Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Breakneck
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Dense
- Violence
- Brutal
- spectacular
- frantic
- melodramatic
- action movie marathon
- event cinema night
What critics said
Critics broadly recognized the film as an ambitious and spectacular commercial experiment, while finding its crowded plot and multiple roles uneven and sometimes confusing.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Kamal Haasan plays ten characters, including Govindarajan Ramaswamy, Rangaraja Nambi, George W. Bush, Christian Fletcher, and Krishnaveni.
The story moves between Chola-era religious conflict and a post-9/11 biological-threat narrative in Tamil Nadu.
The courier movement of a deadly vial drives interconnected chases and culminates in tsunami-scale consequences.
Shaivite and Vaishnavite conflict, biological research, and Govind's scientific investigation occupy the same narrative framework.
Films like Dasavatharam, and why
Enthiran
large-scale Indian action spectacle combining science fiction, disaster imagery, multiple characters, and religious themes
Cloud Atlas
high-concept science fiction action with an ensemble built around one actor's multiple identities and elaborate effects
Magadheera
ambitious Indian action epic blending reincarnation, historical conflict, spectacle, and melodrama
The Rock
science-driven thriller with a deadly biological threat, international conspiracies, and escalating disaster stakes
Movie Details
- Director
- K. S. Ravikumar
- Release Date
- 2008-06-13
- Runtime
- 188 min
- Rating
- 6.7 / 10 (61)
Cast
- Kamal Haasan
- Asin Thottumkal
- Mallika Sherawat
- Jaya Prada
- Napoleon
- P. Vasu
- Raghuram
- Nagesh
- Chakri Toleti
- Shammu
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Sun Nxt
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Dasavatharam about?
- A Tamil science-fiction action epic follows a biotechnologist and his many incarnations through religious conflict, biological peril, and tsunami-scale catastrophe.
- What is Dasavatharam like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Dasavatharam as breakneck, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as dense.
- Is Dasavatharam violent?
- Yes. Ember rates the violence in Dasavatharam as brutal.
- What did critics think of Dasavatharam?
- Critics broadly recognized the film as an ambitious and spectacular commercial experiment, while finding its crowded plot and multiple roles uneven and sometimes confusing.
- Which films are like Dasavatharam?
- Films with a similar feel include Enthiran, Cloud Atlas, Magadheera, and The Rock.
- How long is Dasavatharam?
- Dasavatharam runs 188 minutes.
- Where can I watch Dasavatharam?
- In United States, Dasavatharam streams on Sun Nxt.
