could have been taken advantage and brought to full effective action for a much bigger twist in the movie instead of the speed breaking songs. Though the BGM is completely in sync with the mood of the movie especially the scenes involving Athreya, AR Rahman's music is a big let down when compared to his other masterpieces. 24 would have been racier sans the songs though the exotic locales were a treat to watch!
The director really showed his mettle and prowess in handling such a complex subject without making anyone to scratch their heads. He really deserves a pat on the back! What about us? I can hear the camera man and the VFX team bellowing vociferously and unanimously. Cool guys. The last is always reserved for the best. Right from the first scene where Dr. Sethu's mansion is showed till the last scene, the visuals were lavish, stunning and mesmerizing. 24's goes up one level above simply because of the cinematographer's breathtaking work behind the camera.
Sometimes, the beautiful cinematography would be let down by terrible and substandard VFX. It was not to be the case with 24. The VFX team have worked tirelessly and seamlessly to bring the director's dream ideation onto the big screen in a very elegant and captivating manner.
So, only positives and no negatives? Oh yes.There is. The romantic scenes between Surya and Samantha is a bit overdone. The first time funny dialogue "Nan oru watch mechanic. Enaku Idhellam Sahajam" (I am watch mechanic. This is a piece of cake for me!) really gets under your skin and drives you crazy beyond a certain point when it is laboriously repeated to boredom by Mani. However, the positives are so much in 24 that these trivialities can be ignored when considering the larger picture.
24 is the rare breed of Sci-fi Tamil movie which is like a bolt out of the blue in Kollywood. The marvel of the film's wondrous nature can be magnificently seen on the big screen instead of "India tholai katchigalil mudhal muraiyaga" (For the first time on Indian TV!).
Signing off with easily the best and beast of a scene in the movie that happens to be my personal favorite too - Surya finds out that he can go back in time when he activates the device. He plays with the keys and discovers that in addition to hiking a journey back in time, he can also freeze time. It was indeed a splendiferous and a moment to behold in 24 when Surya experiments with freezing the time option and creates a temporary willing suspension of disbelief by playfully indulging luxuriantly with the suspended rain drops. It is a scene worth repeated watching many times instead of the soul-destroying one-liner!
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