Watch TrailerSuperstar, Thalaivar or Rajini - these are a few names that make millions of hearts pound by mere utterance! After dominating the industry for five decades and doing more than 80 films, the superstardom of actor Rajinikanth remains unfazed. The actor returns to the big screen to regale his fans with Jailer which is helmed by filmmaker Nelson and features cameos of the biggest superstars from the Indian film industry.
So, does Rajinikanth deliver with Jailer? The answer is blowing in the wind as the Thalaivar huffs and puffs and mows down all opposition to his overpowering altruism. He is larger-than-life-and his introductory sequence is a thesis on on-screen heroism and yet determined to be in sync with a more real persona than he routinely plays. Unsure of how Rajini’s fans would react to a completely made-over mega-star, director Nelson finds a middle ground in narration. Jailer is sometimes gritty, often giddy.
Rajinikanth’s charisma is intact and on full display in virtually every frame of the film. Unfortunately, there isn’t much else in this potboiler to stir up a soup that isn’t entirely dependent on the lead actor to give it the gravitas that could make up for its obvious lack of substance. Jailer is directly aimed at Rajinikanth fans, yet it doesn’t accomplish much to breathe new life into a masala film.
Tiger Muthuvel Pandian (Rajinikanth), who was a jailer, lives his retirement life happily with his wife (Ramya Krishnan), son Arjun (Vasanth Ravi), grandson, and daughter-in-law (Mirnaa Menon). He spends his time helping his grandson run a YouTube channel. Muthuvel’s son Arjun is an honest cop. While tracking a high-profile case, he goes missing and Muthuvel discovers he was killed by a notorious gang. But, there is more than what meets the eye. To find out the truth behind the matter, Muthuvel decides to take matters into his own hands and find out the truth.
The film is marred by poor screenplay and weak writing. The plot is predictable and has nothing novel to offer. The first half is decent and the pre-interval sequences set the expectation high for the second half.
But make no mistake. Jailer is a Rajinikanth vehicle fuelled by his invincible image as the man of the masses. Dressed in crisp linen shirts and trousers we see him striding arrogantly in his cool new avatar. He is great, flashing that smile from behind his salt and pepper look, and enjoying being (relatively) more restrained here. His recent releases, Kaala and Annaatthe gave us a glimpse of the actor in subtler, more delicately written parts and he continues it with Jailer. But mind you, the actor is still a victim and stays trapped in his on-screen image. From the moment he enters the plot, he takes over the proceedings, making everyone else seem hopelessly redundant. In Jailer, he alternates between crowd-pulling gimmicks and a more subdued avatar. The mix is exciting if somewhat unsettling for his diehard devotees.
We also have some interesting cameos from Malayalam superstar Mohanlal, Kannada star Shiva Rajkumar and Bollywood actor Jackie Shroff who do not have much to do apart from adding the star value. The same goes for Yogi Babu and Sunil who are present only to add some comic relief in the film. Vinayakan who plays the main antagonist in the film is menacing and plays his part well.
Jailer promises loads of action and fun-filled moments that any ardent fan of the Superstar could ask for. Everything that Rajini does in Jailer is targeted at his fans. While the star does not miss a trick, director Nelson makes the mistake of not working enough on the screenplay. Working with a weak plot riddled with holes and convenient twists that one can see from miles away. The film is mediocre. Thalaivar isn’t!
