Film- Jasper
Director- Yuvaraj D.
Cast-Vivek Rajgopal, Aishwarya Dutta, CM Bala, Lavanya, Raj Kalesh, Prashanth Murali, Kottayam Ramesh
The plot revolves around a hitman Jasper who had hung up his boots and gone missing after a tragic incident had hit his family. Decades later he is forced to surface and gets to settle some old scores. Appreciable is the debutant director’s effort to move away from the beaten track and to offer a fare different from the usual ones.
The story opens on Harish (Vivek), who with his wife and little son had shifted to his new posting as the bank manager. The house they had rented belonged to an elderly man, boorish and an alcoholic (CM Bala). Harish’s refusal to allow the bank to be used for illegal purposes, lands him in trouble. Kidnapped and held for ransom, it’s how the house owner on the plea of Harish’s wife sets out to track the gang and rescue Harish.
The story is narrated from the perspective of a cop who was tracking Jasper a dreaded criminal. As the cop meets Jasper’s old colleagues and acquaintances, we get to piece together a story of a man who as the Bard would say, was more ‘sinned against than sinning’. The narrative moves back and forth in time, as it reveals in bits and pieces, the journey of Jasper into the world of crime; his link with the pastor of a church; and the reason for his relentless pursuit of the men who had kidnapped Harish.
The cast has been well chosen, many of the actors not very familiar faces on Tamil screen.CM Bala (of ‘Yaaro’) is a perfect fit as Jasper. The actor using his body language and his tall athletic physique to good effect, renders a splendid performance. Raj Kalesh as Pastor Edward, a practitioner of black magic and the leader of a Satan worshipping cult, leaves an impact. Vivek Rajgopal appears in a dual avatar and does a neat job of both. The women characters have not much to do. More coherence in the screenplay and a faster narrative pacing, would have worked to the film’s advantage.
The technical side has cooperated ably to bring the directors vision on to screen. The cinematography (C Manikandan) and the background score ( debutant Kumaran, son of renowned percussionist Drummer Sivamani ) complement the feel and mood.
A fairly interesting watch, ‘Jasper’ could be an ideal fare for those satiated with the formulaic scenario and wish to view something different.
Malini Mannath
Malini Mannath 