August 17, 2013.
Cast: Vijay, Amala Paul, Santhanam, Sathyaraj, Mano Bala, Rajeev Pillai.
Cast: Vijay, Amala Paul, Santhanam, Sathyaraj, Mano Bala, Rajeev Pillai.
Director: Vijay.
When the circumstances and
loss of the loved ones demand, a normal man becomes a don or a leader for that
matter; now that is a premise that we have seen time and again in films.
The same story can be taken
in entirely different ways by different directors and when the story is
something as old as the wine as far as the film industry is concerned it would
do well for the film if helmed by an able hand which unfortunately is not the
case with Thalaivaa.
Ramadurai (Sathyaraj) is
forced to become the leader of the Tamilians in Bombay and in the ensuing
gangwar he loses many of his people including his wife. He sends his son Vishwa
(Vijay) along with Nasser and his son Santhanam who are leaving Bombay to have
a safe and peaceful life. For the Tamilians Ramdurai grows into their beloved
Anna while Vijay and Santhanam grow up in Australia unaware of anything that is
happening back home. Vijay falls for Amala Paul who is the daughter of a
hotelier and comes back home for his father’s approval. The story which was set
in Australia till then shifts to Mumbai.
Barring around 5 minutes
and a nice twist just before the interval, Thalaivaa is a disaster of sorts in
the first half with a few songs (that are horrible to say the least), dumb
comedy, and even dumber romance. A.L Vijay shows how horrible he is when it
comes to certain areas of direction to the extent that even if you scoop out
almost the entire first half it would have little or no effect on the film as a
whole.
When you go back in after
the interval hoping against hope for a little worth for your money A.L Vijay
yet again proves why a lot of people always carry fear in their hearts about a
film directed by him. The disaster of the first part continues in the second as
well barring of course a few nice scenes like the one where Vishwa chases down a
pickpocket and Vaanganna Vanakkamanna song (which is in fact the only song
worth listening to or watching in the film).
A.L Vijay has always been
so keen to “borrow” from other films right from Poi Solla Porom (remake of
Khosla ka Ghosla), sometimes in parts and sometimes in entirety. He continues
his streak of “borrowal without approval” in Thalaivaa as well, the theme and
several scenes of which seem to have been lifted from yesteryear Tamil films.
The Thalapathi Thalapathi song is yet another disaster to listen to and watch
and what makes it even worse is the fact that the set up and choreography is a
ditto copy of “Azeem Oh Shaan Shehanshah” from Jodhaa Akbar.
There is another twist
towards the climax but, unlike the first one which nobody would have guessed
coming, this one falls flat (along with the film) as it is very obvious right
from a certain point in the first half.
Thalaivaa comes nowhere
near films like Mani Ratnam’s “Thalapathi” , “Nayagan” or Priyadarshan’s
Mohanlal starrer “Abhimanyu”, which were hugely successful because of their raw
nature and powerful writing and direction. This in contrast looks so wayward a
film to have come from a mainstream director. It fails in almost all the
departments so bad that even the presence and grace of Vijay is not enough to
compensate for the lazy writing and direction.
I
am giving a 1.5 for Thalaivaa. It is sad to see Vijay acting in
such a film after Nanban and Thuppakki!!
Rating Scale (Out
of 5)
Less than 2
- Unwatchable.
2 to 2.25
-
Below average.
2.5 to 2.75
-
Average.
3 to
3.25
-
Good.
3.5 to
3.75 -
Really Good.
4 to
4.25
-
Great.
4.5 and
above
- Extraordinary.
