Magudam Movie Review:
It's that season in Tamil cinema. Destiny brings a clueless hero to the throne or a position of power, as people rent the air chanting his name as their last hope, without whom they will be doomed. Playing a hero who runs away from his violent past (Thimiru) and a seemingly boy-next-door guy looked upon as a demigod in his native (Sandakozhi) are not unfamiliar territories for Vishal. In fact, not only did he pull off those roles but properly thrived in them. But this time, in Magudam, this familiar trope finds itself on a slippery slope.
Magudam begins in 1965, where a young boy, Linga (Vishal), escapes from the clutches of a child trafficking racket, and reaches Visakhapatnam. The streets of Vizag teach him life, and this is where he meets Jana (John Vijay), and they team up to commit small-time thefts. And when Linga vows that when he grows up, the city will give him something bigger, we see the film's title, 'Magudam' (Crown), flash up. Hmmmmmmmmm.
Decades later, Kirubakaran (again Vishal) is introduced as a medical representative who is hesitant to take the short route to success. His biggest dream in life is to buy a car. The first half, for the most part, looks ordinary and is refreshing exactly for that reason. Magudam doesn't rush to the plot and takes its own sweet time to establish Kirubakaran's world and his challenges. Vishal properly lives through this middle-class hell, and thrives around his loving family. The three-hour film would not have been exhausting if the second half was paced like the first one. Kirubakaran not having a car and his social standing as a result are well fleshed out, taking you to a Pollathavan-esque space.
Except for Vishal, all the characters, especially Dushara Vijaya, were criminally underutilised. In the first half's midpoint, the antagonists do not come across as worth fearing. Perhaps this could also be attributed to the scene that re-introduces Linga. In pursuit of deriving mass moments in the scene, it runs counter to the purpose of dishing out powerful and dreaded antagonists.
Director: Vishal
Cast: Vishal, Dushara Vijayan, Anjali, Sabumon, Abu Salim
Things go haywire once Linga gets re-introduced, and what follows feels less like a revenge-fuelled flashback, and more like Vishal soft-pedalling his political ambitions. That would have still been fine, if it didn't come at the cost of the story. The second half in isolation feels like a three-hour film in itself. The respite in the flashback comes in the form of Annapoorani (Anjali). She fits the bill perfectly and channels her Engaeyum Eppothum energy. Other than her, nothing really adds up. What was already a flatline of a second half worsens with politically laced scenes and dialogues. Scenes where the poor people come running to Kirubakaran, telling him that he is their last hope, and say lines like "Ini yaar pechayum kekka maaten mudivu panniten," make you go, "thanks, but no thanks".
Moreover, the film boasts three villains, and you know the drill when a film has multiple villains. It works like a video game with different bosses to vanquish in each level. It would be an affront to Tamil cinema's well-oiled templates to call Magudam a formulaic film. The writing in the second half wantonly botches the promise it makes to deliver a Thimiru or Sandakozhi-like action entertainer. What the film can be remembered for, if need be, is Vishal's return to family films, and Anjali's performance.
Much like Vishal's Kirubakaran caught in the strife between two warring gangs, the film too is caught between an engrossing mass masala film and the actor's political launchpad. From being a meek hero with recognisable problems like EMI and a car, to the plasticity with which he is made the saviour, the film defies even the template of a nobody rising above the ranks. Magudam ends up being a heavy crown on a shaky head.