A theatrical trailer has appeared online for Kollywood film Deiva Thirumagal. Everything about this film that I've read so far sounds wrong. Just from watching the trailer, we can see that it is based on Sean Penn's notorious Oscar-bait film, I Am Sam. Yes, the film about a mentally challenged adult caring for his young daughter. Of course, the producers insist that this is a completely new concept, but that is usually the case with Indian films. What is worrisome in this case is Indian mainstream cinema's tendency to, um, exaggerate everything. This could lead to some questionable acting choices in depicting a challenged individual.
The last major attempt India made at this type of characters was Karan Johar and Shah Rukh Khan's My Name is Khan from January of 2010. In that film, Khan portrayed a Muslim man with Asperger's syndrome who went on a journey to meet the president and solve America's Islamophobia problem. Okay, that sounds hokey, and the film was terrible, but Khan's performance wasn't half bad, and certainly wasn't as offensive as it could have been. That film really went off the rails with a ludicrous second half that involved Khan's character ending up in a small "Georgia" town that looked like a cross between Depression era shanty towns and The Shire. It ends up flooding after a hurricane and Khan's character saves everyone in the town from drowning before leading the entire population in a chorus of We Shall Overcome sung in Hindi. I shit you not.
Anyway, Indian films ripping off American films is not news, and by itself that wouldn't qualify this for ScreenAnarchy, but wait, there's more...
Dinosaurs! Giant Snakes! Ancient Action Sequences? What?
Yes!
I speak no Tamil, but I can only guess that these are manifestations of the lead character's imagination, or maybe stories he tells his daughter. Who knows. Who the fuck cares?
What is that poster? What the fuck is up with those sheep? Why is he smiling so big? What is he doing to that sheep? I don't understand!
Anyway, enjoy the trailer for Deiva Thirumagal...