ஐ - Shankar + Vikram + Amy Jackson + ARR

[balaajee]

I' - Movie review- http://www.mid-day.com/ - By Shubha Shetty-Saha

Director Shankar's formula is simple. He keeps you so spellbound with visuals and joy and craziness that you meekly accept the lack of logic in several places and yes, a bit of tackiness too.

Lingesan aka Lee (Vikram in a super form) is a bodybuilder, who is working hard to achieve the Mr. Tamil Nadu title. Lingesan eats sprouts and boiled chicken, works out till he faints and some day hopes to win the Mr. India title. Things begin to change when he meets his crush, a successful model Diya (Amy Jackson, pleasant and sincere). Vikram's and Diya's growing closeness brings in a horde of enemies, which include a male model John (Upen Patel), an industrialist (Ramkumar) and a few others. The jealousy of his adversaries leads to the handsome dude Lee tragically and yes, dramatically turn into a hunchback monster.

The story (written by Shankar) actually doesn't matter in the larger scheme of things, it is the execution that keeps you spellbound in this three-hour plus film. Shankar doesn't lose the thread of humour and joy even in the song sequences, (you have to see the fantasy song where Lee imagines inanimate objects turn into the woman he desires, to know what I mean) or the thrilling action scenes (stunts directed by martial arts choreographer Yuen Woo-ping).

The most riveting thing of course, is the thought and expertise that's gone behind the prosthetic make-up done on Vikram and the other characters. (Sean Foot and Davina Lamont for Vikram and Christian Tensley and Dominie Til for others)

Made with a humongous budget of Rs 180 crores (worth every penny), 'I' is certainly a big screen experience. Watch it to believe it. And yes, watch it for Vikram, not just for the fabulous actor that he's but also for the fact that he's literally gone out on a limb for this role.

I' - Movie review

[balaajee]

I: Vikram Takes Beauty & The Beast To Another Level- http://skjbollywoodnews.com/-by Subhash K Jha

Let me tell you about an actor called Vikram. In I, which is actually the most exceptional film of the high-maintenance director Shankar’s extravagant oeuvre, this exceptional actor, known to transform into whatever he plays, stands in a room filled with multi-reflective mirrors ,looking at his horribly deformed body and disfigured face.

It is heart-shattering, glass-shattering moment.

It is a moment that would be quoted as an example of what magic a capable actor can create out of melodrama.

Melodrama, is certainly Shankar’s forte. His films are not only many sizes larger than life, they are also suffused in excessive exuberance and free-flowing rhetorics that do not render themselves to a proper Hindi translation.

In I one doesn’t mind the blizzard of bombast and drama. This is Shankar’s most dramatic film to date. Drama has never been a rationed component in his cinema. Here the director, known for his visual flair and vital connect with the masses, pulls out all stops , as he takes us on a colloquial and spectacular visual discourse on the subject of physical beauty and its impact on love.

Do we stop loving a person if he or she becomes physically undesirable? Films like Rajnish Behl’s Soorat Aur Seerat and Raj Kapoor’s Satyam Shivum Sunderam dealt with the theme of love and physical beauty with varying degrees of effectuality.

In I ,Shankar with his extraordinary command over the grammar of the narrative’s rapid run, goes for the jugular.The film clocks at 3 hours and a few minutes. Some of it is cheap cheesy window dressing…The kind that a spectacular film must indulge in to ensureboxoffice returns.

There are cringe-worthy jokes about women’s lingerie and vital statistics.At one point the hero’s breast….sorry, best friend makes a dig at the heroine’s ‘headlights’ , and she isn’t driving a car….not in a bikini !. There is nothing subtle about the way the film’s hero, a state-level wrestler filled with a boorish pride about his looks and physique, loses it all and becomes hunchbacked and grotesque .

There is a lot of embarrassing humbug in the lengthy narration. With that penchant for over-elaborate plotting whereby every component in the characterizations must be hammered in repeatedly, the film’s moral map gets tediously fine-printed in the narrative. The caucus of villains , which oddly includes an expressionless Upen Patel and a cross-dresser who lusts after the hero and then wants him destroyed,gets its comeuppance with infuriating mathematical precision.

