Kaali (2018) - Cut Short Review

Cast: Vijay Antony, Anjali, Sunainaa, Amritha Aiyer, Shilpa Manjunath, RK Suresh, Nasser, Rakesh Prudhvi K, Galwin, Vela Ramamoorthy, Jayaprakash, Yogi Babu, Madhusudhan Rao
Direction: Kiruthiga Udhayanidhi 
Production: Vijay Antony Film Corporation
Music: Vijay Antony
Genre: Action, Romance, Drama
Language: Tamil
Runtime: 2 hrs 14 mins 
Censor Certificate: U

Plot - Bharath is one of the top doctors in America. He lives with his family. Later he comes to know that he is an adopted son. After that, he comes to India in search of his biological parents. With a clue, he lands in 'Kanavukarai' and begins his search. What happens next forms the crux of the story. 

Performance of the Star Cast - Vijay Antony delivers a neat performance and he stays strong with the emotions till the end. His different get-ups looks fine in each frame. He strikes well in the action sequences. Anjali and Amritha plays a small part in this film, still they gives their best. Sunainaa delivers a naturalistic performance, which is so convincing. Shilpa Manjunath makes a good debut in Kollywood, with her decent performance. RK Suresh delivers his usual style of evilness. Yogi Babu has really done a great job, by entertaining the audience with his superb one-liners. His costumes will also make us to laugh. His humour is one of the biggest plus. Nasser, Vela Ramamoorthy, Jayaprakash and Madhusudhan Rao have done their part well. 

Technical Works - Richard M Nathan's cinematography is really amazing, in which his visuals gives a lively feel. Lawrence Kishore's editing looks good with sharp cuts, and his editing doesn't create any confusion with the three different stories. Vijay Antony's songs are so impressive. Other than mother sentiment track, the two romantic melody tracks 'Arumbey' and 'Noorai Yugam Noorai' gives a pleasant feel. The additional track 'Manusha Vaa'  is really impressive with good lines. His background score elevates both the emotional and action sequences. 

Director's Involvement with the Script - Director Kiruthiga Udhayanidhi's approach for this plot looks different. Her direction is neat, and she handles the sentiment in a decent way. The protagonist's search for his parents has been conveyed through three different stories. She deals with the 'Caste Discrimination' subject in those stories, which looks good. By using Yogi Babu's humour track along with the plot, she makes the audience comfortable without making the plot so dramatic. But, the simple treatment in some scenes doesn't create a strong impact. 

Screenplay Execution - In the first half, the films directly enters into the plot. The initial 20 minutes looks usual only. Later, the film enters into the main track. The humour content stays strong. After some small deviations from the main plot, the film completely focuses on the core plot. The interval block looks good, which promises a good second half. In the second half, the screenplay slows down our interest in few parts. After that, the film maintains the right track. The climax is simple, but it looks convincing. 


Main Negatives of the Film - The seriousness of the core plot is not much stronger in few portions. Even though the romance track between Vijay Antony and Anjali is less, it comes as a speed breaker in the main plot. The predictability factor plays a game in the second half, to slow down the interest of the audience. Some logical questioning also arises in between. As the climax looks so simple, the entire approach by the director convinces the audience partially. 

Verdict 
           'Kaali' is a film which has a mix of action, father-mother sentiment, humour and romance in a right proportion. Director Kiruthiga Udhayanidhi gives her best to make the audience comfort with the plot. But her simple treatment in few scenes doesn't create a big impact. Still, she manages to hold the interest of the audience without making the subject bored. So, this film deserves 'worth-watchable once' for Vijay Antony's performance and for the different approach to the plot. 

Note - Watch the film with low expectations for a decent watch. This film will highly work with family audience. 

Cut Short Rating - 7.7/10