Aranmanai 4 Movie Review: Sundar C’s film is an intact commercial entertainer, but a wimpy horror flick

2.5/5

Aranmanai 4 story

Aranmanai 4 revolves around lawyer Saravanan (Sundar C), who gets the news that his once eloped sister Selvi (Tamannaah Bhatia) has died by suicide after receiving a distraughtly news that her husband passed away under mysterious circumstances. As Saravanan and his aunt (Kovai Sarala) rush to their village to give solace to Selvi's daughter and son, he realises that something more sinister is lurking and that it was not suicide that took away Selvi’s life. It is up to Saravanan to unravel the happenings around him and save the rest of his family, with the help of local doctor Maya (Raashii Khanna).

Also read: Sundar C reveals why he stopped ‘chasing big stars’ - 'I have survived because...' 

Aranmanai 4 review

Director Sundar C is no new face to commercial cinema, and when it comes to Aranmanai 4, there are no prizes if you guess that the filmmaker has roped in all possible commercial factors. From slapstick comedy to emotional mother sentiment, the film goes out of the way to tick all boxes for being a family entertainer, rather than just honestly sticking to the film’s genre that screams horror. With Aranmanai 4, Sundar C has gone one step further and introduced something new. Unlike the rest of the earlier parts, Aranmanai 4 presents a concept called Baak, a human flesh-feasting and shape-shifting spirit that haunts the protagonists of the film. 

Meanwhile to keep the commercial aesthetics afresh, there is aplenty of ensemble comedian cast in form of Yogi Babu, Kovai Sarala and VTV Ganesh, trying to draw laughter from their age-old jokes and slapstick humour. At a point, it also becomes debatable if these comedians are necessary for a horror story that is trying to talk about a new concept. To start with, I wish if the film had explored more of Baak, which soon becomes the pivot of the conflict. We are briefly shown its powers over humans, its goriness and ability to shapeshift with ease. But as the film keeps wanting to save its commercial aesthetics and unwanted humour and drama, we keep seeing less of Baak’s atrocities and origins and more of wrath of commercial cinema.

Aranmanai 4 rides high on the production values. They are pretty much on point, and we see elaborately done portions towards the climax, that becomes a visual treat when the film threads on the concept of good versus evil. It is also somewhere at this point, Sundar C once again proves himself to know the nitty-gritties of commercial filmmaking by knowing when to introduce a surprise cameo factor, that also goes well with the story’s flow.

But all that said and done, Aranmanai 4 still lacks the sufficient meaty portions to call itself a horror story. While the first half is all over the place, the film takes elaborate time to get a strong footing to connect its dots, and by the time it does so, there are strong chances for some to develop a lack of interest. Had the makers treated the film in all its horror elements glory, Aranmanai would have been a film that cracked the need for genre films in Tamil cinema. But alas, just like how Baak consumes on human flesh, the commercial sensibilities too do the same to fruitful storylines.

Aranmanai 4 is the best of the Aranmanai franchise. It has got a substantial amount of story to add to its backbone, decent performances backed by Tamannaah, Raashii and Sundar C. Unlike the previous films which dabbled on the same personal revenge stories, Aranmanai 4 breaks out from the clutches of repeatedness, and there has been some writing that went into it. But that is not all enough to make the film pass the check. Its inconsistency in the first half, mildly explored characterisations, and overpowering aesthetics of commercial cinema, take over Aranmanai 4 from what it could have become.

Also read: Director Sundar C Interview: Only Aranmanai 4 will decide the fate of the fifth instalment 

Aranmanai 4 verdict

Aranmanai 4 is a film that has come far from what the film franchise initially been like. There is a novelty and if you are fan of commercial cinema infiltering its way through all film genres, then Aranmanai 4 is your cup of tea. But otherwise, if you are going in for a true-blue horror film, then you are in for a disappointment, because Baak is not the only one ruining your moment.

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