Mappillai Review

Yesteryear classic have been a source of reference for film-buffs. The good are compared to the current while the bad are used as examples of what not to do. The trends though now are newbie directors starting their career with a rehash of the classics and trying to create the magic for the new century generation. While critics ransack the films and fans of the original slaughter the performances, the new audience is depended on to drive the film. For Suraaj, Mappillai is his return to a hit combo of Dhanush, himself and Mani Sharma after Padikkathavan. For Dhanush, its the one remake of his father-in-law Rajnikanth’s film that he himself wanted to do. A film that did wonders to the original cast and crew’s career, will it work for today’s generation? Read on.

Saravanan [Dhanush] is a role model youngster that’s used as an example in the colony he resides in. Whether its life or discipline, Saravanan is the one that parents go to for advice. But for a group of loafers headed by Child Chinna [Vivek] who’s day job is an amateur fan club for actress Namitha, this proves detrimental to their lazy ways. So with Saravanan agreeing to help as guidance counseller as compensation, Chinna tries  a shortcut to becoming rich by impressing a rich girl with intention of marrying her for money. Enter Gayathri [Hansika Motwani], daughter of Multi-millionaire businesswoman Rajeshwari [Manisha Koirala]. After a few unsuccessful attempts at getting her, Gayathri develops a soft corner for Saravanan instead which he initially rejects but then succumbs to later. But not before her mother finds out. Now for Rajeshwari, it is the female that should rule the roost so the timid, religious yet “cultured” Saravanan may be poor in financial terms but he is perfect for her daughter in demure nature and gives her the leverage that she wants over him. Wedding preparations get under way and everything seems fine until one of the guests drops a bombshell on Rajeshwari. The simple sweet Saravanan she selected is in fact a hot headed ruffian who has been banished from his home town for the constant fights he has. Determined to not be upstaged and that to by what she calls a "low class male", Rajeshwari quickly tries to change the groom in time for the wedding she planned but Saravanan is not going to make it easy for his proud mother in law. So while he does end up marrying Gayathri, what pursues is a game of tit for tat as this mother-in-law and son-in-law battle it out to see who will win their challenge.

On the onset the director makes no bones about how he has planned his film. No intricate storyline or screenplay, just mad masala magic with punch dialogues, ridiculous fights and humour in a large dose. For Dhanush, this is another Padikkaathavan and he cakewalks through the film. His comic timing becomes more apparent with each film and it’s pleasing to see him flaunt it. Considering the content of the hyped up mass hero story, it definitely is refreshing to see an actor go for a bit of self-mockery in the midst to heighten the proceedings. Hansika Motwani debuts in Tamil and is the typical beautiful girl who doesn't do very much. In her defence, the role is very limited but her lip syncing and general over-reaction does not help her at all and she becomes irritating and worse, easily forgettable. Manisha Koirala is not new to Tamil so she needs no introduction. However, for such an outstanding actress, this film is a far cry from her Bombay days. Even Mudhalvan had a little more spectrum for someone of her caliber but with that aside, Manisha puts in her two bits and makes the most of it especially in her scenes in the village and her confrontations with Dhanush. Vivek tries his best to play on his ever youthful entourage and the comedy duo that sparked a new hit jodi with Dhanush but with Manobala in the mix as well. Ashish Vidhyarthi, Pattimandram Raja, Sri Ranjani and Sathyan Sivakumar are apart of the cast and respectfully do their 3-4 scenes and move on.

While it would be unfair to not state the positives on the technical side, this is one film that blurs the lines of my infamous structure so please bare with me. On the technical front, camerawork by S.R.Satishkumar does his best to dazzle the locale and with general visualisation while T.Kishore needs to be a bit more liberal in his editing. Several time, scenes dragged out for a lot longer than needed. Mani Sharma may be a talented music director that has many amazing tracks to his name but when he reuses his own tracks from various Telugu films to form one OST, it lacks the passion and creativity. Aaru Padai is mostly hummable. Suraaj’s dialogue usually is dependable to evoke humour and he does in parts but whatever good he does in his dialogue gets overshadowed by his poor form in story and screenplay writing. But given that the director isn’t the type of director that boasts of intellectual kind of filmmaking in his filmography and has made no qualms about his intention, can you still say Mappillai works? Unfortunately, the answer is more no than yes as the big loopholes and general lack of movement simply bores. I haven’t seen the original with Rajnikanth in a long time so rest assured this isn’t from a comparative point of view. Even so, director Suraaj has missed the mark this time as the waifer thin storyline lacks the punch needed to keep the audience engaged and the spark that his previous films had regardless of their tried and tested content goes missing in Mappillai. 

Rating: 2.5/5. Its all about the masala and the money it makes. Each of his films has shown this and it would be silly to expect anything less. But it could have been so much better.