Suriya has been reeling under a low phase for a while and it is quite praiseworthy that he still chose to take a risk with a film like 24 which is extremely new for the audiences.
Story: Siva Kumar is living a happy life with wife Priya and his baby son Mani. His aim is to create a time machine which is in the form of a watch. But his evil twin brother Athreya wants to make it his own. A series of events takes us back and forth into the past and present. The evil almost wins…
Analysis: There’s no denying that 24 is a wonderful film. The genre maybe new for the Telugu audiences and could probably be a reason for them to enjoy this film a great deal as well. When was the last time our heroes had a cat and mouse chase with time? A funky gadget, which is extremely powerful – can freeze time, can change the series of events and what not! But when there is such immense power, there’s always going to be the evil lurking around to take advantage of it.
Suriya has invested a great deal into this film both in the form of his money and also his efforts and time. The risk he took mostly works but there’s a pit fall in the form of the love track between Samantha and Suriya which might be a key element to draw masses but ends up making the film a drag and reduces the standard of what could have otherwise been a fantastic watch with several racy elements in place. As for creative liberties, the filmmaker had a field time. For instance, steam engines in the 90s! A feather from an eagle always seems to find the right place to cause havoc or the opposite of it.
Performances: Vikram Kumar manages an amazing cast which gives you no reason to complain. Even the characters are well-etched. But Samantha is yet again reduced to playing the glam doll and it comes as a disappointment considering the last time she worked with Vikram Kumar, he gave her career best Manam.
Verdict: 24 is a film which breaks all kind of barriers and ushers in a new genre of cinema giving hope that a lot can be achieved. Even the execution is mostly done right. There are a few glitches which may have pulled down the quality of the film.
