I don't agree with Masand's review. Raavan is a good movie. It's not boring at any time.
It's not a fun entertaining film like 3 Idiots. But Raavan was great movie to watch Rahman has given awesome background score for this movie which is an experience in itself. This is a different, unique movie. I am planning to watch Tamil version next weekend. -- Anil On Sat, Jun 19, 2010 at 8:42 AM, Gopal Srinivasan <catchg...@gmail.com>wrote: > > > Masand: 'Raavan' is a bore of a film > [image: Rajeev Masand] > <http://ibnlive.in.com/byline/Rajeev+Masand.html>Rajeev > Masand <http://ibnlive.in.com/byline/Rajeev+Masand.html>, > CNN-IBN<http://ibnlive.in.com/agency/CNN-IBN.html> > Posted on *Jun 18, 2010 at 21:29* | Updated *Jun 19, 2010 at 00:23* > > [image: > Email]<http://ibnlive.in.com/news/masand-raavan-is-a-bore-of-a-film/124771-8-84.html> > [image: Print]<http://ibnlive.in.com/printpage.php?id=124771§ion_id=8> > 83Share<http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fibnlive.in.com%2Fnews%2Fmasand-raavan-is-a-bore-of-a-film%2F124771-8-84.html&t=Masand%3A%20'Raavan'%20is%20a%20bore%20of%20a%20film%20-%20Movies%20News%20-%20Masand's%20Verdict%20-%20ibnlive&src=sp> > *Free Movie > Previews*<http://googleads.g.doubleclick.net/aclk?sa=l&ai=BN7d3KjUcTOOaGo76lAe7_9WfC7D7t7kBuIPlsRTAjbcB8OYXEAEYASCoodQJKAI4AFC5iar6-f____8BYMnW84q0pNgPoAHCn-rqA7IBDmlibmxpdmUuaW4uY29tyAEB2gFNaHR0cDovL2libmxpdmUuaW4uY29tL25ld3MvbWFzYW5kLXJhYXZhbi1pcy1hLWJvcmUtb2YtYS1maWxtLzEyNDc3MS04LTg0Lmh0bWzIArTMvBCoAwHoA-gC6APiBugDDvUDAAAABA&num=1&sig=AGiWqtx-jHVyY0Bz20W-eqKGLJ0FfNB-4Q&client=ca-ibnlive_site_js&adurl=http://filmfanatic.mywebsearch.com/download/index.jhtml%3Fspu%3Dtrue%26partner%3DZ1xdm003> > Watch Full-Screen, High-Res Movie Clips & Trailers - Download Free! > FilmFanatic.MyWebSearch.com<http://googleads.g.doubleclick.net/aclk?sa=l&ai=BN7d3KjUcTOOaGo76lAe7_9WfC7D7t7kBuIPlsRTAjbcB8OYXEAEYASCoodQJKAI4AFC5iar6-f____8BYMnW84q0pNgPoAHCn-rqA7IBDmlibmxpdmUuaW4uY29tyAEB2gFNaHR0cDovL2libmxpdmUuaW4uY29tL25ld3MvbWFzYW5kLXJhYXZhbi1pcy1hLWJvcmUtb2YtYS1maWxtLzEyNDc3MS04LTg0Lmh0bWzIArTMvBCoAwHoA-gC6APiBugDDvUDAAAABA&num=1&sig=AGiWqtx-jHVyY0Bz20W-eqKGLJ0FfNB-4Q&client=ca-ibnlive_site_js&adurl=http://filmfanatic.mywebsearch.com/download/index.jhtml%3Fspu%3Dtrue%26partner%3DZ1xdm003> > Ads by > Google<http://www.google.com/url?ct=abg&q=https://www.google.com/adsense/support/bin/request.py%3Fcontact%3Dabg_afc%26url%3Dhttp://ibnlive.in.com/news/masand-raavan-is-a-bore-of-a-film/124771-8-84.html%26hl%3Den%26client%3Dca-ibnlive_site_js%26adU%3DFilmFanatic.MyWebSearch.com%26adT%3DFree%2BMovie%2BPreviews%26adU%3Dwww.NYFA.com%26adT%3DBachelor%2526%252339%253Bs%2Bin%2BFilm%26gl%3DUS%26hideleadgen%3D1&usg=AFQjCNF8DnZGE_f7Uch39u_6pNAYKl38eg> > > Cast: Abhishek Bachchan, Aishwarya Rai > > Director: Mani Ratnam > > Sitting in your seat watching Mani Ratnam's "Raavan" unfold before you, > is like craning your neck out of your car to catch a glimpse of the wreckage > in a road accident on the other side. Filled with a perverse sense of > curiosity, you can't take your eyes off the damage. > > Alas, "Raavan" - despite a relatively modest running time of 2 hours and > 10 minutes - is a crushing bore of a film, a disappointment on virtually > every count. > > In this rather literal adaptation of a slice