144

The bottom-line is, '144' starts off in a promising manner but what doesn't work so well is the pacing in the second half, as the climax is stretched.

This is Udhayabhanu Maheswaran's big break and as Feelings Ravi, he is a riot. And despite the lack of speaking lines, Munishkanth (aka Ramdas) manages to be funny. But it is Shiva, who keeps the laughs coming with his terrific comebacks and one-liners. His segments are so ridiculous that we notice the humour quotient dipping whenever he is not in the scene.

144 shows that it's maker has a flair for comedy of the eccentric type. Some fine tuning and Manikandan can make heads turn.

Long story short, 144 is like the good-old Road Runner and Tom & Jerry kind of movie. You know it doesn't make much sense, but that doesn't stop you from having a good laugh. Verdict: All the ups and downs considered, 144 is still 133 minutes of all-smile time.