Good Bad Ugly Review 

Ashwin Ram

Good Bad Ugly is a Gangster Action flick starring Ajith Kumar, Trisha and Arjun Das in the lead roles. Directed by Mark Antony fame Adhik Ravichandran and the music is scored by GV Prakash.

Premise: Ajith Kumar is a powerful gangster who surrenders to revive his life. He comes out after 18 years aspiring to live a peaceful life, but his son gets trapped by a notorious gang and sentenced to prison. How far the father goes to save his family forms the crux of the story.

Writing/ Direction: The film is a complete treat for fans, starting from Mahanadhi Shankar’s voice-over, the actor who utters ‘Thala’ in Dheena. Filled with pop-culture references throughout, thankfully most of them land in a relishing manner. Yes, there are places when the nostalgic factor goes overboard, it feels saturated when the other actors do so. Director Adhik Ravichandran has implemented a stamp of his own, which is a mix of eccentricity and quirkiness. Lots to enjoy in this style of treatment and he has perfectly presented Ajith Kumar in the centre. There is a convincing story to drive the film, the template we saw in Veeram and Viswasam. The father-son angle is fantastic, their conflict and contradictions are strongly written, but the on-screen emotional connect is missing because of the other distractions. A crazy mass metre is cracked with limitless heroic slow-motion shots, buildup dialogues and the pacing is super racy overall. There is at least one theatre moment in every scene for the fans to celebrate. The flashback brings in certain Hollywood callbacks to showcase the caliber of the hero, done with conviction as they are light-heartedly treated as it would become troll material if approached seriously. The villain might not be a tough opponent, yet there are some interesting angles to the character that shapes it well. Many memorable scenes to cherish, particularly the pre-interval sequence, the intermission blocks and the climax are solid. It is a no-brainer, at the same time the director has smartly incorporated many elements that cater to the commercial audience. The animation narrative disrupts the flow, but it works big time when the key backstory is explained. There are a couple of flat spots and loud humour that act as hindrances, also the lack of originality is a bit of an issue, however the film serves its intention by being constantly entertaining.

Performances: Ajith Kumar is dapper in every frame, there are multiple look-sets and attire shifts for him, and he owns every single one of them like a boss. Director Adhik has literally transformed into a fanboy and has presented his idol in the best possible way. Arjun Das fits well as the funky baddie, his versatility is tapped in the right amount and he has been made to explore a variety of trippy areas in the storyworld. Trisha has a neat involvement in the subject and her presence makes it a no-nonsense outing for her. Prasanna gets a dummy sidekick character to play, on the other Sunil successfully gets the job done with a similar role.

Technicalities:  GV Prakash’s songs are disappointing, for a film that madly worships the hero, the elevation tracks are underwhelming. The impact could have been much harder with better music. The remix tracks give us good vibes, but the background score falls way short of being a banger. The team might have held on to the initially committed Devi Sri Prasad as the movie is also in the Telugu flavour. Abinandhan Ramanujam’s camera work is solid, the wide range of colours are captured with utmost sincerity and the man has pulled-off a stunner with respect to showcasing the hero. Flawless editing by Vijay Velukutty, top speed smooth flow with seamless scene transitions and sticks to the basics while boosting the hero’s image with collages and flash-cuts. Stunts and visual effects need improvement, generic fight sequences and the Bond style action stretch at the end lacks finesse.

Verdict: Focuses to celebrate the star to the maximum extent and the target has hit the bulls-eye. Ajith Kumar’s stylish show all the way with director Adhik’s mass packaging. However originality is a question of concern.

GOOD BAD UGLY - Fan Service at its Best!

Rating - 3/ 5.