Review of Annamalai

Introduction

Spolier Alert!

Annamalai is a remake of the 1989 Hindi film classic, Kudhgarz, which was conceived and directed by Rakesh Roshan and continues to be one of his stronger films. Annamalai, Directed by Suresh Kishnna is quite pale in comparison to the original film mostly due to the way changes have been made to carry on the conventions of Tamil cinema which at the time was mostly melodrama and happy endings. Kudhgarz had characters which were more defined and three dimensional while Annamalai`s characters are similar to most Tamil films seen during that period who are rather weak. Also the direction in the Tamil counterpart has quite a few loopholes, which were not seen in the Hindi version. I was quite disappointed with this film as I expected an improvement on the original which is simply not the case here.

The film evokes average performances from the cast but again seeing and comparing the original it looks quite rushed. Rajnikanth is himself and remains powerful as ever, but I feel he was wrongly cast for the role. Watching the Hindi version, which had the actor Shatrughan Shina, the character was seen as slightly insecure when becoming rich and more distant from his friend which explains to us why he changes near the climax to accept his friend back. While it tries to do the same in the Tamil version, it never comes across as well. Rajnikanth brings all of his personal and confident traits which we as Indian film audiences are used to and this affects the overall image and performance of the character. The scene when the house is demolished is an example, I feel sympathy in the Hindi version, but no feeling remains in the Tamil one because I know Rajnikanth will get his revenge.

Also the character of Ashok in the Tamil version was not as explored as it was in the Hindi version, so Annamalai feels more like a solo project for Rajnikanth. Jeetendra who played Ashok in Kudhgarz also had more of a rapport with the main character further adding emotions we feel when we see their friendship break up. His wife even suffers a violent death to further inflict his wounds, which doesn`t occur in the Tamil film. With all of these important elements missing it really hinders the viewing of Annamalai.

Annamalai was a super hit in South India and does have its nice moments, like the fight scenes, comedy scenes and to some extent the presence of Rajnikanth. But the songs are rather lacking, as is the screenplay, which is a shame as the film should have improved on Kudhgarz which was made three years earlier.

Video

The DVD is presented with an aspect ratio of 2.25:1 which has been cropped from its original aspect ratio of 2.55:1. The cropping doesn`t affect what we see as most of the Cinemascope frame is kept on this DVD. But I do wish Ayngaran will get the telecinist to transfer the films in their correct aspect ratio on future titles so that the director`s intentions are kept. The DVD is presented in an anamorphic format and is really quite something to look at in terms of quality.

The 35mm print negative sourced for this DVD appears to be in fair condition. The source used was the interpositive negative as major wear and tear blemishes could be seen in some key scenes which showed film dirt on the picture. I guess the negative was kept in poor condition in India. The blemishes are in the form of black and white dots and black lines. They don`t really distract as it seems to be expected on an Indian title that`s almost ten years old, but some restoration work similar to that of DEI`s other DVDs could have been carried out to add more of a fresh feel. This is the only major complaint I have on this disc.

The DVD has no major signs of compression artefacts, but small signs of film grain are seen and again this is partly due to the age of the film. There is also some shimmering and moiré effects, but thankfully not much edge enhancement.

The film has impressive levels of detail which adds more definition to the overall picture. A lot of detail could be seen quite easily and never has the film looked so clear. Colour fidelity and saturation were bold and vibrant though some blue flickering was seen during a couple of scenes and could be the result of damage to the 35mm negative. Contrast levels and dark details are good and bring out further picture information in the harshest of light conditions.

Audio

The 5.1 Dolby Digital sound is basically mono and the mono sound remains mostly on the centre channel, which is clear and audible to the ears. The only time the other channels kick in are during the songs and musical score. Some light hissing and pops can be heard, but this is due to poor film keeping and age.

Features

The menus are very impressive in design with some original concept art which match most American DVDs. The next step for Ayngaran would be to introduce 3D animation into its menu design which could blow us away! Other supplementary features include English subtitles, which are okay, but some more grammar work is needed on future titles.

Conclusion

Annamalai looks and sounds great on DVD despite much damage to the original filmprint. If improvements need to be made then some more restoration work is needed to hide the blemishes seen on the picture. Yet the quality is very good and I am now looking forward to Ayngaran`s other titles made within the past 10 years. A DVD worth seeing.