Good Bad Ugly is the latest Telugu-dubbed Tamil movie in the town. In this section, we are going to review the latest box-office release.
Plot:
AK, known to the underworld as the world's most formidable gangster, reigns supreme as the unconquerable Red Dragon. But when his beloved wife Ramya (Trisha Krishnan) brings their son Vihaan into the world, a seismic shift occurs. With fierce maternal resolve, Ramya forbids the kingpin from cradling their newborn, demanding he shed his notorious ways and return to them as the man she married, cleansed of his shadowy past.
Years later, Vihaan is in danger in Spain. Ramya blames AK's past for the trouble. The rest of the movie is about AK trying to save his son and prove he has changed.
Post-Mortem:
Director Adhik Ravichandran makes Good Bad Ugly purely as a fanboy movie. There are apparently a dozen Ajith filmography references in store. If you are not a fan of Ajith's works, you will struggle to make sense of almost all of them. SJ Suryah-directed Vaali is one of the few references that will register in the mind of the Telugu viewer, that too, only if you are a '90s kid.
This is not to say that the references are dull. They are glossy enough and, most of time, are not forced. The film's drawbacks lie elsewhere. You don't feel the emotional baggage of the hero, an ex-gangster who is dreaded to this day. The one-liners don't land. They sound like they were meant for the Tamil audience with no intent to cater to the non-Tamil viewer.
The protagonist believes in self-reform. This humanizes him to the point that we adore him a little despite the dated vibe. Everytime the screenplay tries to endear itself to the audience, the gaudy and over-the-top aesthetics put you off. The prison where the hero is lodged feels like a discotheque.
Hero elevation is an obstinate obsession this film cannot overcome. Instead of delivering the highs seen in Lokesh Kanagaraj and Prashanth Neel movies, the elevations generate chaos. AK has a clear purpose in mind. He expects his ex-rivals to never touch his son. Despite being unambiguous about its protagonist's motives, Good Bad Ugly fails to be punchy. The husband-wife conversations feel bizarrely unemotional.
The negative characters laugh maniacally when they are not orchestrating elevations. With razzmatazz in the foreground and music in the background, the film is relentlessly noisy. Their usual flaws like womanizing give way to persistent trivialization of their place in the larger scheme of things.
Ajith is the one actor who is consistent throughout. Arjun Das plays a dual role. Jackie Shroff and Sunil are largely wasted. Trisha Krishnan is okay. Simran's special appearance is average. Priya Prakash Varrier plays an interesting role. Roadies Raghu, Prasanna, Prabhu, Master Karthikeya Dev, Tinnu Anand, Shine Tom Chacko, Redin Kingsley and Rahul Dev have forgettable parts. GV Prakash Kumar's music is loud and uninspired.
Closing Remarks:
Good Bad Ugly is a visually loud and ultimately hollow exercise in hero worship. While Ajith's consistent performance and some clever references might appeal to die-hard Tamil fans, the film's over-the-top aesthetics, weak emotional core, and forgettable supporting cast render it a chaotic outing.
