Thalaivii Movie Review
A well-written biopic that shines thanks to the powerful performances!
Performances
Story & Narration
Technical Aspects & Music
AL Vijay is one director who is known for handling human emotions and dramatic situations in a very mature manner. When a director of his calibre takes up the biopic of a celebrated leader such as J. Jayalalithaa, there is a certain amount of expectation on the film for sure. And Vijay does live up to a portion of the hype in Thalaivii, which is a well-written and partly well-executed drama on the life of the leader and her important relationship with MGR.
For starters, Thalaivii does away with all the hullabaloos of a generic biopic and opts for a chapter-driven mechanism in the narrative. The film picks all the important points in Jayalalithaa’s journey and brings forward an engaging narrative that is filled with her life in cinema at first, and then her journey in the political scene. The film has many scenes to plug your interest in, and that comes alive thanks to the fantastic cast that it is bestowed with. Though the cinematic portions of the film in the first hour do not engage much, the film’s second half is packed with many goosebump-worthy moments that make it a fine watch on the whole.
Kangana Ranaut delivers a good performance portraying the legendary leader, and this statement is valid only if you overlook her poor lip-sync in the film. She makes sure she does not miss out on hitting the bull’s eye when it comes to the stronger portions of the film in the second half, where she does extremely well.
Arvind Swami is the show-stealer, playing the role of MGR to absolute perfection and being a stunner to watch throughout.
Samuthirakani’s special performance is another value addition along with the other perfect members of the cast such as Nasser, Thambi Ramaiah, Poorna and the others.
GV Prakash’s astounding score is another big positive for the film, and he also delivers many solid songs that fit the situations in the film. The cinematography and the editing complement the motive very well and end up on the greener side.
On the whole, Thalaivii is a film that captures the essence of Jayalalithaa’s story pretty well, but the engagement factor depends upon how much you want to dive deep into the legend’s life. Vijay could have got to the thrills a bit earlier in his screenplay, but as it is, it isn’t so bad either. Thalaivii Movie Review by Siddarth Srinivas