Sivaji - The Syle Samraat at his scintillating best

Thursday night's review was the Thalaivar fan in me writing it. So, now that I have seen the movie 4 times, I thought let me try writing a more balanced review, which is almost next to impossible. So, if there is anyone who is here expecting to read a unbiased review, then please do not read further :)

Hype kills is one of the most used phrases associated with anything and everything that is given even a wee bit of hype. This holds good for stars and events across all fields, be it politics or sports or movies. And when the hype surrounding such a thing is as huge as the one that surrounded Sivaji before the release, it becomes almost impossible to live upto the huge expectations. It is in this context that we need to look at what Shankar has accomplished with Sivaji. He has handled that expectations admirably and has given a movie that both Thalaivar fans and neutral fans alike would relish for years to come. Like I had said yday, IMHO this will go down as THE best Thalaivar movie of all time. No doubts about it. I might have gone overboard when I said that the movie is 100 times better than Baashaa but I still would say that this is the best Thalaivar film of all time, even beating Baashaa.

The first thing that stands out in the movie is Thalaivar's looks. Thalaivar looks ravishing throughout the movie. Thalaivar just oozes style all through the movie. I can not recall any movie where Thalaivar's style has been put to such extensive use and that is precisely one reason why I rate this movie so highly, as his best. If we take Annamalai and Baashaa (2 of Thalaivar's power movies in the last 15 years), we all could easily recall a good 3 scenes from each movie as standout scenes, where Thalaivar's style gave us goose bumps. But in Sivaji, there are just so many scenes that you will lose count of such scenes. The one scene which comes right after the interval is just too good and should be placed right up there in the best scenes of all time in a Thalaivar movie. So, if you are someone who spends a lot of time during the intervals in getting something to eat, you better hurry up inside the theater. You would not want to miss out a single second of action from that scene.

His voice is markedly better than what we heard him in Chandramukhi (and of course, Baba). It kind of takes a while for us to get adjusted to the Thalaivar voice that we are so used to during the pre-Baba days. The ganeer kural is back and is simply rocking. Costumes are mind-blowing. Shankar makes Thalaivar wear so many costumes that before we could even admire him in a good costume, he changes to the next awesome one. His suits are amazing with the matching ties adding to the effect.

About Thalaivar's energetic performance - One word to describe that would be Wow. Thalaivar has given his best performance since Baashaa happened more than 15 years ago. He rocks big time. Stupid & jealous politicians can stop Thalaivar from doing his trademark cigarette flip. But Thalaivar's style in this one - the way he tosses the chewing gum from his right hand to his left hand before the gum makes its way to his mouth is just terrific. And the way he does the same in the climax scene on Suman's forehead was simply brilliant. Equally stylish is the way he catches the Saraswathi vedi in his mouth and lights it. His walk in each and every scene is so majestic, particularly in the scene where he sends Suman to jail & walks back to his car. And finally what to say about the shaven head - how many heroes have done that in the history of Tamil cinema? Thalaivar has put all of their efforts to shame and I am sure anyone planning to do so in the future, will have second thoughts on doing the same. Thalaivar simply rocks in that get-up.

Frankly, Chandramukhi was a letdown for Thalaivar fans and no one still knows why the movie ran. Chandramukhi was basically a comeback vehicle for Thalaivar after the Baba debacle. So, Thalaivar has set out to satiate his fans' thirst & hunger with Sivaji and thus it is a feast for all Thalaivar fans. One of the frequently asked questions about Sivaji is "Is it worth the 2 year wait?" I would even wait 5 years for such a movie from Thalaivar. It is that good.

Coming to the picturization of songs - well, Shankar is the best in the business and he proves it again beyond doubt here in Sivaji. Like I had said in my post last night, the Adhiradi song will go down as one of the best ever picturized songs in the history of Tamil cinema. Shankar's imagination runs wild in this one. For many Thalaivar fans, the only silver lining in Baba was the Maaya Maaya song where Thalaivar's dancing was so good that it was actually a revelation for many fans. Reason I am mentioning here is bcos Lawrence who choreographed that song is the one who has done the magic in Adhiradi too. The reason behind why Lawrence alone is able to come up with such awesome steps for Thalaivar is actually quite simple - he is a Thalaivar fan first and a choreographer next. I was simply going crazy during the Adhiradi song, which is pure fantasy portrayed on silver screen. Thalaivar's costumes in this one are mind boggling.

Next comes the Style song. For all those morons who mocked when the Bilbao shooting shot stills were released more than a year ago, this song gives the perfect middle finger. What a grand picturization. Another example of what is possible when Shankar puts his creative thinking cap on. To even conceive the idea for this song, is something that no other director could have done. And then to go on & picturize the song the way it has been done, hats off to
Shankar. The location was awesome and Thalaivar's dance steps in this one are again priceless. Shreya's dancing in this one deserves special mention. After Ballelakka got over, I was having a minor gripe that Shankar did not show Thalaivar's walk enough for us to savor in that song. But that gripe was short-lived as Shankar makes sure that we get enough of Thalaivar's majestic walk in the Sahana song. Thalivar looks so handsome in that song. Thotta Tharani's set in this song and the Vaaji Vaaji song are unbelievable. I was saying to my friends When have we even seen such grandeur in Thalaivar movie before? Vaaji Vaaji song was very entertainingly picturized. Loved the way Shankar had used the dwarfs in the song. Particularly the one time when Thalaivar walks in, as they are dancing and the way he drives them away saying 'Hey'. Again a sincere request to other actors - please refrain from wearing the king/ emperor costumer in the future. No one can look as majestic as Thalaivar in those costumes and wearing those costumes after Sivaji is only going to make them look ridiculous. That leaves us with Ballellakka - easily my disappointment of the movie. The locations were awesome in this song. Shankar does his best to make the song look colorful. Nayanthara was amazing as she dances with all her enthusiasm. So, where does the song go wrong? Thalaivar's dance steps. They are very unconvincing and I wish, somehow they could have come up with better steps, that would have suited Thalaivar more.

