Masss Movie Review

Cast: Suriya, Nayanthara, Samuthirakani, Parthipen, Premgiamaren, Pranitha, Karunas, Sriman, Vidyu Raman, Sanjay Bharathi, Shanmuga Sundaram and others

Cinematography: RD Rajasekhar

Music: Yuvan Shankar Raja

Editing: Praveen KL

Stunts: Stunt Silva

Costumes: Vasuki Bhaskar

PRO: Johnson

Dialogues: Madhan Karky

Story, Screenplay, Direction: Venkat Prabhu

Produced by: KE Gnanavel Raja and Suriya

Banner: Studio Green, Aadnah Arts and 2D Entertainment

Distribution: Eros International

Release Date: 29-05-2015

Run Time: 2:32:00

This review of Masss is free of spoilers.

Venkat Prabhu. One director in Tamil Cinema who has turned a lot of heads in the past with just a handful of films to his name. After a disappointing Biriyani, VP teamed up with Suriya who was in a dark patch following the Anjaan debacle. Do the duo get back to their winning ways? Let’s find out, in our Masss review.

For starters, Masss is a typical Venkat Prabhu platter, while still thriving to be different from his earlier films. For the first time, the director introduces a fantasy/horror element into the mix, and tops it up with his usual one-liners, comics and twists. What is missing here, are the girls. Trying his best to make it viable to all the sections of the audience, Venkat Prabhu keeps the momentum intact for most parts of the film by throwing in the surprises at regular intervals. The first half is completely enjoyable with the introduction of the characters, neat love track and the commendable interval block. Things do go slightly off guard in the second half, but the film crosses the hurdles in the make-or-break portion, ending up on the positive side.

Masss is a Suriya show all the way. Right from the outset, the star brings in his best to the forefront, making sure he scores a 10/10 whenever needed. Lively in the role of Masss or stylish as Sakthi, he leaves no stone unturned as the perfection that he wishes to attain is evident. Premgi as Suriya’s sidekick takes care of the humour, steaming in with his witty one-liners which are well in sync with today’s world. Dialogues like ‘Enna maa ipdi panreengale maa’ are seamlessly flushed into the narrative, receiving a roar among the youth. There are a truckload of characters who float around Suriya in the film. Each of them have at least one good moment to score, with the most interesting ones being those of Parthiban and Jai, who comes in for a short cameo. Though Masss’s paperwork doesn’t provide scope for the heroines, Nayan and Pranitha add up to the beauty quotient of the film.

Technically, Masss is super strong with the vibrant visuals and finesse from RD Rajasekhar. His camera angles in the interval scene are a treat to watch for those with an eye for cinematographic skills. The editing is neat with not much room provided for a drag. However, Masss suffers from torrid CG which takes away some of the excitement in the first half.

Yuvan’s music is the linchpin of the film. His red-hot background score ups the ante of the film, something which the songs fail to do.

When a director is able to blend in action, romance, comedy, horror, thrills and fantasy into a single film, he deserves to be appreciated. Masss is a sincere effort from Venkat Prabhu, whose intent until now has been to provide films with a solid screenplay. Albeit the execution taking a stroll in the latter half of the film, VP salvages the proceeding from going astray. The three deciding S’s in ‘Masss’ could stand for Suriya, story and the screenplay. Venkat Prabhu gets them right to an extent, making us add another S – satisfying.

Masss Movie Review Rating: 3.25/5

Written By: Siddarth Srinivas

Follow @SidhuWrites