The odds were against from the start. The trailer did not look promising, me not a fan AR Murugadoss (barring his Ramana nothing did impress me a lot) and above all the critics reviews having a grim outlook. But those were not a deterrent and the spirit of watching a Thalaivar movie did triumph over in the end. The film did disappoint me big time. Murugadoss could not do justice to this ageing super star and that too he playing a Cop role after a long time. I was expecting a terrific Alex Pandian comeback. The big let down is the screenplay which lacks conviction and logic, a poorly staged antagonist and above all the mass of super star. I really missed the flamboyance and WOW factor. Its difficult to compare this with Petta but i felt Petta was bit better in bringing the Vintage Rajni back after two back to back flops Kabali and Kaala. Kabali and Kaala proved that at his age trying to bring a class wont work, he is known for Mass and his fans will only want to seem him as one man show defying all odds.
Barring the heavy lifting done by the Super Star and a fine piece of performance from Nivetha Thomas as his daughter, rest of the cast were utterly disappointing. Nivetha Thomas is a great talent to watch out for, she was damn good in brochevarevarura too. Dont know why Nayanthara was even selected for the role. Suniel Shetty was at his worst. Lip sync issues and every North Indian trying to speak in Tamil was a pain to watch. Anirudh’s BGM though was too loud but it did a help boost the screen presence a lot. The post interval railway station fight and songs was nicely done but its not an original one. It reminded me on Madurai veeran thaane song from the Vikram's movie Dhool.
Overall the film is purely for Rajinikanth fans, it has all elements you would expect from a Rajinikanth film. The spectacle can easily please a lot but i find it this as an exhausting entertainment . It could have been a great message oriented film, if there was a great focus on script and some research on Mumbai underbelly would have helped in that. Its a lost opportunity for sure. Its not a boring film by any means as Thalaiver sets stage on fire. If Super Star wanted to end on a high note, he needs to select a great script which amplifies and suits his image which has a powerful antagonist and solid revenge thriller would be a key. Now the choice of director, i am not sure who from current generation can do that. May be Vetrimaaran or Lokesh Kanagaraj would be a safe bet. I am going with a generous rating of 3.
Verdict - 3/5 (A Baaad Cop)