Sarkar Review: A Diwali feast for Vijay fans

Sarkar Review: A Diwali feast for Vijay fans

So one of the most anticipated Tamil films of the year, Sarkar starring Vijay has hit screens today. The movie marks his third time union with director AR Murugadoss and his first with Sun Pictures. Expectations were sky-high prior to release, so let’s jump to the review to see if the movie lives up to the hype.

Sarkar, as publicized by the makers, is a political thriller packed with all the mandatory commercial elements. The plot kicks off when Sundar Ramasamy (Vijay), CEO of a world’s leading corporate company lands in Tamil Nadu to cast his vote. There is a bogus vote which triggers him to fight the case legally. The conflict is set here as he decides to stands up and fight against the dominant political leaders and their corrupt system. Rest of the plot deals with how Sundar leads a public uprising.

With a big star like Vijay at the helm of things, AR Murugadoss has tried to pass on a relevant social message about the importance of voting and the need for a good governing body. At times, the movie gets preachy and has a propaganda film’s tone. Vijay’s political intentions are getting louder with this film. ARM has infused almost all the major events that occurred in the state of Tamil Nadu in the last few years. However, some scenes seem to be forcefully fit into the screenplay just to incite the audience’s emotions. Though these are powerful scenes, they jus don’t jell well with the narrative and stand out like a sore thumb.

ARM’s biggest strength is his dialogues and this time he has collaborated with writer Jeyamohan to come up with some fine, hard-hitting dialogues. The first half is engaging with the protagonist’s character establishment and later with the convincing setting up of the conflict. It is the latter half that falters with some insipid moments and the lack of freshness.

Coming to the performances, Sarkar is mostly a one-man-show with Vijay at his absolute best. The actor oozes charm and swag as the corporate giant, who is initially portrayed as someone with grey shades. His stylish attitude and body language must be a real treat for his fans. Vijay’s energy and screen presence is exemplary here, and he rarely steps a foot wrong. The transition from a sophisticated millionaire to the common man’s leader is easily done.

As the case has been with most star vehicles, the female lead has nothing much to perform. Though Keerthy Suresh is there with Vijay throughout the film, she hardly gets a scene to showcase her potential. To her part, Keeethy has done well in the songs with her graceful dance moves. Varalakshmi Sarath Kumar has a slightly better role but it could have been sketched better. The veteran Radha Ravi has delivered his best but the lack of a formidable villain character is very evident.

Technically, Sarkar is the usual superstar film with high production values. With Vijay’s effortless dancing, AR Rahman’s songs work well on screen and the ‘Top Tucker’ score amplifies the mass moments. Ram-Laxman duo’s stunt choreography is loud, especially the climax bit which goes way over the top.

In a nutshell, Sarkar is not the best of Vijay or ARM, but it is definitely a feast for the fans. With its share of flaws, it still has enough elements to please a commoner who enters a cinema hall to seek pure entertainment.