Clash of Giants: 'Thunivu' vs 'Varisu'
March 14th, 2023
Credit: Sri Venkateswara Creations, PVP Cinema, Zee Studios, Bayview Projects
Release Dates: January 10th, 2023 (Thunivu), and January 12th, 2023 (Varisu)
Directors: H. Vinoth (Thunivu), Vamshi Paidipally (Varisu
Where to Watch on OTT: Netflix (Thunivu), Amazon Prime Video (Varisu)
Thunivu Cast: Ajith Kumar, Manju Warrier, John Kokken, Samuthirakani, Ajay Kumar
Varisu Cast: Vijay, Rashmika Mandanna, R. Sarathkumar, Jayasudha, Meka Srikanth, Shaam, Prakash Raj, Sangeetha
Thunivu Rating: 2.5
Varisu Rating: 3.7
This January saw the clash of Ajith Kumar and Vijay, two of the biggest stars of Tamil cinema. Their massive fan bases span the world, and excitement about the clash began many months before the release of the films. Thunivu is Ajith’s 61st film and his third collaboration with H. Vinoth, who had previously delivered hits like Valimai (2022) and Theeran Adhigaaram Ondru (2017). Varisu, meanwhile, is Vijay’s first collaboration with Telugu director Vamshi Paidipally. **Warning: Spoilers ahead**
Thunivu:
Thunivu revolves around the Chennai branch of fictional Yes-Bank. ACP Ramachandran (Ajay Kumar) plans to loot this bank in broad daylight with the help of dreaded gangster Radha (Veera), and they go ahead with the heist. However, they find the bank is already hijacked by a mysterious gangster Micheal Jackson (Ajith) and his accomplice Kanmani. All rails go loose from here as the two groups attempt to piece together their true purpose and whether they are all pawns in a chess game. The foundation of the plot is unique, and the twists and turns that take place in the first half keep the audience glued to their seats. The tone of the movie completely shifts at the beginning of the second half of the movie, and this results in a feeling of disengagement as the scenes don’t quite match up to the thrills of the first half. The climax of the movie is somewhat predictable, but it is still gripping.
Thunivu is a well-directed movie, with scenes flowing together in a smooth sequence. The film features two songs, and they take up minimal time in the 146-minute film. Nirav Shah’s cinematography is well-put together and grounds the movie in a real-world scenario. Ajith once again delivers a powerful performance, first behaving as a massy & mysterious gangster, and then becoming an icon of social hope in the second half. Manju Warrier is good in her role, but the limitations of her character limit her scope of acting. Ajay Kumar, Samuthirakani, and John Koken excel in their roles.
The biggest flaw of Thunivu is its screenplay. The movie is out-and-out a mass movie dedicated to Ajith’s army of fans. H. Vinoth, in his attempt to appeal to Ajith fans, neglects logic in many sequences, resulting in certain audience members questioning whether what they’re seeing is even logically possible. One of the best examples of this occurring is in the climax. Ajith and Manju Warrier race away from India on a speedboat and are pursued by more than 20 ships and three attack helicopters of the Indian Coast Guard. Instead of surrendering, Ajith whips out an M2 Browning machine gun and guns down 10 of his pursuing ships. The entire sequence lasts 10 to 15 minutes, but by the second or third-minute mark the action sequences displayed feel repetitive, thus creating a disengaging atmosphere. Another example of the movie’s neglecting logic is in its portrayal of the NSG, who are shown as almost accomplices of Krish, the CEO of Yes-Bank – Vinoth doesn’t spend any time to even justify why NSG commandos, whose utmost duty is to protect the nation, would be in cahoots with a powerful businessman.
Varisu:
Varisu revolves around Vijay Rajendran (Vijay), a free-spirited young entrepreneur who shares a bad relationship with his powerful business magnate father, Rajendran Palinisamy (R. Sarathkumar), much to the dismay of his mother Sudha (Jayasudha). Rajendran discovers he is terminally ill with cancer, and the relationship he shares with his son Vijay, his other two sons Jai (Srikanth) and Ajay (Shaam), his wife, and corporate competitors form the plot of the movie. The screenplay, though somewhat generic, is well-crafted, with powerful scenes scattered throughout the otherwise lighthearted and fun movie. The audience experiences a rollercoaster of emotions through the 169-minute film, and this ensures that they stay gripped to their seats throughout.
Vamshi Paidipally beautifully directs the movie, with scenes flowing smoothly. A majority of the scenes are well-placed and flow with the narrative, but certain scenes stick out as clear & coherent examples of hero worship. Two songs, “Jimikki Ponnu” and “Ranjithame”, detach themselves from the plot, while the rest of the songs, including “Thee Thalapathy” and “Vaa Thalaivaa” contribute to the development of the story. The dialogues are insightful, with certain dialogues hitting hard emotionally. Paidipally has a go with a couple of one-liner punches here and there, but most of them fall short. Cinematographer Palani Karthik does a clean job with his cinematography, creating a visually appealing nature to the film.
In terms of audience engagement, Varisu is a mixed bag of positives and negatives. A major flaw of the movie is in its portrayal of action sequences – these scenes, though shot well, are highly illogical at times. A good example of this is when Vijay’s niece Ria gets kidnapped by a human trafficking gang. The police are able to narrow Ria’s location to a certain district in Chennai, but are unable to take any further action as, quote, “there were too many goons in that area for the police force to handle”. Vijay then blazes into that district and single-handedly beats up every gang member he finds until he locates the leader, Anthony. He then forces the leader to release Ria and the other girls being held hostage. The very premise of the scene is illogical – if the police know that a large human trafficking operation is occurring in a particular district, why are they not investigating it further? Beyond that, Vijay being able to thrash over thirty goons without receiving a single scratch is so illogical that it creates a disengaging atmosphere for the movie’s audience.
Who Wins the Clash?
Between the two movies, Varisu outshines Thunivu due to its inherent emotional structure. Varisu is a movie about family, love, and oneness, and it imparts some very needful lessons to today’s world. Thunivu, meanwhile, blurs itself between Money Heist and Mahesh Babu’s Sarkaru Vaari Paata (a social-issue drama focusing on bank scams). In its attempt to appeal to the audience as both a thriller and an impactful movie, Thunivu loses its identity, resulting in a somewhat gibberish amalgamation of multiple filmography styles. Despite their flaws and their clash at the box office, both Varisu and Thunivu emerged as blockbusters, and this is a testament to Vijay and Ajith’s loyal fanbases.
Vijay’s next movie is Leo, directed by the young sensation Lokesh Kanagraj (who had previously directed Vikram (2022) and Kaithi (2019)). Ajith’s next movie is tentatively titled AK 62, and is directed by Magizh Thirumeni.