Alangu is a Tamil film that was written and directed by S. P. Shakthivel. Gunanidhi, Kaali Venkat, Chemban Vinod and Appani Sarath are main characters of the movie. The film was made by D. Sabareesh and S.A. Sangamithra under the label of DG Film Company and Magnas Productions and the distribution of the film was done by Sakthi film factory.
This is shot by S. Pandikumar, music by Ajesh and San Lokesh does the editing. Its official duration of run is 2 hours and 11 minutes, and the stated budget is Rs. 6 crores. The film was filmed on the border between Tamil Nadu and Kerala, thus, the movie is filled with both Tamil and Malayalam language.
Contents
Review
Alangu, a heart-throbbing rural survival drama directed by SP Sakthivel, is anchored on real life memories and connections between man and beast. It is loosely based on the childhood experience of the director with his beloved dog Mani, in the movie, which is presented with a touching emotional plot into the environment of green and wild landscape of the border area in Tamil Nadu and Kerala.
The movie generally follows the path of a downtrodden Dharman (Gunanidhi), a humble young man, who is harassed by social attitudes towards him and impoverishment ending with this improbable friend, an indie dog that he calls Kaliamma to be his friend/accomplice.
Simple bond though is the heart of the movie. What starts as a friendship tale gradually turns into a strained battle between the two, as they get in contact with the strong Malayali politician Augustine (Chemban Vinod Jose), whose life has been shaken as his daughter is injured in a dog attack. What follows is a vile revenge agenda that transforms the forest into a battle ground of ideology, trepidation, as well as survival.
It is based on the usual tropes of good and evil, yet the story is elevated by the Alangu atmosphere of world-building and emotionally vulnerable acting. Gunanidhi has ingenuity and conviction in the depiction of Dharman. Sakthivel is realistic in the way they relate to each other and the chemistry between Dharman and Kaliamma is beautiful. The feral henchman Philip, played by Appani Sarath, gives a chilling physicality to his appearance, and Kaali Venkat, in a minor role, gives one of the most heartfelt moments in the film.
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It is also a visual feast of the movie. Taken along the picturesque yet rustic regions of Idukki, Vandiperiyar and Anaikatty, the cinematography by S. Pandikumar depicts the rugged beauties of the land. The movie is filled with scintillating background score by Ajesh that accompanies the thrill and tension in the movie particularly in the edge-of-the-seat chase scenes.
Although the screenplay occasionally becomes formulaic, and a bit more tension in the third act would have been a life savior, it is clear that Sakthivel sees the realm he envisions. He walks about on commenting about animal cruelty, native tribal politics, and the fading away of indigenous dog breeds such as the titular Alangu without seeming preachy. The themes are reinforced by symbolism which is nearly folkloric, a snake slowly creeping past the unsuspecting, e.g.
Ultimately, Alangu is a shaggy, honest film that will tinkle your heartstrings should you be the type of a person to love a pet and lose him. The film is hard to find with strength in simplicity and bravery in sympathy.
Cast
To the weight of Alangu it is the burden that confers upon the shoulders of its protagonist, on the hourglass figure of a man called Gunanidhi, the ability to bear on his shoulders Dharma, in his entire repressed quietude and crude innocence, into the frame. Taking into consideration that Gunanidhi is a minor actor whose only other movies were small-time, his acting is commendable in its subtleties. He indirectly makes us sense the struggle and vulnerability of Dharma particularly when Dharma is in an interaction with his dog Kaliamma. We can easily base our emotions on this character because of the solidity of his performance and that change appears all the more believable.
Kaali Venkat, who may be trusted to play a good supportive role, delivers a massively appealing performance as the uncle of Dharma. He is able to bring gravity, as well as emotional warmth, even with his limited screen time, when he intervenes as protector and confidant to the main character at some point of the film. One of the strongest moments of the movie is his breakdown.
Chemban Vinod Jose is shown as the big-shot local politician Augustine, who has a very personal axe to grind with the village dogs. The character is slightly underwritten, but the screen presence of Chemban does contribute to his icy cool attitude that is much more calculating than executing orders. One should find subtlety in the emotional containment that he applies to otherwise an explosive personality.
Appani Sarath, in the role of Philip, Augustine’s bloodthirsty companion, is the screen dominant with his feral rage. He is physical and intense enough to base the role of the antagonist in his cat-and-mouse game with Dharma. Sreerekha, the mother of Dharma, is really very effective as a woman caught between her roles and her motherly urges. She is simultaneously hurt, haughty and powerless.
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The others that round off the dynamics of the forest community quite well are Regin Rose, Kotravai, and Shanmugam Muthusamy with their supportive functions. The cast is completed by Master Ajay and Idhayakumar who are generational in terms of values and identity. The Alangu cast altogether is exceptional in terms of basing the emotional gist of the film, powerful, and its themes of loyalty, morality, and rebellion linger on even beyond the closing credits.
Critical Reviews
Thinkal Menon of Times of India gave the movie a 3 out of 5 rating and said, “The strong making, emotional content and interesting tension have critically up-lifted the revenge saga but it is slightly disappointed by its bloody scenes, weak climax and weak antagonist. Emotion-based man vs dog, Gunanidhi made of some great shots, acting, and no doubt it is a one-time watch, despite numerous mistakes.
