Cast: Ajay Devgn, Tabu, shriya Saran, Rajat Kapoor
Director: Nishikanth Kamat
Length: 160 minutes approx.
A film that’s written meticulously and handled diligently can seldom go wrong. DRISHYAM fortunately comes across like one engaging thriller that weaves thriller and drama just in the perfect blend. The film boasts of brisk pace that keeps you hooked in one event after the other. The film is nicely linked and connected and each scenes start making sense. The screenplay works wonderfully for the film because most of the scenes in second half have underlining questions beneath them. It compels to think, and answer some question for yourself.
While the first half of the film takes its sweet little time to build the intensity, the film carries on the intense in second half throughout till the last scene that leaves you shocked.
Although not everything is rosy for the film. The first half although short could have edited couple of scenes and the second half at places felt like spoon-feeding and repetitive.
Ajay devgn is excellent and maintains the level of performance throughout. Tabu surprises in her role and lends a very effective support in the second half of the film.
In totality, Drishyam is an engrossing dramatic thriller that will keep you at the edge of you seats. Although the film grapples with its pacing and editing at some scenes but there are enough reasons to make up for the glitches- Its unpredictable, well-performed, competently directed and extremely well written. Enough reasons why this must not be missed.
Rating – 3.5/5
Tags: Ajay Devgn Drishyam Member Reviews Nishikant Kamat Reviews Shriya Saran Tabu
Thanks for the review Sanket. Will check this one out.
Wanted to watch the original Malayalam one first but may not be able to. Those who have watched the original are saying its not as good as that one but those who have not seen the original are liking it.
Just came back, I have not seen original … but this movie on its own has solid script and very strong second half. Movie in my show ended with standing ovation and claps from audience. This says all ..
Though till interval i was not very impressed, it looked like another crome petrol episode. But second half elevate the movie to another level, you simply glued to screen till end.
Will watch this tonight and comment.
Very good and engrossing movie. The pace is just fine.
There is a dialogue in start of the movie when Ajay is watching an action scene on cable ..another guy says kya solid scene hai ..Ajay says “kya solid hai, ho to kuch nahi raha hai ..just fast cuts hai..action bhi theek se nahi dikhaya…ho to kuch nahi raha hai ..lekin fast paced lagta hai”.
Its perfect comment on the movies like this and Talaash etc – where the pace is perfect . Only audience is addicted to fast edits where nothing actually happens in the story.
5/5
PS: No point is seeing the original Sputnik. This one has to be seen without comparison. People will always praise original. When was the last time a movie ppl said was better than original?
yeah its true in most cases that remakes are never better than original. But there are some movies which are as good or even better than original.
Watched the movie. Liked it. Good thriller which keeps you engrossed even though you know what happened.
Its not perfect though. First half was not that good but 2nd half was very good except for a couple of scenes which felt like spoon feeding. Ending could have been better.
The director did not try to fit the movie into the northern setting much. It looked pretty much like a Southern movie.
Ajay was very good. Shriya Saran’s acting as well as her character was a bit irritating. Both the actresses who played the daughters were ok. Tabu was very good. Rajat Kapoor was good too. Kamlesh Sawant who played Gaitonde was excellent.
I was going to say this earlier. The guy who played Inspector Gaitonde role was superb – without him second half would not have worked so well. Tabu and also very good. Some critics have panned Ajay’s cold acting – but IMO he was very good.
Few more points I wanted to say.
I agree partly with Sanket and Sputnik when they say couple of scenes in second half were repetitive / spoonfed. But that is why the name of the movie is “Drishyam” – “what we see we believe in it”. In a European / western movie this would be toned down in the narrative (by some character) – but I find its apt as the movie name and theme suggests.
I dont think the Tamil name “Paapnasam” is apt for this.
Now I will see the original Malyalam movie.
Btw, Rajeev Masand in his review stated that compared to the original this movie takes lesser time to come to the plot in 1st half.
A very good line from a film of caliber of Drishyam this year – maybe a couple of notches higher than Drishyam due to its writing and theme…
But the dialogue in Byomkesh Bakshy suits to the T for Drishyam also …
“sach ke aas paas waala jooth pakadna bahot mushkil hota hai”
“Aur agar sach ke aas paas waala jooth pakda jaye to sach bhi jhooth ban jata hai”
Saw the original.
