'Sulthan', starring Karthi in the lead, hit the screens this Friday. Here is our review of the latest box-office release.

Story:

Napolean plays a dreaded gangster who has got a hundred henchmen at his beck and call. His son Vikram, fondly addressed by the henchmen as Sulthan, is brought up by the gang after the death of his mother. Lal, the Malayalam actor, plays Sulthan's fatherly figure in the gang.

When his father dies, Sulthan, who is a robotic engineer in Mumbai, has his task cut out when the City Commissioner is hellbent on eliminating the rest of the gang. Sulthan buys time and tells the top cop that he will reform the rowdies, whom he calls brothers. To accomplish the task, Sulthan takes them to a village that needs their helping hands. The hero there meets and falls in love with an idealistic woman (Rashmika Mandanna). Whether Sulthan succeeds in his mission is what the rest of the film is about.

Analysis:

Writer-director Bakkiyaraj Kannan scripts a masala film that generally avoids the pitfalls of a formula film. This is not to say that 'Sulthan' steers clear of template-driven story-telling per se. There are tropes that seem to be too old, but the film, overall, passes the grade.

Karthi is remarkable in the role of a young man who is torn between several emotions. After tough roles in 'Khakee' and 'Khaidi', the actor proves his versatility once again. His acting in the scenes with his rowdy brothers is splendid. Rashmika Mandanna appeared like a flippant girl in the trailer. But it has turned out that the actress has played a meaty character. Her performance is impressive. Lal of Prabhas' 'Saaho' fame is consistently good, so also others like Yogi Babu. Aarjai who plays one of the gang members who wants to best Sulthan has done a neat job and so is the actor who portrays Michael. The actors who play the gangsters have all played their parts well and it's thanks to them that the otherwise ordinary story gets its freshness.

The theme of what if Lord Krishna sided with the Kauravas instead of the Pandavas is well underlined by the writer-director in the film. The action sequences are mounted with earnestness. In the second half, not only does the plot thicken but also the emotions become a roller-coaster ride.

The aspect of rowdies becoming farmers and redeeming a village is exciting. The film milks this idea to a fairly engaging effect.

On the flip side, the villains come across as too weak at times. There is a corporate villain whose only agenda is to harass the village's beleaguered farmers. The film could have avoided the loudness factor for good.

Vivek Mervin's songs are filled with Kollywod-esque nativity. Yuvan Shankar Raja has provided a vibrant background score that enhances the scenes. Sathyan Sooryan's cinematography and Ruben's editing are able.  

Verdict:

'Sulthan' is a reasonably engaging emotional action drama.

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