Dasavatharam

Dasavatharam, directed by K. S. Ravikumar, is a Tamil film starring Kamal Haasan as a biotechnologist trying to retrieve a vial containing a deadly virus from a former CIA agent, in a chase that collides with the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami. Kamal Haasan plays ten different characters in the film, including a version of then US president George Bush; Hollywood makeup artist Michael Westmore spent eighteen months designing prosthetics for the ten roles, with each character's makeup taking about nine hours to apply. Haasan drank liquids through a straw and kept his facial muscles as still as possible to avoid disturbing the makeup during the long process. The film grossed more than 200 crore rupees worldwide, becoming the first South Indian film to cross that mark, and held the record for highest grossing Tamil film of all time until 2010. Who it's for: anyone curious about an ambitious Tamil action film in which one actor plays ten different characters, with eighteen months of makeup and prosthetic design behind it. Who it's not for: those wanting a restrained, realistic narrative, since the film is an over-the-top spectacle both in its technical ambition and its plotting.