'Kanguva' movie review: The premise is there, the patience isn't

What I seek in cinema—more than scale, more than dazzling visuals, more than breakneck plotting or a hail of knives and bullets—are those quiet, unhurried moments when characters breathe… when they are given space to exist and reveal themselves to us. Kanguva has the premise but strangely, lacks the patience. It buries us in information clusters, while its characters and score compete in an exhausting three-hour shouting match.

Every great film (pick your favourite) strikes that rare balance between intimacy and chaos, between silence and spectacle. One nourishes the other; one makes you grateful for the other. In Kanguva, I found myself almost pleading for a moment of stillness, a chance to linger on even one shot, on at least one face. It’s only during a song in the second half (Mannippu) that the film slows its mad run—when, at last, you see two characters beginning to interact. But before you can get any satisfaction, the film is off again, off to new problems, and new deaths.

Kanguva is relentless, and not in a good way. This isn’t momentum; it’s dizzying unfocussed pace that leaves you queasy, disconnected. The raw emotional strength from Siva’s better work is barely present here. It’s a film that could say so much, but it’s too distracted to stay with any one idea. And here’s the truth: it’s just as hard to feel invested in films where nothing happens as in films where too much seems to be happening.

And that’s the real heartbreak because the world-building must not have been easy. The cast seems committed, and it’s not every day we get a film set a thousand years ago. The disappointment isn’t in the fact that those early Disha Patani portions don’t work—you’re willing to tap your knuckles about during ‘Yolo’ and pay waiting tax, so the ‘real’ film can begin…

But when that real story does arrive, and Suriya is doing his utmost to sink into the role, and yet, the film isn’t able to whip up drama, emotional resonance, or even action thrills (some new weapon choices alone won’t do)… What can you say? It’s not a good sign when the screaming and the score briefly stop in the film, and you breathe a sigh of relief.

(This article originally appeared on cinemaexpress.com)