According to K Jeshi of The Hindu, Alangu, directed by SP Sakthivel is a sentimental action film framed around his childhood friendship with his dog Mani. It explores the theme of life and animal love in a forest setting that has a tribal conflict. The film already contains stunning sceneries and touching narrative.
Cinema Express critic Srijeeith Mullappilly rated the film as three out of five, by hailing the emotional dimensions of Alangu, performance of the main actors and how the movie uses Dharman (Gunanidhi) and his dog relationship. Thus it was stereotypical, the bad guy was filler, but at least the film had some allegory to it. The presentation of Gunanidhi and narration of Sakthivel were interesting.
Audiences Reviews
On IMDb 1.2k people gave a rating of 8.1 stars out of 10 stars which is a good rating considering viewers. Having read reviews posted by users, I understood that Alangu has touched the hearts of viewers, in particular, those who love touching ones and stories about good relationships between people and pets. The movie is rated as a feel-good thriller by the majority of the viewers which has a great emotional heart.
Others celebrate the stilted, clenched writing, specifically the second half of the film, which gives it a high-stakes storyline. Users who commented that the bonding between the two has been the emotional heart of the movie have singled out Gunanidhi who plays the role of Dharma and the natural acting of the dog Kaliamma.
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The technical accomplishments of the movie, such as cinematography, which presents the viewer with rich forest scenes with its beauty and power, and the sound, which doesn’t strangle the scenes, amazed some users. It is high time to award director S.P. Sakthivel a pat on the back because he manages to create a compelling, multi-layered survival, morals, and eco-consciousness story by using his own real-life inspirations as a narration. The message of animal empathy of the movie appealed to many pet owners who praised it as a must-watch to everyone who knows how much love a dog could give.
However, some critics were also outraged and alleged that Alangu was a dull remake of Asuran. They believed that the screenplay was cliched, the characters had little depth and the emotional nuance was low. The super villain was criticized especially by claiming that his path was shallow and nonsensical.
But to the majority of the viewers, Alangu is a fairly successful effort to present a new type of rural drama that is pleasing to the eye, full of compassion, and passionately narrated. The manner it portrayed the tribal community and the mute struggle of a weak hero to a social agenda against the mighty oppressors was perceived as both socially meaningful and filmically fulfilling. Aided by the combination and emotional subtlety of thriller, Alangu is regarded as a worthy contribution to the Tamil cinema and a love and suffer story with hope.
Songs
Alangu’s soundtrack is rustic and covering in its nature as it embraces folk, western and sentimental sounds that are characteristic of the aggressive rural nature and the emotional undertones of the movie. The first song in the album is the strong devotional-folk song, Kaliyamma, written by Mohan Rajan and sung by Sathyaprakash heartedly. The country grooves and soulfulness are an appropriate scenery prelude. Anthony Daasan and Fejo assisted in writing Vishnu Edavan and Fejo’s composition, Puli Yaaru Nari Yaaru. This cut stands as a flaming hymn of defiance and persistence with its strong yet memorable lyrics and hip-hop rhythm.
Then we have Kongu Song which is a rustic song that has much of the regional taste and has been sung by Kidakuzhi Mariyammal and written by Kavin. It has that sort of primal strength of the voice, in combination with the traditional rhythm, which gives it the actual folk sound, which was the sustenance of many lives of people and the background of the culture to the movie. The fourth measure, the song composed by Mohan Rajan and sung by composer Ajesh, is a lullaby song, which gives the album a bit of emotional weight. It is also an easy recipe that makes it that effective.
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The album then concludes with the brief ensemble song “Senguruvi” performed by Shamala Devi, Akshaya Shivkumar, Sharath Matthew and Dinesh Pandi. The song leaves a soothing, poetic echo with the words Kavin sings echoing the song. Collectively, the five songs would be slightly less than 16 minutes of listening experience so brief and yet fully infused with the essence of the distant vistas of both the literary creativity and cultural heart of Alangu.
How to Watch the Alangu Movie
Alangu has passed its theatrical release and is currently available on the Amazon Prime Video. The film is no longer in theatres, but one can still watch it directly at home with an Amazon Prime subscription. The only thing you have to do is sign in to your Amazon account with an active Prime subscription, and find the movie in the library of the Prime Video. To provide ease of viewing, the membership provides at-home viewers with the option of both streaming and downloading the movie and providing them with HD and mobile-optimal viewing experience.
Amazon Prime subscriptions are not only accompanied by Alangu but also unlimited access to a massive library of other merchandised including regional and international movies and series, documentaries, and a few originals of Prime. And to those not theatres cinemagoers, the OTT release is the legal and better option to view the movie.
Remember that the OTT release of Alangu is also an indication of a new trend of significance in the transfer of the rural-rooted, emotionally-charged, Tamil films to more people through digital platforms. In the case you enjoy narratives of survival thrillers, moralistically sound ones, or built on human-animal interactions, now you can simply press a few buttons and watch Alangu on Amazon Prime Video.