When even an armyman cannot be relied upon to deliver a good movie about our soldiers and their lives, it is indeed sad. That's the feeling one is left with after viewing Aran, which has been directed by Major Ravi, an ex-military man. While the army-related sequences are mounted well, the movie is routinely interrupted by unconnected songs, inane comedy and regular stunts - in other words, things that go into a bad masala film. This need to regularly turn into a masala film - and a bad one at that - is what makes Aran stay in the middle of the short list of Tamil films featuring the army.

Major Mahadevan(Mohanlal) thinks highly of his team member Jai(Jeeva). So when he gets news of terrorists using a mosque as a hideout, he recalls Jai, who is back in his hometown to get married. Jai gets back and the duo successfully execute their missions. But a group of terrorists has a much more dastardly plan to destabilize India.

As long as the movie is focused on Mohanlal and Jeeva, it is on solid ground. Whether following them around on their missions or showing their affection and respect for each other on safer ground, the film creates a pair of strong characters. They are brave souls who put country over everything else and you get the feeling that the country is safe as long as men like them are defending it. The other soldiers in their team obviously get the short shrift but the bonding among them is brought out well, whether in their barracks or out in the field.

The action sequences - and there are a few of them - are picturized well. They are exciting but also convey the danger that the soldiers go through. But occasional missteps(as when Prakashraj asks Mohanlal to check in every minute when he is on a deadly mission and then reprimands him when he doesn't!) do exist and stand out a bit more than usual since the sequences surrounding them are picturized realistically and with skill.

The way the personal stories of Mohanlal and Jeeva are presented illustrates the movie's problems very well. Both segments help us identify with the characters since they present a happy segment of their lives and introduce us to the people around them. Mohanlal's flashback is short and serves to establish a link, however cinematic it may be, between him and the bad guys. On the other hand, Jeeva's segment is long and is obvious as an attempt to present him as the usual Tamil cinema hero, romancing the heroine and fighting off rowdies at the village fair.

Though the Jeeva-Gopika romance is unnecessary, it is atleast cute and has a few good moments(like the way she reacts to news of his recall to the border). Even Jeeva's fights can be condoned considering who the movie's producer is. What really drags the movie down is the so-called comedy track. Ramesh Khanna, as an armyman, and 'Ganja' Karuppu, as Jeeva's friend who accompanies him, try in vain to fit into the proceedings and generate laughs. Needless to say, they fail miserably at both attempts and only serve to bring back memories of movies like Unnai Kodu Ennai Tharuven and Indru. The nadir is the item number by Rahasiya, inserted using the lamest of excuses.

The hero's voice is probably the last thing that we think, could affect how we feel about a movie. But Aran proves that that is not the case since Rajeev dubbing for Mohanlal is a big factor in making the film less effective. For those familiar with Mohanlal's voice(and Rajeev's voice), it leads to a big disconnect. As we see Mohanlal act, we instinctively understand the emotions he is experiencing or expressing but Rajeev's voice never conveys the intensity of those emotions. The voice plays a big part as the movie progresses since the final portions are intended to be very emotional and naturally, the disconnect between the actor and his voice diminishes the effectiveness of many scenes.

Mohanlal is controlled but effective as he proves once again that he is a completely natural actor. Jeeva, who proved that he could also act naturally in Dishyum, ends up looking the more artificial of the two. But that is in part due to the nature of his character also. Gopika looks sweet but once Jeeva goes off the border, she is rarely seen except for a couple of duets. The villains are cardboard cutouts and their characterization has no subtlety as they rant about bringing India down and killing its people. The songs don't make much of an impression, probably because they feel like unnecessary insertions in an otherwise serious movie.