At last, the movie we have all been waiting
for has come on. Rajinikanth’s Chandramukhi raised feverish
expectation after the dumping of Baba. Rajini needed a dose of vitamin
success to revitalize his career. While he has reached the pinnacle
in terms of popularity, there is a craving for more, which is the
hallmark of a good entertainer. Chandramukhi’s story is a
veiled adaptation of a very sensitive Malayalam movie, Manichitrathazhu.
However, in fashioning the story to suit Rajini’s persona,
the soul of the plot seems to have been lost. As an example, one
could say the use of fire-spitting action scenes which do not correlate
in the whole scheme of things.
Saravanan(Rajinikanth) is an accomplished psychiatrist, whose is
summoned to cure his friend, Prabhu’s wife, Jyothika, who
has the Jekyll and Hyde syndrome. The split personalities become
pronounced after the couple move into the large mansion where Chandramukhi
lived and was killed by her paramour. Jo is the devoted wife who
turns nasty when possessed of the spirit of the estranged courtesan,
Chandramukhi. Saravanan follows a methodical approach to treat the
woman and everyone is happy at the end.
Let us see the good things first. Rajini belies his age on the screen
and performs his antics with enthusiasm. His comic interludes with
Vadivelu are the highlight of the movie. Shankar Josheph’s
camera work is impressive. Vidyasagar’s music has enriched
the songs which are soothing.
On to the flip side, the first casualty is the screenplay where
the director seems to be in a dilemma as to give importance to the
story or the star. His balancing act is quite precarious and the
end result is mishmash. The use of excessive epithets praising the
hero’s virtues is irritating. Almost everyone in the supporting
cast (a real jumbo one) seems to be mouthing the same ideas. Nayantara
as Rajini’s heroine is a mere prop and does nothing much.
Jo’s attempts to breathe life into the character flounder
and her verbal and facial pyrotechnics are jarring.
The film is hitched to Rajini’s band of diehard fans and can
be watched once.
