Gatta Kusthi movie review: Aishwarya Lekshmi flexes her acting chops as the star of this movie starring Vishnu Vishal.
Gatta Kusthi movie review: Aishwarya Lekshmi and Vishnu Vishal in the film.
Vishnu Vishal makes an interesting choice both as an actor and as a producer. After delivering two back-to-back plot-driven thrillers, he's back with Gatta, a lighthearted country entertainer packed with some sweet messages about modern marriage and the need for women's empowerment. I will come. The film is arguably regarded as his one of the funniest family dramas in Tamil cinema in recent years. It needs a very predictable plot of a domineering husband who finally draws his wife after a transformation.What makes the film refreshing is the comic treatment and Aishwarya Rekshmi taking most of the spotlight. to steal. Vishnu literally plays second fiddle to Aishwarya in most of the films. (Please also read:
Amu movie reviews: Aishwarya Lekshmi stars in a chilling thriller depicting a woman's fight against domestic violence)
Keerthi (Aishwarya) plays a local wrestling champion, but her parents want to marry her soon and are against her ambitions. Veera (Vishnu), on the other hand, is living on the legacy of her ancestors and she wants to be a good housewife and marry a girl who will not be her boss. She's basically looking for a woman with low expectations. Since she gets married without knowing the truth, the events and married life between the two become the core of the story. 
What makes Gatta Kusti, a largely predictable movie, truly entertaining is the silliness of the plot. This is the kind of movie that works if you don't take it seriously, and it's the only way to fully enjoy the movie's intentions. But the second half takes an interesting detour by talking about female empowerment. The film has some very interesting core thoughts about modern expectations between husband and wife and how men get around basic household chores.
Although Vishnu Vishal plays the main character, the film is actually owned by Aishwarya Lekshmi. She also gets a well-choreographed action sequence that is nothing short of one of the movie's best moments worth whistling in. Karunas becomes a solid comic her character for the first time in a long time and is a key part of the movie. It works great in some of the scenes.
Gatta Kusti seems to have his heart in the right place, but bad writing choices let it down at key points, like the decision to milk misogyny for comedy. The Toxic Man is a gray-haired molester played by Karunas and is not a "hero", but the sections where he engages in molestation are treated as humor. Sometimes (this is a discussion for another day) Karunas say it's a wise decision as Veera can grab his wife's hair and put her head under her feet and stomp on her. like him.
It was disturbing to see this give rise to loud cheers. In another crucial moment, an emotional Keerthi says that she puts up with her painful marriage after sacrificing her dreams and identity, for the love of her husband. Nowhere in the film do we see Veera reciprocating such concern. Though the film tells aloud several times that women aren’t slaves to men and they deserve better treatment inside and outside homes, it still gives the toxic males the longest end of the rope.
In the final act of Gatta Kusthi, Veera pressurises a wrestling committee to conduct a bizarre face-off that go against the rule book. The supervising committee member calmly says, “Rules kedakkudhu sir, audience enjoy panranga la, adhu podhum!” I really wish the director didn’t adopt the same stand while writing humour that seems antithetical to the central theme.
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