'Koogle Kuttappa' review: KS Ravikumar makes this faithful remake worthwhile
Tamil film Koogle Kuttappa, a remake of the Malayalam film Android Kunjappan, hit the theaters on Friday. Directed by the Sabari-Saravanan duo, the movie has veteran filmmaker KS Ravikumar, Tharshan, Losliya, and Yogi Babu in the lead roles. Just like the original film, the makers give Koogle Kuttappa a family-drama spin, too, even though its actual genre is science fiction. Here's our review.
The remake follows the same trajectory as the original and is nothing more than a scene-to-scene recreation. Ravikumar plays the aging father Subramani, Tharshan plays his son Adithya, and Losliya plays his romantic interest Tharavi. When Adithya decides to go abroad for the sake of his career, he brings a robot, Kuttappa, to keep company with his father and take care of him.
Unlike other remakes, how much one enjoys Koogle Kuttappa doesn't depend on whether they have watched the original. The heart-touching climax, the beautiful bond that Subramani creates with the robot, and even those conversations in the neighborhood about Kuttappa after its arrival are the same. Yet, these scenes evoke the same reaction from the viewers as they did in the original.
What makes an unflinchingly loyal remake worthwhile for those who know the story remains on the actors' shoulders. Ravikumar scores brownie points for gracefully slipping into the shoes of Suraj Venjaramoodu. Tharshan and Losliya's portions were disappointing and there was no chemistry between them. Considering the former had bigger shoes of the mighty Soubin Shahir to fill, however, we can cut him some slack.
Besides the subpar performances by Tharshan and Losliya, another major negative of Koogle Kuttappa is the characterization of the supporting actors. A brilliant Babu is absolutely wasted in the film with no character arc and has been used just for a few irritating body-shaming jokes. Shortcomings aside, Koogle Kuttappa is a must-watch, feel-good drama. We are going with 3.5/5 stars for the film.
