Production: S Nandha Gopal Cast: John Vijay, Motta Rajendran, Robo Shankar, Shamili, Vikram Prabhu, Yogi Babu Direction: Ganesh Vinayak Screenplay:Ganesh Vinayak Story: Ganesh Vinayak Music: D Imman Background score: D Imman Cinematography: M Sukumar Editing: Ruben
Art direction: Lalgudi N Ilaiyaraja
Sivaji (Vikram Prabhu), is a middle-class youngster who leads a simple life like the majority of the youngsters. He faces one particular situation, which demands a ransom amount. He tries to get the money and gets trapped into the plan of a money mafia group. Did Sivaji get the money he wanted? Did he escape from the money mafia group? Looks like an interesting plot right?
Though the core plot of the movie is interesting, the way it is executed is disappointing. There are so many masala additions to add up to the commercial value. One will not miss witnessing at least one Thala - Thalapathy reference in films releasing these days. Veera Sivaji doesn’t miss out either. Within the first fifteen minutes, there are three Vijay references, and throughout the film, you can see much more.
From the very first scene, a lead-in voice over for hero's intro, till the climax fight, everything falls on the template commercial pattern. The first half of the film looks very much elongated and is predictable at many places. The cuteness of the baby in Thavazhndhidum Thangapoove number is beautifully captured, but other songs do not make an impact.
Vikram Prabhu’s performance is neat, but something stops us from accepting him as a mass hero. Shamili, the Anjali papa, makes her debut as a female lead in this film. It is a templated role for the beauty, where she has to fall in love with the hero and sing duet songs. Robo Shankar and Yogi Babu’s chemistry have worked out really well and their characterisation is inspired from the famous chocolate advertisement brothers. John Vijay and Motta Rajendran are very much quirky, while Vinodhini does justice to her role. Special mention to the girl, who has played Vinodhini’s daughter.
The technical finesse is impressive, with Sukumar’s visuals being a backbone. Ruben’s cuts are stylish as usual, but the screenplay lag couldn’t be helped by him either. Though you get a deja-vu feel, D.Imman’s background score is powerful and massy. Ganesh Vinayak has got an interesting story, which is not clearly woven into an engaging film. Had the screenplay been more engaging, rather than sticking to the template, it would have worked a lot better.
Verdict: An interesting plot falls flat with a loose screenplay
