It's finally confirmed.. the real Indian super hero does not walk around in a cape or a mask...
Leaping unimaginable distances and smashing the life out of a hundred goons all maintaining that smile on his face ... who else but the SuperStar is BACK!!! Rajnikanth is in the House...
Sivaji mania is everywhere and it doesn't seem to be dying out any time soon...
The word HYPE does not do justice to the crescendo of anticipation and excitement on this side of the Vindhyas created by this mother of all potboilers. The mere announcement that AVM one of the biggest production houses of the South had pulled the coup of casting the King of the Masses with the ultimate mass director had sent tremors of excitement and fear through the film fraternity all over India. For one this wasnt going to be just another movie... either way that is.
For all this hype and hoopla around the movie I just had to check this movie out. Admittedly I am a big fan of Shankar and Rajni movies and the prospect of them teaming was great.
For once lack of a substantial storyline in this movie wasn't something that surprised me... Most Rajni movies of recent times, with the exception of Chandramukhi has been
based around a common thread. That of the do gooder who looses the battle towards the interval only to regain everything smashing everyone who stood in his path and uplifting everyone who followed him. Sivaji only adds to the list with that much and nothing more. Shankar just adds his usual dose of his views on how to solve corruption and bring the black stuff out to light.
May be the stakes were too high to experiment, coz when Rajni tried to stray of the path a tad with Baba... it was a disaster; by his standards of course.
The movie starts of with Sivaji being escorted into a jail, from there movie runs in flash back mode when Sivaji(Rajni) returns from US, where he seems to have made quite a fortune.
The good hearted Sivaji wishes to utilize the money to bring education to all, but the system and the people who bend the system stand in his way... How Sivaji realizes his dream and brings these baddies to book forms rest of the story.
Like most tamil movies of recent times, Sivaji runs on multiple tracks with a track devoted to Sivaji wooing his lady love Shriya[to whom we shall come back to soon] which also forms the comedy track to one where he engages in a battle with Suman. The tracks switch monotonously with rarely any connection between the two.
The first half of the movie is quite light and racy with Shriya being total eye candy, thats all that is required of her actually and she is more than adept at it. Shriya easily switches between the extremes of being the austere simpleton to the glam doll in the songs.
Among the supporting cast Vivek is at his best matching Rajni scene for scene and dialogue for dialogue. Suman tries to be menacing and subtle but comes out too plain and pale. Also mentions to Nayanthara in the the opening song who looks fab.
Rajni in a role written for him to the T; stands out, impressing us with his comic timing in the first half and being the style icon in the second. It must be said he looks a lot younger in the movie and his dress sense with credit to Manish Malhotra has gone up manifold. Whts bit of a let down is the action sequences which are a bit too over the top even by Rajni standards.
There was once a question on why there were no superhero movies in the South. After seeing this movie I kinda had the answer. What more could a poor super hero do.... ;)
Another highlight of the movie are the songs more so for the spectacular sets and picturization than the tunes themselves[we definetly have heard better from Rehman]. Overall the movie is like a collection of set pieces guaranteed to make the Rajni fanatics go crazy.
When taken overall it surely falters a bit. But what the heck when there is the Superstar on Screen and the crowd go beserk in the aisles ... who wants a story line after all........
...
Leaping unimaginable distances and smashing the life out of a hundred goons all maintaining that smile on his face ... who else but the SuperStar is BACK!!! Rajnikanth is in the House...
Sivaji mania is everywhere and it doesn't seem to be dying out any time soon...The word HYPE does not do justice to the crescendo of anticipation and excitement on this side of the Vindhyas created by this mother of all potboilers. The mere announcement that AVM one of the biggest production houses of the South had pulled the coup of casting the King of the Masses with the ultimate mass director had sent tremors of excitement and fear through the film fraternity all over India. For one this wasnt going to be just another movie... either way that is.
For all this hype and hoopla around the movie I just had to check this movie out. Admittedly I am a big fan of Shankar and Rajni movies and the prospect of them teaming was great.
For once lack of a substantial storyline in this movie wasn't something that surprised me... Most Rajni movies of recent times, with the exception of Chandramukhi has been
based around a common thread. That of the do gooder who looses the battle towards the interval only to regain everything smashing everyone who stood in his path and uplifting everyone who followed him. Sivaji only adds to the list with that much and nothing more. Shankar just adds his usual dose of his views on how to solve corruption and bring the black stuff out to light.May be the stakes were too high to experiment, coz when Rajni tried to stray of the path a tad with Baba... it was a disaster; by his standards of course.
The movie starts of with Sivaji being escorted into a jail, from there movie runs in flash back mode when Sivaji(Rajni) returns from US, where he seems to have made quite a fortune.
The good hearted Sivaji wishes to utilize the money to bring education to all, but the system and the people who bend the system stand in his way... How Sivaji realizes his dream and brings these baddies to book forms rest of the story.
Like most tamil movies of recent times, Sivaji runs on multiple tracks with a track devoted to Sivaji wooing his lady love Shriya[to whom we shall come back to soon] which also forms the comedy track to one where he engages in a battle with Suman. The tracks switch monotonously with rarely any connection between the two.
The first half of the movie is quite light and racy with Shriya being total eye candy, thats all that is required of her actually and she is more than adept at it. Shriya easily switches between the extremes of being the austere simpleton to the glam doll in the songs.
Among the supporting cast Vivek is at his best matching Rajni scene for scene and dialogue for dialogue. Suman tries to be menacing and subtle but comes out too plain and pale. Also mentions to Nayanthara in the the opening song who looks fab.
Rajni in a role written for him to the T; stands out, impressing us with his comic timing in the first half and being the style icon in the second. It must be said he looks a lot younger in the movie and his dress sense with credit to Manish Malhotra has gone up manifold. Whts bit of a let down is the action sequences which are a bit too over the top even by Rajni standards.
There was once a question on why there were no superhero movies in the South. After seeing this movie I kinda had the answer. What more could a poor super hero do.... ;)
Another highlight of the movie are the songs more so for the spectacular sets and picturization than the tunes themselves[we definetly have heard better from Rehman]. Overall the movie is like a collection of set pieces guaranteed to make the Rajni fanatics go crazy.
When taken overall it surely falters a bit. But what the heck when there is the Superstar on Screen and the crowd go beserk in the aisles ... who wants a story line after all........
...
