Movie Review: Jailer
The most awaited Superstar Rajinikanth, Nelson Dilipkumar starrer Jailer, produced by Sun Pictures has hit theatres today, August 10th.
Muthuvel Pandian ( Rajinikanth) is living a retired life with his wife ( Ramya Krishnan) , Son Arjun (Vasanth Ravi) who is a cop, and grandson ( YouTube child star Rithu Rithvick). But life changes overnight when his son is kidnapped by dreaded gangster Varman ( Vinayagam) who is involved in stealing temple idols with his tentacles across states. When he is believed dead, his father Muthuvel, decides to find the dreaded perpetrators and avenge his son's death.
But for this, he must get back to his former self as a tough Jailer of Tihar, and bring out the other, powerful side of his personality.
How does he get to Vinayagam ? When he finally manges to reach him, what greater obstacles need to be overcome to achieve his goal?
The film is simply a Rajinikanth show all the way. The Superstar is in top form, with his swag and style intact, his measured dialogues, laced in dark humor ( a typical Nelson touch) and action blocks incorporated in a manner suited to his age and stature, only adding to the fire he creates with his presence on screen. Anirudh's resounding BGM is a huge pillar which gives you several goosebumpy moments to savor. Rajini is back not only with his style but fans also get to see the performer and actor in him, with his eyes and razor sharp gaze doing the talking. The superstar not only mesmerises with his sheer screen presence and swag and moves you with his acting, but also gets you laughing at his dark wit.
Superstar in the flashback portions is even more engaging and entertaining and both segments are shown to have a signigicant bearing on each other, which explains how Muthuvel is able to gather such an army of help across the states the film travels, from Arkonnam to Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Mumbai and Bihar.
Stars like Shivraj Kumar, Mohanlal and Jackie Shroff in powerful cameos light up the screen while Sunil and Sunil Reddy from Tollywood are a blast to watch in a superbly conceived, hilarious comedy track which takes the story forward. Tamannah is fire and ice in the Kaavalaa hit track and her whole segment, involving Sunil, though full of humor, is neatly woven into the story at a crucial point.
Nelson has neatly used the potential of Yogi Babu, Redin Kingsley, VTV Ganesh and others giving comedy a large space in the film but integrating it into the screenplay in a way that it doesnt seem like a separate track.
Ramya makes her presence felt while Rithu and Mirnaa do what's needed. Vasanth Ravi shines as Rajini's son and leaves a mark. Kishore makes a brief but solid appearance in an action sequence. Vinayagam is superb as the cruel, diabolical villain.
The twists aplenty all through, add to the racy screenplay. Stun Shiva's action blocks are impressive while Nirmal's edit and camera work of Vijay Karthik Kannan stand out.
On the flip side, the brutal violence ( battering with hammers, using acid, slicing off heads etc) and gore shocks you especially with its sudden impact and blood letting and given the large kids fans of the superstar, one wonders how suitable it would be for them. The scenes of blood splattering on his wife and daughter-in-laws face could have been avoided.
The second half, though engaging, at some point does feel a tad lengthy in places.
But overall, Jailer is a sure shot comeback for Nelson, who has with his careful detailing and measured dialogues, given adequate space for every member of the large ensemble cast to perform and used the potential of each actor in the right measure, all held together with his trademark dark humor. And this works as a huge pluspoint for the film.
Jailer is a superbly engaging entertainer of a film with the Rajinikanth magic intact, giving you several whistle worthy and goosebump moments, with the superstar's swag, punches and rivetting performance all to be experienced in equal measure. Tiger Ka Hukum... go for it!
Rating 3.75 /5
JAILER CAST & CREW DETAILS
CAST
SuperstarRajinikanth
Mohan Lal
Jackie Shroff
Shiva Rajkumar
Sunil
Ramya Krishnan
Vinayakan
Mirnaa Menon
Tamannaah
Vasanth Ravi
Naga Babu
Yogi Babu
Jaffer Sadiq
Kishore
Billy Muralee
Sugunthan
Karate Karthi, Mithun
Arshad
Marimuthu
Master Rithvik
Saravanan
Aranthaangi Nisha
Mahanadi Shankar
CREW
Produced by Sun Pictures
Writer- Director: Nelson
Music: Anirudh
DOP: Vijay Kartik Kannan
Editor: R. Nirmal
Art: DRK Kiran
Action: Stun Siva
Costume Designers: Pallavi Singh, Muthul Hafeez
Sound Mix: Suren. G
Sound Design: Suren. G - S. Alagiakoothan
Colorist: Andreas Brueckl
DI Lab: Prime Focus Ltd
VFX: Supervisor Ajay
Makeup: C. Harinath
Stills: V. Sittrarasu
Publicity Design: Kabilan Chelliah
Production Controller: D. Ramesh Kuchirayar
Executive Producer: Raja Sridhar
PRO: Riaz K Ahmed
