Review Overview
Performances
Plot & Narration
Technical Aspects and Music
Fairly engaging spooky-fun
Devi is a watchable time-pass fare which you would enjoy with a responsive audience and a bucket of popcorn. Vijay breaks his stride to churn out a lighthearted spooky entertainer that works mainly due to Prabhu Deva’s antics. A no-holds-barred ride.
Cast: Prabhudheva, Tamanna, Sonu Sood, RJ Balaji, Murli Sharma, RV Udhayakumar & others
Cinematography: Manush Nandan
Music: Sajid – Wajid, Vishal Mishra
BGM: Gopi Sundar
Art Direction: Sunil Babu
Editing: Anthony
Story: Vijay & Paul Aaron
Dialogues & Direction: Vijay
Produced by: Prabhudheva Studios
Distribution: Auraa Cinemas
Release Date: 07-10-2016
Run Time: 02:05:00
In 2008, director AL Vijay came out with a film called ‘Poi Solla Porom’. Though a remake of a Hindi hit, it had a huge share of fun and was lively all the way. Ever since then, Vijay’s films have always been spun around his characters, their emotional sides and human values. But now, it looks like the director has got a little bit of his fun side back. We are talking Devi, his latest outing.
Devi mostly pans out as a comic entertainer, with a slight dose of horror elements peppered here and there. The film never takes itself too seriously until the end, and that’s the reason why it probably manages to keep you engaged. Vijay keeps it simple and to the point, without deviating much with a plethora of characters in second and third tiers, like his other films. Here, the camera mainly focuses only on Prabhu Deva, Tamanna and Sonu Sood – the three main pillars of the script.
And out of the three, it is Prabhu Deva who holds the film together be it the moves, the comics or when it comes to arising the emotional connect. The Chalmaar number is a revelation, and his act in the climax deserves a special mention. Tamanna gets a special role, and does good justice to it. Sonu Sood becomes a great reason for the film to find mileage in the north, but in terms of his performance, he is the cat on the wall. RJ Balaji gets an extended cameo, and brings out the laughter like he always does.
With apt technical wizardry and laudable production value, there are no complaints on the visuals of Devi. On the musical side, Gopi Sundar brings to the table a terrific background score for this script which beholds a lot of scope.
In Devi, Vijay does stay away from the usual stereotypical horror format with an intent to make it a lighthearted spooky film. The film does not use any foreplaying, and gets directly to the point with things happening quickly. While some sequences in the second half might really interest you, there is always another scene playing the law of averages. At the end, Devi ends up becoming a watchable time-pass fare which you would enjoy with a responsive audience and a bucket of popcorn.