Petromax Review
Star Cast : Tamannaah, Munishkanth, TSK, Kaali, Sathyan
Director : Rohin Venkatesan
Remakes are always safe bets but what happens when you decide to work on a genre that has been done and dusted so many times. Petromax is the latest addition to the long list of horror comedies in Tamil cinema, and expectedly so, it isn't something special. Rather, it is a decent mashup that works in parts.
Being an official remake of the Telugu film Anando Brahma, Petromax deals with a man who tries to sell his house before migrating to Malaysia. As the people in the surroundings spread the word that there are ghosts inside the house, he brings in four men to prove it wrong.
In come these men who all have an issue each - Senthil with opposing emotional behavior, Nandha - who cannot hear and suffers from night blindness, Thangam - who is a heavy alcoholic and finally Kaali, an aspiring actor who loves to imitate the legendary scenes of Tamil cinema. Meera(Tamannaah) and her relatives who are the ghosts inside the house, try to chase away these four men, only to lead to a good load of comics.
The first half of Petromax takes its time to set up the stage and introduce us to the characters, at a leisurely pace. The comics here are far apart until we reach the point where all the four men come together. It is only in the second half that the fun factor goes to the next level, with each of the actors having good moments.
The interesting thing about Petromax is how the weight of the film is split equally amidst all the supporting actors, with everybody being a character in the story. Though Tamannaah is the face of the film, the four men Kaali Venkat, Munishkanth, Sathyan and TSK get the best moments. TSK in particular, gets a lot of crowd-friendly moments which are sure to bring the roof down. Yogi Babu's cameo is enjoyable, with Premkumar too getting a good space for himself.
In terms of the sound design, Petromax is superbly done thanks to Ghibran's music and the numerous effects. The cinematography by Dani Raymond is good enough, while the edit pattern works well.
Director, Rohin Venkatesan maintains the heart of the original, to churn out a moderately entertaining film.
