Jailer - Movie Review

 Director and screenplay writer Nelson’s Jailer is a story of a retired jailer (Muthuvel Pandian played by Superstar Rajinikanth) who spends his time praying and taking care of his grandson. He is forced to take the law in hand when his family is in danger. Over a screen time of 2 hours and 49 minutes we get to see Muthuvel’s quality family time, the unhappy acceptance that he is not the breadwinner of the family anymore, few fun moments, his flashback as a menacing Jailer and his smart yet cool moves in tackling the dangers. Thus, we celebrate the Superstar that we have enjoyed all these years through the sepia lens of Nelson.

Nelson’s quirky and dark situation comedy is there throughout the movie. He has a knack for picking unique faces who give deadpan expressions yet make us laugh. In this movie, we have a handful of such characters. The screenplay is very tight and the wonderful twist in the end would leave us spellbound. The editing makes sure that there are sustain shorts where emotions need to be conveyed and racy ones when the adrenaline should just gush. There are few back shorts of the Superstar and each one seems like an introduction scene.

This movie is as much as music composer Anirudh’s movie as much as it is of Nelson’s. The songs are chartbusters anyways. And the BGM simply elevates the scenes. Each time we hear the Jailer theme, goosebumps are assured. It is played many times, but the one near the climax is tastefully placed. Similar, the Rathamaarey is sure to make you emotional.

Then there is the superstar himself who carries the movie on his shoulder effectively. His acting side as well as the stylist style is equally explored. There are several nostalgic moments that remind us of his several blockbusters. In fact, there is a flashback where he just steals the show.  He just keeps us hooked to the screen and his magic. Especially in the second half where he is in another zone altogether.

Vinayagam as Varman is also commendable. He has this look that is scary yet has a comical swag thereby seamlessly fitting into Nelson’s universe. His sidekicks are equally good.

The lovely cameos by Shiva Rajkumar, Jackie Shroff, Sunil, Mohanlal and Tamannaah Bhatia are cheer worthy. They all have important parts to play as well. It is always amazing when people come together to support one another.

Apart of the quirky sepia tinted dark comedy, Nelson is also known for strong and participative female characters. It was disheartening to see how someone like Remya Krishnan was wasted being restricted to a dining table chair. She has nearly no role to play except a sentence that she utters which triggers the chain of actions from Muthu that becomes the movie per se. She doesn’t contribute otherwise. Some backstory and a better partnership would have been better. It is the same case with Muthu’s daughter in law played by Mirna Menon. Even the grandchild who has some interesting combos with Muthu seem to vanish away in no time.  

It is important to note that the violence in the movie is above and beyond. Hammer, swords, guns, and snipers are used like anything. While we are used to these by now, the staging makes it a bit uncomfortable to watch. Considering this is a Superstar movie where the audience age range is from pregnant women to very old people, it is unbelievable that the movie received UA certificate instead of A. I read the censor board comments and it was unbelievable to find their recommended changes. I wish the makers and the censor board were more mindful of the audience.

Overall, Jailer is a 100% Superstar movie which is made by fans and for the fans. This is one of the brilliant Rajinikanth movies in recent types also because the actor acts his age which only propels his superstardom. Highly recommend this movie if you are ok to bear some eye twitching violence of course!

Cast	:	Rajinikanth and Rajinikath only
Director	:	Nelson
Cinematographer	:	Vijay Karthik Kannan
Music	:	Anirudh Ravichandran
Editor	:	R Nirmal
Producer	:	Sun Pictures
Release Date	:	August 10, 2023
Length	:	168:47
Language	:	Tamil