But here is the thing. I is nonetheless an exceptional film. The main love story between the disfigured hero and the stunning model(Amy ,ably cast) gets its core of compulsion from The Beauty & The Beast fable. The manner in which the relationship between the coarse wrestler and the classy model grows and then takes a twisted turn, is skillfully manoeuvred by the director.

There is no doubt that Shankar is a remarkable raconteur. His cinema is almost always blessed with a leading man who takes the director’s vision beyond the script . Here Shankar has an arresting ally in Vikram whose interpretation of the protagonist’s horrific physical change is so palpable as to make every other recent attempt at prosthetic-induced realism look strained.

The film’s most majestic chunks are those where Vikram, playing the deformed avenger stalks dark dingy corridors andmohallahs in search of his tormentors. Here is where P C Sreeram’s magic from behind the camera opens its arms and hugs excellence.

What we see on screen are visually interpreted themes on the destruction of human faith.

The film neatly balances the beauty of Nature against the cruelty of mankind. The scenes shot in China against the backdrop of thousands of crimson flowers are enchanting in their summoned splendour.Watching the beauty of Nature in all its glory we know what the mean when they say time stands still.

Vikram’s courtship of the beautiful Ms Jackson is taken through various stages of awkward self-assertion, each stage brilliantly covered and crossed by Vikram. As is the wont in Shankar’s cinema the songs(A R Rahman) and choreography are breathtaking in their grandeur and eloquence.

Specially outstanding is the fantasy opera beautifully composed and choreographed where the Beauty is faced with the agonized helplessness of the Beast.

There are many sequences in I which linger in the mind long after the show. I only wish the narrative had avoided banal characters and long-drawn episodes of crass mass wooing where the film’s innate excellence is mocked.

Shankar irons out the rough edges with his mesmerizing power to hold the character’s bizarre fate in place. Indeed the film takes us beyond the imaginable and the conceivable, fusing with fabulous flamboyance the fantasy element with a level of heightened reality that’s commercial cinema’s forte.

More brilliant than the film is Vikram’s multi-personality performance which holds the film together, loopholes and all.Vikramembraces the grotesque as possessively as the glorious.It doesn’t matter which language you speak or think in. Just go for I.It speaks the language of cinema.

[balaajee]

I: Film Review – Vikram’s fantastic performance carries this film, quite literally! -http://in.bookmyshow.com- Raisa Nasreen

VERDICT: A gripping tale of love and revenge!

The film’s promotional poster piqued our curiosity by giving us few details about the title. I – is love, I - is beast and I – is revenge. But what actually is ‘I‘? I – is a stupendously engrossing, visually fantastic film with Vikram’s exuberant performance serving as the film’s backbone! The film took about 3 years to make and all through it, Vikram has lived the character and his performance is a reflection of his undying effort. Having said how amazing this movie is, one has to note that watching a Shankar film is a visual experience. This reason is the grandeur of the film. It is showcased by some innovative concepts which are unseen by the general audience.

Unlike his earlier films which have delivered a social message, this one showcases a medical condition. The filmmaker has focused on the age-old concept of jealousy! An aspiring model falls prey to the vicious traps of his enemies. Thus begins his tale of vengeance. The lead begins to plot innovative methods to get back at those that wronged him. Revealing these methods would be spoilers.

Although slow, the first half of the film starts off with Vikram’s glamorous past, interspersed with scenes of the present day. We understand that the film explores the advertising world. But, the many product placements will make you wonder what the filmis really about! You also begin to wonder if the tag line ‘I – is’ is about product placement. It looks like the director had decided to convince the audience that Amy Jackson is Indian. Regarding her culture or her principles in life; she plays the righteous Indian woman. Shankar has decided to make the bikini-clad model so Indian, that she wears salwars even when she’s not shooting an advertisement. The director teases and uses humor in certain scenes, especially when the lovelorn stylist Ojas, eats a hotdog to gain the attention of Lee (Vikram).

