It's dotted with the typical Maniratnam touch, lively and entertaining, but shorn of pace, fails to make the 'Mani grade'.

Slow take-off and lag in narration make Ayudha Ezhuthu a disappointment for the craftsman's fans who always expect a masterpiece from him.

The film (the title draws an analogy between the letter 'ak' (three dots) in Tamil which always has a prefix and suffix when used in a word and the student community's role in binding society), apparently an inspiration from Spanish film-maker Alexandra Gonsalez's Amores Perros, stands out for its unique script amid the run-of-the-mill stuff of the times, and its excellent handling by the director, but does not stand comparison to his earlier ventures like Nayakan, Roja or Bombay.

The story revolves around three youths with different perspectives towards life. Madhavan, Surya and Siddharth are completely unaware of each other's existence until they cross paths one day. And then life undergoes a sea change for the three.

Madhavan is a local ruffian who works for an influential politician, Surya, a society-conscious college student who advocates students entering politics to cleanse it of corruption and Siddharth, a student who aspires to fly to the US in search of greener pastures.

What strikes throughout is Maniratnam's clarity in rendering the inter-woven screenplay.

In the first part, the movie revolves around Madhavan, the ruffian who does not mind doing anything for money and power and cares a hoot for the consequences of his actions. Madhavan's daring decision to play a negative character who gets beaten up black and blue at the end, putting his 'hero' image in peril, has paid off, as he walks away with top honours.

Essaying the role which any frontline actor would dare not take on, Madhavan, with the right mix of looks, savagery and affection steals the show.

He lives in a Chennai slum with wife Meera Jasmine who wants him to give up his bad ways. Both quarrel often, but make it up on bed.

It's a mature display by Meera Jasmine too. Her outbursts at Madhavan and desperate attempts to set his life right deserve special mention.

Surya plays a student who turns down a scholarship in the US and takes a plunge into politics. Esha plays his lady love. The entire movie seems to revolve around him and he not only motivates fellow students, but also people of a village where a bye-election is on. He takes on an influential politician who sends Madhavan to bump him off.

Meanwhile, Siddarth (seems to have had an extension of his role in Boys), who flirts with girls but finally falls in love with Trisha, suddenly comes across Surya one day, gets motivated by his speech and decides to enter politics.

The rest is how the three take on each other and who achieves his goal finally. With three stories being narrated in an episode fashion, lag sets in as soon as the Madhavan-Meera Jasmine episode gets over. What spoils the narration further is a couple of songs in each episode which disrupts the pace of the movie.

However, the numbers, Hey Good Bye Nanba and Jana Gana Mana, prove A R Rahman's mastery in coming out with catchy tunes. But Rahman seems to have touched a new low in re-recording which is quite jarring at a few places.

Cinematographer Ravi K Chandran's inimitable style of capturing images on lenses has audience spell-bound. Be it a romantic scene in a sombre slum in Chennai to a student's unrest in a college campus to a peppy number in a discotheque, he brings out his best on screen. Ravi K Chandran seems to have had a perfect understanding of what his director wanted.

The surprise package of the film is director Bharathiraja. He plays a corrupt Minister. A creator of many an actor during his career, Bharathiraja has brought out his experience and versatility in the role.

The movie is certainly worth-watching, if not for other features, at least for veering off the contemporary theme which has heroes and heroines romancing around trees, a couple of tear-jerking scenes and monotonous comedy sequences.

Courtesy: NewsToday