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Manmathan
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'Manmathan' Racy thriller pillared with brilliant performances

By P. Sreekumaran
Film critic, ApunKaChoice.Com

Are you a fan of thriller movies? If the answer is in the affirmative, then you will immensely enjoy the A. J. Murugan-directed Manmathan. It has all the ingredients that go into the successful making of a thriller: racy narration, top-class editing and slick direction. The icing on the cake is a stunning performance from Silambarasan in a double role.

Add to it the excellent camera work by R D Rajasekhar and Yuvan Shankar Raja's haunting music. The end product is a visual treat.

Manmathan

is a vendetta tale. Madan Kumar (Silambarasan) is an accountant by profession. He meets Mythili (Jyotika) at a music college he joins.

City cops sit up when a series of killings take place. The victims invariably are attractive young girls, who are first seduced and then bumped off! A policeman (Atul Kulkarni) is on the killer's trail, but fails to make much headway in the investigation initially.

Then, to her utter horror, Mythili finds out that the stalker who calls himself Manmathan is none other than Madan! Overcoming her love for him, Mythili has Madan arrested.

The twist in the tale comes out in Madan's confession: Manmathan is his younger brother, who is a serial killer!

The flashback takes you to a village where the younger brother Madan Raj (played by Silambarasan himself) takes a fancy to his classmate Vaishnavi (Sindhu Tolani). But she gives him the cold shoulder. An enraged Madan Raj kills her.

The murder turns him into a serial killer, who takes revenge on all young girls who have no moral values or scruples.

His innocence having been proved, the elder brother is freed. But then the script undergoes yet another twist that takes the audience by surprise.

Manmathan is an out-and-out Silambarasan movie -- a total image makeover for the man who has been nothing if not casual in his earlier movies. The transformation is complete. Needless to say, the role has given him a shot in the arm. The murderous glint in the eye and fear that a serial killer evokes have all been conveyed with a panache that could be the envy of seasoned performers. The sense of foreboding, an essential pre-requisite for suspense movies, animates Manmathan all along. No wonder, the film is doing wonders at the box office.

Jyotika has done a good job as the lover. The Silambarasan-Jyotika on-screen chemistry comes off well. Sindhu Tolani, Gaundamani provide excellent support to the main characters. The ebullient Mandira Bedi excels as the psychiatrist. A sizzling item number by Yana Gupta along with other Mumbai models takes care of the glamour quotient. Only Atul Kulkarni's investigative cop is a bit of a letdown. The portrayal is hardly convincing.

The music of Yuvan goes well with the mood of the film. The songs haunt you long after you leave the cinema hall. The chic sets designed by art director Rajeev adds to the enjoyment.

Verdict: Thrilling To Watch!

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