Nilavuku Enmel Ennadi Kobam Movie Review : A romcom that's breezy but stops short of stirring our hearts

Nilavukku En Mel Ennadi Kobam Movie Synopsis: A young chef who is on the verge of agreeing to marry his schoolmate decides to attend the wedding for his ex-lover, to find out of he has truly moved on. What happens next?

Nilavukku En Mel Ennadi Kobam Movie Review: In Raayan, his previous film as a director, Dhanush took a predictable story and fashioned an intense action drama. And now, in Nilavukku En Mel Ennadi Kobam (NEEK), the actor-filmmaker cooks up a romantic comedy that straightaway sets our expectations lower with its tagline - A usual love story - and delivers more than what it promises.

When the film begins, we see Prabhu (Pavish) being forced to go with his parents (Saranya Ponvannan and Aadukalam Naren, who inject so much warmth into these roles) to see a prospective bride. Interestingly, the girl, Preethi (Priya Prakash Varrier) happens to be his schoolmate, and the two ask for some time to get to know each other before taking a decision regarding marriage. Dhanush fills this scene with light-hearted banter that is not only refreshingly different from similar setups that we have seen in Tamil cinema but also reflects the casual and candid approach that many of today's youngsters have towards relationship and marriage.

But just when the young couple is about to take a decision, Prabhu receives the marriage invite from his ex-lover Nila (Anikha Surendran). Conflicted by thoughts, he confesses his love story to Preethi, who suggests he attend the wedding to find out if he has truly moved on. And so, Prabhu goes to Goa to take part in Nila's wedding festivities. Do the estranged lovers get back together or will Prabhu end up marrying Preethi?

A stark contrast from the romantic films of the '80s and the '90s, where it was always about that 'one true love', NEEK attempts to capture the frothy and even frivolous romantic (mis)adventures of the Gen Z kids. Dhanush's filmmaking, too, mirrors the carefree spirit of the characters - and is quite removed from the moody intensity of Raayan, and the genteel formalism of Pa. Pandi. The cinematography (Leon Brotto) here feels dreamy one moment and candid the next, the editing (GK Prasanna) is looser and the performances just about convey the essence of a scene without cutting deep into the emotional state of the characters. The effect is that of watching a feature film that has intentionally been made with the aesthetics of a YouTube Short or an Instagram Reel.

This approach comes with its own pluses and minuses. It ensures that the film stays breezy, with drama that is never overpowering, and often entertaining, with a funny quip just a dialogue or two away to make us chuckle. But at the same time, it creates a distance between us and the happenings on the screen, making it a challenge for us, as audiences, to emotionally connect to the characters and their conflicts. Even when two characters fall in love (even with a lovely reason - food - built into the writing) or break up, we feel nothing!

Then there are the performances. The young actors look their parts, but their performances are wildly uneven. There is a lot of Dhanush in Pavish - and it's not just because he happens to be his nephew, and looks a bit like him. We see VIP Dhanush in the scenes with the parents (who are, refreshingly, both friendly and supportive), the 3 and Thangamagan Dhanush in the scenes between Prabhu and his friend Rajesh (Mathew Thomas), the Dhanush of Maapillai and Thiruvilayadal Arambam in the portions involving Prabhu and Nila's super rich father (Sarath Kumar). To give Pavish the benefit of doubt, perhaps he merely did exactly what his director showed him on the set, and will have to wait until his next film to really assess him as an actor.

Meanwhile, Anikha looks a bit too young (just a couple of years older to the girl we saw in Viswasam), and comes across more as a teenager playing an adult character. The chemistry between the two actors, too, doesn't convey romance; worse, they have a brother-sister vibe. Priya Prakash Varrier fares better, but her character has very little to do, especially in the second half. Mathew Thomas, who has fun playing the comic sidekick, is let down by the dubbing.

While the lack of depth in the performances isn't an issue in the lighter scenes, it certainly stops us from feeling close to the characters and rooting for them. The same applies to the music (by GV Prakash Kumar), which, barring the catchy Golden Sparrow, is strictly functional and hardly elevates the scenes emotionally.

But despite these shortfalls, NEEK is further proof that Dhanush had solid filmmaking skills and can flit between diverse genres with ease. It's just that the film, to paraphrase a line from it, is likeable but stops short of being loveable.