| People don't go to a Rajnikanth movie expecting a modern classic. They have
certain expectations about any movie of his and these include large dollops
of comedy, politically-tinged dialogs, a few fights and song and dance. Ofcourse,
it goes without saying that he always gets his girl and good triumphs over evil.
K.S.Ravikumar proves to be perfect for the job and delivers a movie that has
the right mix of all of the above. In the process, he makes most sections of
the audience happy and the result was seen in the success of Muthu, among
the biggest blockbusters in Rajnikanth's career.
Muthu(Rajnikanth) is the loyal servant of a zamindar(Sarathbabu). The zamindar
falls in love with Ranganayagi(Meena), a drama artiste, but circumstances cause
Muthu and Ranganayagi, neither of whom know about the zamindar's love for her,
to fall in love. The zamindar's mind is poisoned by his uncle(Radharavi), who
harbors hopes that the zamindar would wed his own daughter and he drives Muthu
out of the house. But his mother reveals the truth about Muthu's past and explains
to him that it was Muthu who was actually the zamindar.
As was the case with the recent Friends ,
Muthu is another movie that has its origins in Malayalam cinema but
underwent several changes keeping in mind the requirements of tamil cinema
with respect to the image of Rajnikanth. It is based on the Mohanlal-Shobana
starrer Thenmaavin Kombathu and maintains the basic story of the
original while adding the whole storyline about Rajnikanth's past. This
enables introducing a double role for Rajnikanth, allowing him to spout even
more philosophies about life and making his fans doubly happy.
Most of the comedy is seen in the first half with the segment where Rajnikanth
and Meena get lost and end up in Kerala providing most of the laughs. Rajnikanth's
encounters as Meena provides with the wrong translation for asking directions
and the end result are wholeheartedly funny. His initial friction with her also
provides some humor, especially during the fight sequence. Though Senthil,
Vadivelu and co. are also at hand, their comedy is cheap and except for a few lines,
rarely funny.
Enough political lines are scattered throughout the movie to keep the Rajnikanth
fan delirious and applauding. Ravikumar does quite well by avoiding an overkill
in this respect. Jayalalitha is the obvious target during Rajni's question-answer
session with Meena, after he disturbs her performance on stage. The dialogs in
this scene are designed to bring any fan to his feet. Even romantic songs are
not left alone as Vairamuthu manages to introduce some obviously political
lines in the songs, especially Kuluvaalile....
Apart from these, the movie has some segments that stand out. The segment with the
older Rajnikanth is handled well, with the character of the quiet, good-hearted
zamindar suiting Rajnikanth very well. Similarly, the whole sequence with the
love letter(culminating in the Thillaanaa... song) is choreographed
in a funny manner. But things get a little messy towards the end. Sarathbabu's
appearance after his fall is nothing short of miraculous while his abrupt
aboutface is a little too convenient.
As in any recent Rajnikanth movie, he dominates the proceedings, leaving little
for the others to do as he successfully carries the movie on his shoulders.
Meena looks sweet and acts cute, especially during her initial altercations with
Rajnikanth. Sarathbabu has always been a lucky actor for Rajnikanth with all of
the movies where they appeared together being hits. Muthu adds to this list.
A.R.Rehman delivers a hit soundtrack with Oruvan Oruvan... and
Kuluvaalile... being the picks. Thillaanaa Thillaanaa... is catchy
and picturised extremely well with the bright colors and fast steps.
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