In a Thalaivar movie, there is hardly any focus on the heroine and I usually do not write about the heroine. But Shreya was just too good to not write anything about. Shankar again proves why he is one of the best directors. His casting of Shreya is simply a brilliant idea. She is gorgeous and contrary to our fears, does not really look too young for Thalaivar. Her dancing in all the songs was amazing. Her acting was adequate. It is really an achievement if a heroine gets noticed in a Thalaivar movie and Shreya has just accomplished that in Sivaji.

About comedy and Vivek - like I had written in my trailer post, this is how comedy should be in a Thalaivar movie. Very clean and completely enjoyable. This is where Shankar scores. The 'vaanga pazhagalaam' sequence is such an enjoyable one and the very idea brought a smile to my lips. Also, the scenes where Thalaivar tries to become fair have been shot in a very humorous manner. Vivek probably comes up with his best performance yet, in a movie where he does not even have a separate comedy track. His one-liners in so many scenes make the otherwise ordinary scenes to memorable ones. Like when he says Take OK. Camera off, the theater just erupts.

Alright now to the tough part. Some things that I did not like in the movie. Stunt sequences were a let down. It was evident that Peter Heines and his team have put in so much effort into the fight scenes but they go overboard mostly and thus end up being a disappointment. But hey? If folks loved the Matrix style stunts in Anniyan and the getting-below-the-race-car fight in Indian, they will lap this one too. Though the way the drive in theater fight scene ends in a nice way with car going into King Kong's mouth, the way all those cars were flying around was a disappointment. The success of stunt scenes in Thalaivar movies lies in the fact that Thalaivar's face should be shown as he is hitting the bad guys, something that was never done in 2 of the stunts in Sivaji. Shankar has definitely missed a trick there. Thalaivar has put in a lot of hard work in the fight scenes. I only wish that was shown in a more clear way.

As far as the story & screenplay is concerned, Sivaji definitely is not water-tight and surely does not have the punch that we have seen in the Shankar vigilante movies before. But then there is a difference between those movies and this one. Shankar did not have a star big enough or even remotely close to Thalaivar in stature, in any of those movies. So, he had to take extra care in dwelling deep into the issue he took in his hand and spend enough time on that. But on this one, he probably thought that he has Thalaivar with him and so instead of spending a few more scenes on the actual issue at hand, he diverts his focus on some scenes that would satisfy Thalaivar's legion of fans. In every interview that he gave in the lead-up to the movie's release, Shankar kept saying that he has achieved that fine balance between a Superstar movie and a Shankar movie. I think that is an exaggerated claim. It was like saying Oru koodai Thalaivar, Oru Koodai Shankar, Ondraaga sErtha padam thaane Sivaji But after seeing the movie, it should be rather Rendu koodai Thalaivar, Oru koodai Shankar, ondraaga sErthaa padam thaane Sivaji That is the mix that Shankar has gone with. Shankar had a choice to make: He can make a movie in his own style with Thalaivar just playing the role of hero in it or he could make a movie exploiting Thalaivar's superstar image with his directorial specialties taking a back seat. No wonder that he has gone with the latter choice. Given the amount of money that was at stake in this movie, it was only logical that Shankar decided to play to the gallery i.e. the millions of Thalaivar fans across the globe.

The only other disappointment of the movie - ARR's background score, especially in the fight sequences. Except for the Sega fight-aa song (which was not even used fully) and the bit that is used whenever Suman comes on-screen, the re-recording was, to put it mildly, pathetic. May be he was just content that his job was done, after he had come up with a very good album satisfying everyone. He surely could have done so much better in the BGM department, for a movie of this magnitude. Though Thalaivar's mere presence lifted so many scenes where ARR failed, those very scenes could have actually been elevated to Himalayan heights if only ARR had done his job better. There have always been questions about his re-recording capabilities and they are only bound to get louder after his Sivaji bungling. BTW, the secret that Blaaze told me was the rap that comes in the climax when Mottai Boss appears. It was a surprise bcos that rap was not part of the original audio CD. If anybody comes across a link to download that rap, please pass it along.

Alright, so where does this leave me? Let me try answering a few questions.

Is this Shankar's best film ever? No, not by a long way

But, is this Shankar's most challenging movie ever? Oh yeah.

Is this Thalaivar's best film ever? No, Mullum Malarum will always be my pick for that.

But is this Thalaivar's best Superstar film ever? Yes and again, by a long way.

And does it live up to the gargantuan pre-release expectations? Most certainly Yes.

Overall, for non-Thalaivar fans Sivaji is a serving of full meals and for Thalaivar fans, it is a feast which has to be tasted a good 5 times to get the complete taste out of it.