The hilarious second half makes Uthamaputhiran very entertaining!!

Previously published on nowrunning.com 
(http://www.nowrunning.com/movie/7492/tamil/uthama-puthiran/2804/review.htm)

Movie - Uthamaputhiran (Tamil)
Director - Mithran R Jawahar
Producers - M Mohan Apparao, T Ramesh
Cast - Dhanush, Genelia, Vivek, Bhagyaraj, Ashish Vidyarthi, Ambika, Rekha, Karunas, Rajendran, Srinath, Jayaprakash Reddy
Music - Vijay Antony
Cinematography - Balasubramaniam
Screenplay - Gopi Mohan
Release Date - 5th November 2010.


Uthamaputhiran is a remake of last year's Telugu superhit Ready, starring Ram and Genelia. It is Dhanush's third association with director and friend Mithran R Jawahar in a Telugu remake. Their first outing Yaaradi Nee Mohini proved very successful for the duo, but their second film Kutty failed miserably. But this time around, they have a winner in their hands. Uthamaputhiran after a slow and uneventful first half, has a very entertaining and hilarious second half, which makes the movie immensely watchable. 

Shiva (Dhanush) is a happy go lucky young guy who is ready to do anything for his family and friends. (He is never seen going for any work, whereas every other member of his family leaves the house for work every morning wearing executive costumes). He kidnaps a girl from her marriage for his friend, who supposedly loves her. Only when he takes her to him does he realize that he brought the wrong girl. The girl happens to be Pooja (Genelia) who already wanted to run away from her wedding since she wasnt interested in it. Pooja's family starts chasing them and some scenes later, Shiva decides to take Pooja to his house. Pooja gels well with Shiva's family and falls in love with him in the meanwhile. But then, Pooja's uncle Periya Gounder (Ashish Vidyarthi) takes her away. Both her uncles including him and Chinna Gounder (Jayaprakash Reddy) want to get her married to their sons to get their hands on the 200 crores which she is entitled to. Shiva lands in Tuticorin and makes plans to marry Pooja with everyone's permission, making one Mr. Emotional Ekambaram (Vivek) a scapegoat. 

The film's first half does not have much to offer than the charm of both the leading actors. Both Dhanush and Genelia are at their charming best. The entire first half is about Dhanush's family and friends and the entire milieu is established quite well. But other than a few moments, there is nothing memorable about the first half. But the movie changes gears with the entry of Vivek as Emotional Ekambaram in the second half. He brings the house down with his act, and his chemistry with Dhanush plays a major role in that. The story actually has some movement only in the second half. Instead of going in the routine song-dance-fight-sentiments routine, the makers have handled the entire movie in a light-hearted manner stressing on family values, through humour. 

Dhanush is wonderful as usual. There is something genuinely likable about this actor. Even in a terrible movie like Padikkathavan, it is hard not to like him. He plays Shiva with consummate ease. Watch out for his chemistry with Vivek in the second half. Genelia reprises her role from the Telugu original. She looks adorable and her character is best suited for her bubbly self. But after seeing her in Bommarillu and Jaane Tu, it is difficult to accept something less bubbly and vibrant from her after those two. :) She is wonderful. But the star of the movie is Vivek. Returning back to form after a long long time, Vivek shines as Emotional Ekambaram and makes us forget about the boring first half instantly. He hasnt given such a good performance since Sivaji. Bhagyaraj is as always, dependable and does his part well. Ashish Vidyarthi finally learned to move his lips in Tamil and has done quite well too. Even Jayaprakash Reddy was decent. Karunas was good in his effeminate character. Srinath desperately tries to ape Santhanam with no effect. His jokes are terrible. Rajendran comes to get beaten up twice by Dhanush. Ambika and Rekha make their presence felt in the second half. Shriya Saran makes an appearance, looks gorgeous and then disappears. 

Vijay Antony is not at his best here with the music. There is a strong absence of chartbuster songs even though there was ample scope and space for such songs in this entertainer. Only 'Usumu Larasey' and the duet in the first half are impressive. Background Score is apt for the movie. Cinematography by Balasubramaniam is wonderful, especially in the first half. Though some of the shots look overly saturated (might be overdone DI), the cinematography is generally very good. Art Direction, Editing and Action are done according to the movie's requirement. 

All in all, Uthamaputhiran is a decent entertainer, which takes time to entertain you. :P Vivek is the star of the movie along with its lead pair Dhanush and Genelia. The movie is getting remade in Hindi also. Aneez Bazmee is making it in Hindi with Salman Khan and Asin in the lead. But they really have to work on the first half to make the Hindi remake work. Watch it if you want to have some good timepass. 

Rating - 3/5