Review: 'Raavan' is a big yawn

Film: Raavan
Director: Mani Ratnam
Cast: Abhishek Bachchan, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Vikram, Govinda and others
Rating: **
 
You react in different ways to movies you don't like. Some people shift in their seats constantly, others SMS or tweet about how bad the film is, some nod off. Others keep walking out for regular breaks - or entirely - depending on their tolerance levels. Quite a few bad films, though, can be unintentionally hilarious.
 
But then, there are films that just leave you drained, disappointed and flustered. Think Tashan. Nothing funny about sitting through that one, except maybe while watching it on television. Or Ram Gopal Varma Ki Aag. Luckily, not many people saw the film.
 
Watching Raavan, similarly, is no laughing matter. Initially, you are dazzled by the amazing visuals, the haunting background score and characters that show promise. You wait expectantly for dream merchant Mani Ratnam to weave his magic.
 
But it never happens. You just sit there, bewildered, then disappointed, and then just waiting for it to end. After an interesting set-up, that of Beera (Abhishek) abducting Ragini (Aishwarya), the wife of police officer Dev Sharma (Vikram) and Dev's pursuit of the outlaw, the film deteriorates consistently in a manner you don't expect it to.
 
Okay, so the plot takes a leaf out of the Ramayana's most memorable chapter. Raavan abducted Sita, wife of Lord Rama, which resulted in a battle that ended with Rama vanquishing the ten-headed demon king.
 
In spite of the similarity in plot, Mani Ratnam turns the characters on their heads, pun intended. His Raavan, aka Beera, is not a man driven by mere pride, but a cause too. Wronged by the police force, he kidnaps Ragini out of a deep-seated feeling of resentment and quest for revenge.
 
But when he starts developing feelings for Ragini, his resolve begins to weaken and the dreaded fugitive turns into a softer person. The twist in the plot comes in the form of Ragini questioning her own beliefs. Even though she wants to get rid of her abductor, she also sympathises with him, developing a bond with Beera without knowing it.
 
Mani Ratnam's take on the epic, in fact, is not just courageous, but interesting too. An adaptation is always more enjoyable when a maker gives an oft-repeated story a novel spin, and in that respect Mani Ratnam has taken an initiative worth lauding.
 
The film, though, is unable to grip the audience. Once you get over the brilliance of all the technical departments involved - Santosh Sivan and V Manikandan's combined work as cinematographers is among Indian cinema's most inspired efforts - you yearn for a narrative that would keep you hooked, which never happens.
 
Certain aspects, like not explaining why the police have a problem with Beera in the first place, don't help. Seriously, you don't really know what Beera has done to get the police to gatecrash a family function that sets up the drama in the first place. If his character is based on a Naxalite, then that is definitely not established at any point in the film.
 
A lot of times, you feel like you are watching not a Hindi film but the dubbed version of a Tamil film in terms of treatment, background score and characters. At a North Indian wedding, for example, the music, clothes and dance movements are all very, well, 'Humma Humma-like'. 
 
What makes the film completely unwatchable, though, is the performances. Abhishek Bachchan, in the role of a lifetime, was clearly not ready to take on the challenge. His portrayal of the iconic Lallan Singh in the same director's Yuva, and even Guru, were far more refined. In other words, Abhishek bites off more than he can possibly chew.
 
However, the more surprising act comes from the more seasoned and experienced Aishwarya. Her character screeches and moans and cries and winces and none of that makes you sympathise with her. If only she could have cut down on the histrionics and kept it more subtle, she might have even picked up a couple of awards. She looks bewitching though.
 
Vikram as Dev suffers on account of weak characterisation. He doesn't keep a promise, lies easily, and tricks Beera to defeat him in the end. Some Ram!
 
Govinda and Ravi Kishan both perform well but don't get enough scope to make a mark. AR Rahman's music is good, of course, but a more North Indian feel could have lent the film some authenticity.
 
In the end though, Raavan is this year's biggest disappointment so far. The sad part is that it's not outrageously bad as some other recent films, but it's unbelievably boring. Coming from Mani Ratnam, that's a bummer.