Dharani waves his magic wand again. And the audience is literally spell-bound! Like his earlier hits, Gilli too has managed to hit bullseye at the box-office, placing Dharani at the top of the BANKABLE directors list! Something that would give ManiRathnam a COMPLEX! What’s so special about his movies that the audience just flock the theatres and come out smiling? Let’s find out.
Dharani’s first film was a FORGETTABLE effort that starred Mammooty, Napoleon that faded without a trace. It tried to portray Veerapan and his bandits gang, but the result was more tacky, even shabby than real! Then came Dhil! The movie that changed it all....the movie that catapulted Vikram to Stardom and established Dharani as someone who could reverse his fortune given the right opportunity.
Then came Dhool. The film that elevated Vikram to SUPER STARDOM and put Dharani among names like Cheran, Shankar and other established Directors. Since I didn’t write about Dhool, let me squeeze in a mini-review. The story goes like this.....a villager comes to the city to ask for some facilities from a minister who got elected from his constituency, only to find that the minister is busy siphoning money and doing illegal stuff thanks to the goons who support him. Our Hero decides to teach bloody minister a lesson and goes about clipping all his powers one by one....and finally kills the bad guy.
Dhool was a classic case of the Style triumphing over Substance. To be frank, the story was nothing but BOLONEY packaged so neatly that the masses lapped up to it instantly. The second half defied ALL Logic and got Increasingly Stupid as Time Passed. Still, the movie met with Roaring Success, which reassured Dharani that the audience are NOT in a mood to watch some Sensible Cinema.
Thus, my friends, he set out to make Gilli, supposed to be a remake of the Telugu blockbuster Okkadu. Having had a bitter experience with Dhool, I didn’t rush for it, but when I realised that the movie was well on it’s way to becoming another Hit, I couldn’t resist the temptation of watching it, atleast on VCD. Did the movie meet my Expectations? Lets find out.
Gilli is, as I aptly mentioned in the title of my review, a MASALA flick interspersed with Loads of Songs, Fights, but misses the Most Important Ingredient that makes any film believable, and thats LOGIC. Right from the first scene, you know what to expect from this film. And what the film expects from you. All of Dharani’s films come with a WARNING attached that say ’’LEAVE YOUR BRAINS SECURE AT HOME!’’.
Gilli tells the story of our hero, rather SUPER HERO ?Vijay?, who jogs around the city in attire that would suit Terrorists better, and is adept at all kinds of fights, be it the usual Dishoom-Dishoom, the latest Matrix style Flying Kicks, or even the Jackie Chan ?Leaping Between Roof-tops? style!!! And to top it all, he?s a Kabaddi Kid. The story, better termed as Boloney, takes a twist as our Hero heads off to Madurai for a Kabaddi competition. Wat abt studies, u might ask? Well, apart from a few scenes that show the hero holding a book in his hand, there?s no sight of studies or anything remotely associated with that.
Anyways, once in Madurai, he?s back to his Jogging routine, and as he covers all the streets, he notices our Damsel in Distress ?Trisha? being harassed by Villain in Distress ?PrakashRaj?. Thanks to his Incredible talents, he punches Villain all the way to the electric post and rushes off with her. Villain gang follows. The next 45 minutes show our hero driving All Around the Countryside with beautiful damsel, trying various ingenious ways to escape from the clutches of the Gang. Alas, they?re surrounded, and to make things even more interesting, our hero decides to use Damsel as Bait to escape and drives back to Chennai.
So much for Kabaddi! He also obliges by letting Damsel stay in his own house without letting his parents know a thing. Coming to parents, his father (played rather well by Ashish Vidyarthi) is a Police Officer whose house looks more like a Bungalow with penthouses and what not!!
I?m sure u don?t wanna know what happens next. It?s the same old wine in a new bottle. And all that talk about the screenplay moving at Rocket-Speed, its nothing but taking everything for granted that allows Dharani to write such screenplays!
Now, coming to the crucial question :
What made this film click with the masses?
Firstly, the presence of Heavyweights like Dharani, Vijay, Trisha was more than enough to bring in the crowds. Our Tamil Audience is game for Star Power and our Producers know it, so they rope in Hit Stars to make sure the movie doesn?t sink in ANY CASE!
Secondly, the MUSIC by Vidyasagar, the Choreography, Cinematography, and the way the songs have been Picturised is BRILLIANT. Especially worth mentioning is the song on the terrace ?Kokro Kokroko?. I just LOVE THAT SONG!!!!
Thirdly, the Performances.
Vijay, who bounced back with Thirumalai, plays his role with Effortless Ease. He?s back alright but still has some way to go before he bags an Award. This year belongs to Surya and Perazhagan is going to fetch him wat he has waited for!
Trisha too looks like a MILLION bucks and does some decent acting whenever required.
Prakash Raj though comes out WINNER with a role that offers him more room to experiment with tone, mannerisms and much more! We all knew he?s versatile, and he proves that point yet again!
And finally, I don?t wanna be rude or offensive, but the Tamil Audience nowadays seems to prefer MINDLESS flicks more than anything else!! Why else would a SUPER DUD like ?Run? run to packed houses, while a Superb Movie like Anbe Sivam failed to find many takers? I agree that the audience wants to relieve themselves of the tension of everyday life, but why encourage such Stupid Movies? These movies don?t deserve anything but DOOM!!
Gilli though not as Bad as ?Run? or ?Dhool?, is nothing Special. Watch it at your own Risk!!