August 28, 2009
Cast: Rajendra Prasad, Rambha
Director: Shashanka Ghosh
Good spoofs are hard to come by, but director Shashanka Ghosh’s Quick Gun Murugun is a rare exception. Based on the iconic Channel [V] character created in the mid-nineties by Ghosh himself and writer Rajesh Devraj, the Tamilian cowboy in bright orange pants has now crossed over to the big screen for a full-length feature.
The plot itself is ridiculously simple. While protecting a village from a villain known as Rice Plate Reddy who’s determined on turning every Udipi restaurant into a non-vegetarian establishment, our hero Murugun (played by Telugu star Rajendra Prasad) ends up getting shot and killed. Thanks to a lifetime of devotion towards vegetarianism, Murugun is reincarnated as himself, and sets out to find his old nemesis who’s currently involved in kidnapping South Indian mummies so he can find the perfect dosa recipe. He finds an unlikely ally in Mango Dolly, the buxom moll of Rice Plate Reddy, and together they work on vanquishing the bad guy.
Packed with clever one-liners, bursting with popular film references, and turning every South Indian cliche on its head, the makers of this film deliver a wildly exaggerated but immensely amusing picture that’s well worth your time. One of my favourite scenes in the film is a standoff between our cowboy and the villain’s top henchman in a traffic-packed street where both must walk on top of cars and even commuter’s heads while taking ten paces back before firing their rounds. It’s mad scenarios like these, in addition to the hilarious dialogue that make this film hard not to like.
But 90 minutes is too long for a spoof. The jokes tend to get repetitive in the film’s second half and the energy begins to wane. Fifteen minutes shorter, and a few indulgences less, this might have been an extraordinary watch.
In its current form though, it’s still a barrel of laughs. I’m going with three out of five and a thumbs up for director Shashanka Ghosh’s Quick Gun Murugun. If all you’re looking for is a relaxed time at the movies, then rest assured, this is Good Fun Murugun.
(This review first aired on CNN-IBN)