Hindi version is far better. Apart from Mohanlal there in nothing in original though is scene to scene copy.
But the two intense girls are so lame in orginal, the whole sequence when the guy comes – the guy is also lame.
And most importantly, the characters who played Gaitonde and Tabu characters are too lame.
Hindi version is way way way better than the original.
I havent seen the version Hindi yet, but sure Tabu would have played it better. But have to disagree on the guy who played the constable. I felt he was spot on with the way he handled the role in Malayalam.
I watched Papanasam first day, just to compare Lal and Kamal. Kamal was OK in most of the lighter scenes but he went unncessarily overboard in the last scene. Lot of crying and weeping in the end and he admits the crime which was totally against his character who was shrewd all the while. Kamal was more interested in displaying his acting talents I believe.
The same scene in original is very subtle, Mohanlal just folds his hands and mentions about an uninvited guest with hardly any emotion.
Thanks for the reply jj
I think some thing are lost in translation. The guy who played police officer was good. Just that I saw it in a language I dont understand.
You are spot on about Kamal. He likes to show off.
Thats the exact point liked in original . And in Hindi they have kept the same thing. Ajay acts very naturally.
“The same scene in original is very subtle, Mohanlal just folds his hands and mentions about an uninvited guest with hardly any emotion.”
Was talking abt this.
@sPUTNIK,
Please watch original now. I am glad i didnt see Kamal version.
Apart from Mohanlal there is nothing in original which can be comapred to Hindi version. Its a carbon copy – Yes.
But there is Tabu
There is Gaitonde
and there is Ajay who is shown as a good businessman and does not do a charlie-chaplin act of showing he is not well-educated (Kamal and lot of south actors fall in this trap) .
Mohanlal was great in original. Thats about it. Hindi version is superior in all aspects.
I have been wanting to watch original from long time. I will definitely watch it if I can get a subtitled version.
Read this article about the “insertions” in the Hindi version and I did not mind any of those except one.
https://www.ibnlive.com/news/movies/four-deliberate-insertions-in-drishyam-that-were-not-present-in-the-original-1030392.html
“Despite being a ‘Family-Thriller’, the writers still find the courage to throw in a mention of ‘Sunny Leone’ in a few dialogues, spoken with all lust in the eyes and body movements. (May be since they couldn’t include her in person or in an item number, they decided to have her name mentioned at the least.)”
This is so ridiculous. That was just one small comment – nothing outrageous.
“Following the same vision of a ‘Family thriller’, the regional films do not have the girl’s secretly shot mobile video presented with some skin show. But in the Hindi version, the visuals clearly focus on a bare back of a minor school going girl, probably to make it more sensational which is unnecessary.”
It was nothing sensational.
“Neither the original nor its regional remakes had any filmy entry which the Hindi film has of the IG. Such a mature character is seen interrogating two hardcore criminals like a typical ‘80s film. (May be the makers wished to pay a tribute to that particular decade of Hindi cinema infamous for more than one reason)”
I did not like the Tabu interrogation scene. It was a somewhat filmy scene trying to show her toughness.
“There is no mention of an adopted girl in the original and even in its remakes, but here we surprisingly have a much clichéd reference of an adopted elder girl included vaguely. (Probably because they didn’t wish to show Ajay and Shriya that old as a married couple)”
I think this one actually made sense since Ajay and Shriya did not look old enough to be the elder girl’s parents. It also made Ajay’s character even more noble.
When I saw the trailer I thought Ajay will be constantly saying that he is 4th class fail to show how uneducated he is but it was good that he did not do that. Agree that Ajay played it like a normal character and did not try to overplay the uneducated bit. Yeah there are a couple of dialogues where Tabu mentions that he is 4th class fail which I think were unnecessary but they were not that bad.
I had commented on that IBN post.
Saying that Hindi version is better than Malayalam one…. in most respects.
Even the last point is futile. Because in Hindi version all the characters are way way better. If you see the original version then there is no question of being “adopted” .
In the original, the family looks so fragmented….u know what i mean.
They cut my whole detailed comment. I was talking abt all 4 points which they said in detail !
I don’t see your comment there.
They deleted it