MASTER (TAMIL) (2021)

An alcoholic professor is forced to teach in a correctional home for young offenders. He is pitted against a dreaded criminal who maintains a strangle hold on the institution and forces the children there to commit violent crimes on his behalf.

After two back to back hits in Maanagaram and Kaithi,  director Lokesh Kanagaraj hits a hat trick as he delivers a major star powered action blockbuster. In Master, Lokesh strikes a sweet spot between making his own kind of film and a star vehicle for a larger than life star like Vijay. 

In the process, he shatters multiple star movie myths and proves that - 

- a star movie can indeed exist without a mandatory hero introduction song or forced duets in exotic locales

- it is indeed possible to write a decent story and place the star at the center of it rather than stringing a series of fanboy servicing moments and call it a BIG movie.

- the antagonist need not be a mere one-note caricature; in fact, if he can be strong(er) and could have a solid backstory, it helps the movie and elevates the hero

- comical moments can be written seamlessly into the narrative and you don't need a separate comedy track with Yogi Babu or Satish or such others

- the hero need not be a macho invincible and could be clueless or could even depend on others to save the day / damsel in distress.

- even a three hour movie could be fairly engaging and not feel too much of a drag.

Lokesh sparkles with his writing in the manner in which he has  created a hero who is both fallible and vulnerable, a villain who is forged in a crucible of crime as well as pain and is not a mere pushover, the way he weaves comical elements seamlessly into the narrative, the references to multiple hit movies from the past including Vijay's and his own earlier hits.  He has a penchant for writing crackling confrontation scenes suffused with tension as well as effective action set pieces. Anirudh's rocking score and peppy songs amp up the energy of key sequences.

Vijay seems to have mastered the art of looking fresher and younger with each passing movie. He owns the character of JD in all its swag as well as failings and he delivers in aces.  Vijay Sethupathi is excellent in radiating effortless evil and menace and mixes it up with his own style of casual and comical banter. 

Lokesh has managed to make his signature style mass movie - a paisa-vasool entertainer - and deserves plaudits for succeeding admirably for the most part.

MASTER BLASTER !!

RATING - 3.5/5