Movie review: Vishwaroopam, an edge-of-the-seat thriller

To clear the air, there is certainly no reason to ban Vishwaroopam. In any sense, any form of creative act shouldn't be banned, especially in a democracy that values free speech. And Vishwaroopam is just a film, no threat to Muslims – in India or anywhere.Vishwanath and Nirupama played by Kamal Haasan and Pooja Kumar respectively are not so a happily married couple living in New York. Vishwanath teaches Kathak for a living while Nirupama has just completed her Phd in oncology.With her boss, Deepak portrayed by Samrat Chakraborti hitting on her and the lack of love in her marriage; she wants a divorce from her husband.Pooja ropes in a private detective to unearth an affair or a flaw in Vishwanath so that Nirupama can use it as grounds for divorce, but a sudden turn of events leads to his death and Vishwanath's real identity that he is a Muslim which leaves her stunned. Is Vishwanath a Hindu, or a Muslim terrorist? That's how the story moves forward. Vishwaroopam, is one good entertainer, until then, its execution misses it away. If you've forgotten what edge-of-the-seat entertainment means, then it is time to rediscover that pleasure.Stylish and substantial, the narrative weaves and winds its way into logical and compulsive threads that bring together the theme of international spying with the more sensitive issue of the Islamic and the personal identity of a man, whose heroic figure grows out of a sense of commitment to the country and to world peace.Vishwaroopam works on a few levels. For fans of Haasan's dramatic performances, this is a good opportunity to see their star as three very distinct characters – actually, it is one man with three different personas.The New York segments in the film, especially in the third act, seem dull, and uninteresting. Moving from Afghanistan, back to New York, the film somewhat loses its edge, and falls into the often narrated thriller structure – bad guys, good guys, cops, FBI, a dirty bomb and guess who will win in the end?The cinematography, production design, sound design, costumes aerial helicopter shots, scenes of war, makes the situation very effective. Especially a 5-minute US army attack scene before interval.Haasan is very impressive. His persona was earlier seen in ‘Hey Ram'. He adds a splash of warmth and humour to the inherently menacing saga. Pooja Kumar as Kamal Haasan's beloved is charming. She has a pleasant screen presence and isn't in fear of her awesome co-star. However, if anyone leaves a lasting impression after Haasan, it is Rahul Bose, who as Al-Qaeda Jihadi Omar, wraps his persona in menace and terror.Bose had last played a villain in Govind Nihalani's Thakshak in 1999. It is no coincidence that he returns to his black shades in a film that in many ways owes loyalty to the dark evil angry anti-establishment tales of Nihalani.Music by Shankar Ehsaan Loy BGS is unimpressive and is a big let-down at crucial scenes. There are two songs which sound average on screen. Editing by Mahesh Narayanan could be trimmed a bit, especially in the second-half.I'll go with 2.5 stars Kamal Haasan's Vishwaroopam. It is not one of the best flicks, but it deserves to have its chance to play in theaters, as said earlier, in a democratic country like India, where freedom of speech is valued. Prohibiting or banning such movies would be an insult to such freedom.