Coolie Movie Review

Lokesh Kanagaraj is inarguably the most sought-after director at the moment in the Tamil film industry & he is one of the very few directors in India who commands the attention of the audience across the country. After delivering five back-to-back films(i.e. Maanagaram, Kaithi, Master, Vikram & Leo), he teamed up with Superstar Rajinikanth for the action thriller film, Coolie. The director also confirmed the film is not a part of LCU(Lokesh Cinematic Universe). A powerful star hero like Superstar Rajinikanth needs an equally powerful villain. So, the director roped in Telugu star hero, Akkineni Nagarjuna to play the antagonist role in the film. Along with Rajinkanth and Nagarjuna, the film also has Upendra from the Kannada Film Industry, Aamir Khan from the Hindi film industry & Soubin Shahir from the Malayalam film industry. Did Lokesh Kanagaraj deliver a memorable film for Rajinikanth who is completing fifty years of career in cinema this year? How did the face-off between Rajinikanth and Nagarjuna work out in the film? How did Nagarjuna perform in the role of an antagonist? Did Aamir Khan’s cameo in the film have as much impact as Suriya’s cameo role as Rolex in Vikram? Did music director, Anirudh Ravichander & Lokesh Kanagaraj’s combination work out yet again? More importantly, did Superstar Rajinikanth deliver a film which had the potential to become Tamil cinema’s first thousand crore grosser? Let’s figure it out with a detailed analysis.

What is it about?

Deva(Rajinikanth) who runs a men’s mansion in Chennai city, gets to know the news about the passing away of his friend, Rajasekar(Sathyaraj). When Deva went to pay his last rites, Rajasekar’s daughter, Preethi(Shruti Haasan), accuses him for an unknown reason(the reason will be revealed later in the film) and asks him to leave their house. Deva eventually get to know that Rajasekar did not die a natural death but he was murdered. Deva gets to know that Rajasekar used to work with Simon(Nagarjuna) and Dayal(Soubin Shahir). Why did Simon ask Dayal to kill Rajasekar? Did Deva and Simon fight against each other in the past? Forms the rest of the story.

Performances:

Rajinikanth’s look in Coolie should be his best look in films after Robo. In an aged role as Deva, he did a superb job. His unmatchable style, dialogue delivery and mannerisms are a treat to watch on-screen as usual. Nagarjuna in the role of Simon Xavier is fantastic. His swag and his menacing performance as a ruthless antagonist looked so good. It seems he just loved playing the role of Simon. You can almost see him enjoying playing the role. Aamir Khan was wasted in an insignificant cameo. His cameo neither provided weight to the story of the film nor was as impactful as Suriya’s cameo in Vikram. Upendra in a short role made his presence film.

Soubin Shahir is the real show stealer in the film. He got a very meaty role and he used it perfectly. He delivered a first-rate performance. His dance movements in the ‘Monica’ song, especially in the last minute of the song will be liked immensely by the masses. Rachita Ram’s performance in the film is a surprise package. She got a very good role and she delivered a very commendable performance.

Sathyaraj as Rajasekar delivered a good performance. His performance in the sequence where he elevates Deva’s character referring to the phrase ‘power house’, deserves a special mention. Shruti Haasan in the role of Preethi did well. Reba Monica John & Monisha Blessy made their presence felt but both of them had very limited screen time. Pooja Hegde looked good and danced well in the ‘Monica’ song.

Technicalities:

Anirudh’s music is one of the major positives of the film. He elevated quite a few ordinary sequences with his background score. His score for the Mansion action sequence in the second half deserves a special mention. However, at times, his background score felt monotonous and gave the feeling of deja vu.

Girish Gangadharan’s cinematography is good but his work lacked the ‘wow’ factor which we usually get to see in Lokesh Kanagaraj films. Philomin Raj’s editing is a mixed bag. His editing at times is good and at times, would have been better. Better care in editing would have been taken during the last forty minutes of the film. Production values by Sun Pictures are decent. It looks like a majority of the film’s budget is used to pay the remuneration for the artists.

Positives:

1.⁠ ⁠Two Interesting Twists
2.⁠ ⁠Rajinikanth’s Screen Presence
3.⁠ ⁠Nagarjuna & Soubin Shahir’s Performance
4.⁠ ⁠A Couple of Action Sequences
5.⁠ ⁠Anirudh’s Music

Negatives:

1.⁠ ⁠Pre-Climax & Climax
2.⁠ ⁠Slow Pace During The Initial Portions
3.⁠ ⁠Rushed & Forced Backstory

Analysis:

Going by the last four films of Lokesh Kanagaraj(i.e. Kaithi, Master, Vikram & Leo), most people must have expected a full-on action film with multiple high moments, when Coolie in the combination of Rajinikanth and Lokesh Kanagaraj was announced. But it will take only ten minutes into the film to understand Coolie is not an out-and-out commercial action film. It is a story-driven action thriller which is decently packaged with Rajinikanth’s mark of heroism. So, you may have to set your expectations right before stepping into the theatre to watch the film.

The film unfolds on a very leisurely note with sequences involving the antagonist’s business setup, hero introduction along with a song and the hero’s connection with Sathyaraj’s family. After setting up the characters and establishing the story and the conflict point in the first thirty minutes, the film picks up the pace slowly and surprises with an unexpected twist. Full marks to Lokesh Kanagaraj for coming up with such a surprising twist. We can see the director’s expertise right from the above-mentioned twist reveal to the interval. Especially, Nagarjuna’s sequences, Soubin Shahir’s performance and Rajinikanth’s trademark heroism during the pre-interval sequence worked out well in the first half.

After a very good pre-interval sequence which elevates the hero character, we would expect an out-and-out commercial action-filled second half. But again, Lokesh Kanagaraj did not opt for the routine commercial template even in the second half. He stuck to his story, came up with a predictable and yet interesting twist followed by two excellent action blocks during the first hour in the second half. The action sequence at a ladies’ hostel and another action sequence at a men’s mansion worked out very well. Rajinikanth’s mannerisms and unmatchable screen presence along with Anirudh’s background score worked out big time during both the above-mentioned action sequences.

The real problem with the film is the pre-climax & climax. Right from the face-off sequence in the second half between Rajinikanth and Nagarjuna, everything feels stretched forever. This is where the director fumbled and the film lost its track. Even Aamir Khan’s cameo looked forced and out of the film. The decision to reveal the backstory of Rajinikanth’s character, Deva, during the final act misfired big time. After sticking to the story for the majority of the film, the sudden urge to elevate Deva’s character to satisfy fans looked very forced. Lokesh made the same mistake in Master, Leo and now in Coolie. His execution in all three films is very good as long as he sticks to his strengths and a story-driven thrilling screenplay. But, the moment, he tries to somehow fit the star power of his heroes into his screenplay, it appears forced and out of place. Also, he may have to stop using old songs as background music during action sequences. It worked out well in Leo but in Coolie, it looked forced.

Overall, Coolie has many positives that worked in its favour. A decent first half, an unexpected twist, a predictable yet interesting twist, around thirty minutes of racy screenplay in the second half along with a couple of superb action blocks, made the film a decent watch but a bit more care in the screenplay & the direction during the last thirty to forty minutes should have made it a better film. Chances of you liking the film may increase if you can keep your expectations in check before entering into theatres.

Coolie – Okish ‘Power House’

Rating: 2.5/5