Movie : Murattu Kaalai
Director : Selva Bharathi
Music : Srikanth Deva
Cast : Sundar C, Sneha, Suman, Sindhu
First and foremost never try to make a remake of a popular hit with a superstar. There will be comparisons and the newer version will never stand up to scrutiny.
Now Rajinikanth’s SP Muthuraman directed 1980 blockbuster Murattu Kaalai has been remade 32 years after its release by Selva Bharathi with Sundar C essaying one of the most popular roles done by the superstar.
There is nothing new about the story which is slotted for commercial cinema of the 70’s and 80’s. The hero is an uneducated milkman Kaalai (Sundar C), with a heart of gold and whose life revolves around his younger brothers.
The villain Varadarajan(Suman), is the local Zamindar type rich guy who has a transgender Saroja(Vivekh) as his assistant. The villain’s sister (Sindhu Tolani) has a soft corner for our dashing macho hero. Meanwhile Bhuvana (Sneha), on the run after Varadarajan attempts to molest her seeks help from Kaalai and soon falls in love with him. Rest is all about how our hero vanquishes the bad guy.
Though Sundar C’s Murattu Kaalai is a scene by scene remake of the original somehow it lacks the energy and fizz of the Rajinikanth starrer. All the supporting characters in the original were stalwarts like Jayashankar as the villain and Suralirajan as the comedian and villain’s henchman, here somehow Suman and Vivekh in comparison are limited.
The story and presentation of early 1980’s commercial mass masala stick out like a sore thumb and does not fit into today’s modern slick commercial films. However the making is good especially the camera work of Santonio and the climax fight scene on a running train. On the whole it is another commercial entertainer.