THERI (TAMIL) (2016)

THERI = SCARY !!

Why ? Was it not supposed to be a sleek action entertainer ? 

First up, if it is a solace enough ..  I concede,  that Theri is definitely not in the league (or, should I say, twenty thousand leagues under the sea) of Sura and is much better than his previous outing  - Puli .. by some distance ! 

So.. 

What is so scary about Theri ??

Not the done to death story (if you can call it that) line.. We have seen several such star vehicles with much less.

Definitely not the audacity of presenting Amy Jackson as a Mallu school teacher. Should we credit the casting department's spine or funny bone ??

Not even the adventurist streak of the director Atlee in making Vijay (definitely looking good) emote (??) and cry more than we have seen him do in the past decade

Not the inane ensemble of villains who barely register (by the way.. I am still puzzled as to why veteran director Mahendran agreed to become a prime contender for the most insipid and predictable villain of the decade??)

Not the revival of the long buried tradition of hero slugging it out with that muscle man foreign "motta boss" in the final fight sequence

Certainly not the "ghost apparitions in the smoke" horror film act of an avenger Vijay

Nor his attempts to ape the famous famous Scarlett Johanson's introductory action sequence as Black Widow strapped to a chair from the first Avengers movie

No.. No... No..

The scariest part of the movie comes in the final few minutes when we find Vijay, having vanquished the villains down south and having shifted his base with his daughter, aide and Amy in tow, to (I guess) Ladakh ( a la Yennai Arindhaal ??), receives a package which gives the hint of some new assignment. 

That is Atlee, in all his ruthless and merciless cruelty, threatening us with a possible (& quite probable, given the current trends in Kollywood) sequel.

Now.. That's a REAL SCARY THOUGHT to walk out of the hall with .. a thought which could visit you in your sleep as a VIVID NIGHTMARE !! 

I, for one.., am T(H)ER(R)IFIED !!

RATING - 2/5