There would have been a time when I would have loved a movie like Cobra.
There would have been a time when I would have contributed to the FRS of a movie like Cobra. So you all know what an FRS is right?
Now is not that time.
There would have been a time when I would have loved a movie like Cobra, that would have been in 1993.
In 1993, Gentleman released and for long stretches of growing up, it was my favorite movie.
A series of mysterious crimes happen-an unknown hero-an officer is on his tail -their lives intersect and then we learn of the hero’s backstory and his motivation to be involved in these crimes.
Will the hero succeed?
Ascribing any sort of invention in cinema is usually wrong, but Shanker really did re-invent this sub-genre for the Tamil screens and he doesn’t usually get credit much.
Gentleman, Indian, Anniyan, Ai even 2.0 have the same story structure, it provided the perfect skeleton to warrant a big star and Shankar smartly could also up the budget and indulge in indulgences.
There would have been a time when I would have contributed to the FRS of a movie like Cobra, that would have been in 2015.
Guess it’s not a subgenre after all, it is only one if others too are able to make effective additions.
Movies in the above class made by those who are not Shanker, somehow feel very derivative and uninspiring.
Shanker himself effectively killed it with Ai, but like after Sati’s death, her body was scattered all across the country, elements from this subgenre make their place in other Tamil films.
I can also see why Vikram would have had no problem in agreeing to Cobra, not only does it have an interrogation scene which is reminiscent of Anniyan, there is the noble motivation of helping orphans along the way, even though he has to assassinate many state heads in outrageous costumes.
No hero has never turned down an orphanage helping hero. It’s our version of saving the cat.
Now that’s a trope when done badly gives the viewer a headache.
I got a headache, paused the movie and reached out to get my Amrutanjan.
When the movie began again, even Vikram’s character had a headache, it was because the heroine was in love with him- she was also a math teacher.
Okay, so if you start playing Cobra bingo every time someone says “Math Genius” in this movie, you might have to shell out more money to print more bingo cards.
I was almost convinced that this was a Shanker clone, till I found that director Ajay Gnanamuthu had his fingerprints all over the film. If you remember an annoying kid from his previous movie, there’s an annoying student in this one.
Before I realized why the student is in the picture, I applied some more Amrutanjan. Yes, the girl stays in the picture to give a circuitous connection as to why the movie is called Cobra.
Just before mid-way, the director discovered hackers can also be geniuses and introduces another character and the movie turns into one brother protecting the other much like Aalavandhan.
By that time I was out. I fell into a black pool along with my Amrutanjan bottle, mathematical formulas danced to the tune of Thumbi Thumbi as they chased me.
I kept falling till I reached the Cobra’s lair. I was not surprised that it spoke, because nothing would surprise me more than Irfan Pathan playing an interpol officer called Aslan in a tamil movie called Cobra.
The Cobra spoke. I asked it to stop and bite me instead. It understood that I needed sleep, deep sleep and it granted me the gift of dreamless sleep.
The Lowly Laureate 