‘Rocky’ film evaluation: Arun Matheshwaran pronounces his arrival with a bloody good revenge drama

A large shot. A automobile is within the centre of the body. Rocky (Vasanth Ravi) stands subsequent to it. There are sickle- and knife-wielding males at one finish. There are sickle- and knife-wielding males on the different finish too. There’s nowhere to go. Rocky is checkmated. Or so we predict till Rocky — no, I cannot break this second for you. You must watch it; watch it and be gobsmacked. You must watch it to expertise the exhilaration of a movie that’s more likely to be the speak of the city within the subsequent few days or perhaps weeks, maybe.

Additionally learn | Get ‘First Day First Present’, our weekly e-newsletter from the world of cinema, in your inbox. You can subscribe for free here

The movie is not only about this climactic second. Shot after shot, scene after scene, Rocky, with its very good writing and even higher staging, retains hitting you. It’s not possible to not be knocked out by its brilliance.

Arun Matheshwaran’s first movie might be among the many finest first movies of Tamil cinema. Sadly, there weren’t many individuals within the multiplex corridor in Coimbatore the place I watched the movie. Arun, maybe, is accustomed to this preliminary lukewarm response. The primary movie through which he labored as an assistant director acquired an identical reception however later developed a cult following. Bear in mind Aaranya Kaandam?

A couple of issues about Arun Matheshwaran’s filmmaking are harking back to Thiagarajan Kumararaja (whom he calls his “boss”). Particularly the cheeky humour. For instance, the right-hand males of ganglords are normally known as ‘valadhu kai’ (proper hand). However, on this movie, Rocky calls him ‘valadhu kottai’ (proper testicle). There’s yet another shot involving testicles that’s deliciously darkish and hilarious — it deservedly bought a standing ovation from a number of members of the viewers. In one other scene, a person slits one other’s throat as a peppy SPB Telugu music performs within the background.

‘Spirit of Tarantino’

The spirit of Quentin Tarantino can also be unmissable. The movie, as an example, is segmented into chapters, and every chapter has a title written in massive font. In a single scene, Rocky talks about God earlier than continuing to butcher a man’s head with a hammer which jogged my memory of Jules Winnfield (Samuel L Jackson) quoting Ezekiel 25:17 earlier than spraying bullets onto a person’s torso.

It’s comprehensible if this darkish, violent, and humorous neo-noir motion drama evokes a little bit of Tarantino and Kumararaja. However, surprisingly, a number of elements within the movie additionally jogged my memory of Terrence Mallick’s Tree of Life. Arun is unafraid (or indulgent sufficient) to veer into an arthouse zone. There’s a black-and-white shot of the protagonist standing in the course of shallow waters, a mirror. In reality, about 40 per cent of the movie is in black-and-white.

Shreyaas Krishna’s camerawork is splendid; the body, the sunshine, and the color intensify the drama unfolding on the display. There’s a explicit struggle sequence whereby Rocky takes on a number of henchmen in an under-construction multi-storey constructing at night time. The henchmen run in the direction of Rocky and get killed — certainly one of them is thrown off from the second ground to loss of life. A protracted, steady shot is employed in order that we get to see three flooring, lit in neon pink and blue, the place the whole thing of the motion unfolds. Slowly, we see that that is the standpoint of the antagonist, Manimaran (performed by an excellent Bharathiraja). It is likely one of the finest shot motion sequences in Tamil cinema ever.

Arun and Shreyaas use numerous lengthy takes that immerses us into the world of Rocky, and Darbuka Siva’s minimal background helps an amazing deal too. In one of many ugly struggle scenes, the place Rocky smashes folks’s heads with a hammer, Siva makes use of veena and mridangam! (Maybe ‘ugly’ is a redundant adjective right here as a result of Rocky is the form of man who doesn’t simply kill, he butchers you, tears open your torso, removes your intestines and garlands you with it.)

Additionally Learn | ‘Rocky’ actor Vasanth Ravi speaks on the revenge drama

Vasanth Ravi delivers a nice efficiency as Rocky, who’s a little bit of an enigmatic character. He contemplates so much, like a poet, about time, life, and destiny. He desires to get away from violence after serving a 17-year sentence (a lot in order that he has even given up meat as a result of it includes the violent taking away of an animal’s life). However when provoked, he’ll reduce your tongue and smash your head with a hammer. Vasanth’s brooding, chilly eyes, scraggly beard, and quiet manner lend this enigmatic high quality to Rocky.

Bharathiraja as Manimaran is good as nicely. He was nice because the villain in Aayutha Ezhuthu, however his efficiency is a tad bit higher this time round. Manimaran is pushed by vengeance however doesn’t let rage cloud his considering, and Bharathiraja, together with his baritone and confident presence, conveys that he’s not a person you wish to mess with. Reena Ravi (as Amudha), Rohini (as Malli), and the opposite supporting characters have finished a nice job too.

Revenge dramas have existed for generations in Tamil cinema. There are scores of fine and dangerous ones. However Rocky will in all probability be among the many finest, as a result of it’s spectacularly bloody and poetic on the identical time.

Rocky is at present enjoying in theatres