Shankar has a knack of focusing only on the artists’ positives, and he’s done the same for Amy Jackson. But the second half of the film is the highlight. The attention to detail is noteworthy. From Vikram’s fingernails, when he is the hunchback, to the scene in which the senior doctor travels in a Fiat and much more. (Depicting the role of the famous doctor Natrajan, maybe?) And so, ‘I’ goes on, with some uncompromising and engrossing moments along with some intriguing and suspense-filled sequences.

The stunt sequences are far too many, but one has to give credit to the fantastic action-sequence on the train. On the downside, the lip-sync-ing of a few actors isn’t done well. But the biggest twist, is from Dr.Pervert aka Suresh Gopi. Upen Patel appears in this movie as a jealous model. This is probably the most acting that he has done throughout his whole film career. Other strikingly new and notable performances include Ojas as the envious stylist andRamkumar as the haughty industrialist. The scene in which the hunchback sees himself for the first time is fantastically shot. It directly reflects the actor’s appalling and gut wrenching transformation! These portions of his life will truly stir your soul!

P.C.Sriram’s beautifully breathtaking visuals transport you to exotic locations of China. A.R.Rahman’s soul-stirring music especially the ‘Enodu Nee’ number elevates the mood. Overall, the film isn’t complex or over-done, it simply questions the concept of goodness and how hard it is for a good person to survive in this big bad world.

Why you should watch the film?

Watch this film for Vikram’s exuberant performance as – a model, a beast, a body builder and a hunchback. You don’t want to miss this film!

[Dilbert]

Come on..dont paint them so bad...they do praise quality films..Mani's bombay and Shankar's Indian was well received and a huge hit...

oh is it good to know

[Chikatiloan]

Going to I movie..good expectations are low compare to before after all reviews,definitley I will enjoi the movie
enna kodumai in Calgary,canada they have 2 shows at prime time 4 and 9PM in hindi but only 1 show in tamil by 12.25..but the distributors are right considering the audience,,very very few tamil audience here but average telugu audience,more Punjabi..telugu/Punjabi like to watch in hindi only..

[Bipolar]

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I like Vikram as an actor, so I definitely wish him well... however I don't like Shankar as a director - he's a truly talentless guy who basically built his own "career" on other people's talents...

Still, I understand Vikram had to work really hard during the production of the film, as it was a very physically demanding role... so I wish him well... Hope his efforts get the appreciation he deserves...


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[Pras]

Oruthan vikramm-nu eluthi irukkaan .. Innoruthan vikkram-nu eluthi irukkaan .. Rendu perum enn kayila kedachaanga

[interz]

credit: vendhar tv

revealing interview with Vikram, esp the voice part stunned me.

[venkkiram]

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I like Vikram as an actor, so I definitely wish him well... however I don't like Shankar as a director - he's a truly talentless guy who basically built his own "career" on other people's talents...

Still, I understand Vikram had to work really hard during the production of the film, as it was a very physically demanding role... so I wish him well... Hope his efforts get the appreciation he deserves...

.

Never read this different angle anywhere. Though I also don't consider Shankar as good director, I don't brand him as a talentless guy who basically built his own "career" on [i]other people's talents... I still consider the flashback scenes of movies Gentleman and Jeans the best from Shankar so far. Few scenes from Indian (including Manarama's emotional burst) and Anniyan (Ambi scenes) also came out very nice. And the climax of Enthiran. Rest.. everything looks plastic to me. The problem with Shankar is he don't understand what a good direction is. When it comes to versatility, he is nowhere.

[Dilbert]

Never read this different angle anywhere. Though I also don't consider Shankar as good director, I don't brand him as a talentless guy who basically built his own "career" on [i]other people's talents... I still consider the flashback scenes of movies Gentleman and Jeans the best from Shankar so far. Few scenes from Indian (including Manarama's emotional burst) and Anniyan (Ambi scenes) also came out very nice. And the climax of Enthiran. Rest.. everything looks plastic to me. The problem with Shankar is he don't understand what a good direction is. When it comes to versatility, he is nowhere.

now you will teach him saabash !!