Purely Joyful Movie!

Horrible, fascist and poorly acted

Good start, but then it gets ruined

Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

When the movie hit the screens, Rajnikant himself was not sure if it will become a hit. By any standards, this was something unusual. Rajni's movies - even if they are crap - usually runs for 100 days. There was a reason why everone was so anxious about this movie. 1. Rajni's earlier movie, BABA, was a FLOP. (Though i loved it.) 2. This was a remake of the Malayalam hit movie, Manichitrathazh. 3. This did not have any of Rajni's stunts. (that which generally portrays him as a demi God with supernatural fight scenes and punch dialogues)Honestly, it was exciting to see Rajinikanth showing his acting talents in a controlled manner. His screen presence was simply amazing. Rajnikanth as Vettaya Maharaja - This alone gives you a feeling of the money well spent. (Laka Laka sequence)I am not giving 10 for this because of vulgarity in Vadivelu's comedy.

Rajni fans should be ecstatic. After the debacle of Baba, this film should bring him back to the pinnacle of his profession. Personally, I found it refreshing. Chandramukhi is a good entertaining film, although stolen from a Malayalam movie. ;) Having seen this, I want to now see the Malayalam original, directed by Fazil and starring Mohanlal and Shobana. Jyothika plays Shobana's version in the Tamil film and would she win a national award like Shobana did? Rajni takes the mantle of Dr.Saravanan, a psychiatrist who returns to India from the US. I liked the beginning sequences - the titling apparently done by Soundarya Rajnikanth's "Ochre Animations" grab you right away. There had to be a fight/action Matrix-like sequence even before Rajni meets the other protagonists of the film, but hey, the masses have to be satisfied, right?? Another scene that touched me was the way Rajni paid homage to Chevalier Shivaji - that was a great touch to show that the real superstar may be gone but never forgotten in the field and world that he ruled and commanded.The actual story starts when Senthil(Prabhu) and Ganga (Jyothika) moved into a house haunted by the malicious spirit of Chandramukhi, a danseuse in olden times in the court of the evil King Vettaiyan. Vettaiyan lusted after Chandramukhi who was in love with a fellow dancer (Vineeth). Angered by their public affection, Vettaiyan beheads Vineeth's character and burns Chandramukhi on the spot. The palatial mansion becomes haunted by her vengeful ghost. Saravanan, Senthil's foster brother, is then roped in to help solve the mystery.I have to be frank and admit that I enjoyed the film even with its sometimes masala, illogical moments. I enjoy any ghost film without the gore and this was a new film for Rajni. To me however, the person who stood out was Jyothika. Her transition from a bubbly, happy Ganga to a malevolent, angry Chandramukhi leaves you speechless, and makes the hairs stand. As for Rajni, I was astounded when he became the evil king Vettaiyan. This was the old Rajni from KB's school - the villain who sends chills with a sneer, a smile and a glance. I loved, just loved the last 30 minutes of the film.Prabhu was peripheral. Vadivelu was annoying, the comedy was a waste of time. Nasser was also wasted. I hate to see good actors like Nasser do unnecessary roles - anyone could have done it. Nayantara was another peripheral. I did not understand what Sheela was doing there. Vijayakumar did not make any impact at all. I was happy to see K.R. Vijaya again and she really should have been given a meatier role.Music wise, it is all right. Not as good as Muthu and not as fantastic as Annamalai.I think Chandramukhi is worth watching a few times just for the last part. But honestly, Rajni should follow Amitabh's footsteps and take Grand Old Man roles in a dignified manner. Cavorting with 20 year olds are becoming ridiculous.

I seriously think Rajini should stop acting as the "Super hero" and try to take up some decent roles like father or grandfather....his make-up looks horrible and all the perverted jokes suck. Come on ! u cant even imagine him romancing nayantara ! she is 1/4 of his age.. only solace was good acting by Jo and Prabhu ! Prabhu looks much better in this movie..Jo have over-acted as usual but it didn't look odd as her role demands that.Last but not the least, all the double meaning dialogues were so bad it no more gives the image that rajini movies are family entertainers...It looks shameful to appreciate such movies...its nowhere near the original mallu version...And he shd stop trying to be "keanu reeves" of matrix :-)

Chandramukhi is a Tamil version of a very famous Malayalam movie "Manichitrathazhu" that came out a few years earlier. the Malayalam movie has the following actors/actresses...Mohan Lal - Rajni, Suresh Gobi - Prabhu, Shobana - Jyotika, Nedumudi Venu - combined role of Vijaykumar and Nazar, Vinaya Prasad - Nayantra, Innocent - Vadivelui don't remember the name of the actor in the Malayalam movie who plays Vineeth (the dance master).the Malayalam movie was much better, and i say this in spite of being a die-hard Rajni fan. the comment above might be considered subjective, but i would recommend seeing the Malayalam movie to anyone who watches Chandramukhi to see the difference, and decide for themselves.one of the things that stand out for comparison is the way in which the split-personality nature of the lead actress is shown in both movies. While Shobana acted so well naturally in her role as Nagavalli, i'm not sure why P. Vasu (director of Chandramuki) had to beam light on Jyotika's eyes to make the audience aware that she was acting as Chandramukhi. Vadivelu's comedy in the Tamil movie is not too entertaining. i don't say innocent's comedy is very hilarious either, but then there aren't so many sexual innuendos in the comedy in the Malayalam movie. in summary, a movie worth watching once. but please take the time to see the Malayalam movie too (with subtitles if you don't understand Malayalam).