of Hindu mythology, Ratnam > casts Abhishek Bachchan as feared outlaw Beera who kidnaps the local police > chief's feisty wife Ragini (played by Aishwarya Rai) in retaliation for a > crime against a loved one. The tough cop Dev (played by Tamil star Vikram) > sets out to get his wife back, making a journey into the dense forest, even > as Beera finds his heart melting for Ragini. > > Never one to paint his characters black or white, Ratnam gives both Dev > and Beera ambiguous character traits that make it hard to pigeonhole them as > entirely good or bad. So Raavan-figure Beera has a conscience that stops him > from having his way with Ragini although he desires her, and Ram-inspired > Dev is so hell-bent on achieving his goal that he will resort to deceit and > betrayal in order to get there. > > But what might have truly turned this film into a brave, daring effort is > a less 'darpok' handling of Ragini's change-of-heart towards Beera. While > she does soften considerably when she understands his provocation for > revenge, Ratnam never quite turns it into a Stockholm-syndrome situation > that might have made for a far stronger central conflict. As it currently > stands, "Raavan" is a predictable revenge drama that stays too safe to ever > surprise you. > > Despite some eye-watering camerawork and a stunning action piece in the > film's climax, the film -- especially its first half -- is a carelessly > edited mess of long scenes that make little sense when strung together. > Abhishek plays Beera as an eccentric, unpredictable fellow prone to sudden > outbursts; he channels Heath Ledger's Joker from "The Dark Knight", but > comes nowhere close to replicating a similar sinister charm. Aishwarya, > despite being the film's leading lady and the very cause of the film's > conflict, has nothing much to do. She's left to scream and shriek and hiss > and spit out her dialogue while looking lovely in every frame. > > Surprisingly, AR Rahman delivers his most uninspired score in years, which > probably explains why Ratnam wasn't inspired enough to shoot his songs as > innovatively as he usually does. > > The director sticks so faithfully to the "Ramayana" that we get > embarrassing scenes like the one in which the suspicious husband asks his > wife to take a polygraph test to prove her purity. Other portions, adapted > literally, include the humiliation of the Surpanakha character, which is > only marginally better handled. > > Of the cast, it's Ravi Kissen and Govinda, who play Beera and Dev's > right-hand men respectively, who stand out with the film's most engaging > performances. Both men, particularly Ravi Kissen, make flesh-and-blood > characters out of their parts, investing them with sincerity and dodging > stereotypes at every turn. Vikram, meanwhile, oozes screen presence but is > shortchanged with cardboard characterization, and pretty much spends the > entire film chasing after Beera in slo-mo, sporting trendy Ray Bans. > > Burdened with pedestrian dialogue and too conventional a screenplay, > "Raavan" is painfully dull and fails to engage at any level. I'm going with > one-and-a-half out of five for Mani Ratnam's "Raavan". It's too simplistic > a film from a director whose biggest strength used to be his multilayered > relationships. > > > l
