Bigil Movie Review: The Vijay Starrer Entertains And Inspires!

After watching Bigil's trailer, it was quite clear that the film will be different from the recent outings of Vijay. Moreover, Bigil also has football as its core theme and no superstar has done a sports-based film in recent times. Hence, expectations are bound to be high. Has Bigil met those hype and buzz audiences had? Read our take on Bigil to get the answers.

Plot

Michael, son of a don named Michael Rayappan, has to take up the role of the coach of Tamil Nadu Senior Women's Football team under certain circumstances. He has a tough time ahead with the footballers doubting his credibility. Will Michael win the mission? What is Michael's backstory? Bigil deals with all these.

Screenplay & Direction

Bigil's core theme might be inspired by various sports-based movies that have come out in Bollywood, especially Chak De India. But Atlee has placed the theme in a very interesting and familiar premise with the much-needed masala elements. As a result, what we get is a complete sports-based film, which also serves its purpose as a mass entertainer, driven by a superstar. With a huge star like Vijay leading from the front, a sports-based film can fill in those void, which probably a mass movie audience would want to see in films of such a genre.

At the same time, it wouldn't be wrong to say that Bigil's two halves lie in different poles, as far as the entertainment factor is concerned. Bigil does take its own time to get into that groove. Atlee's writing in the first half goes for a toss, with the film meandering on predictable lines. Even the flashback sequences lacked any punch barring the portions conveying the father-son sentiment. Loose writing does impact the initial portions heavily. The romantic sequences would have been pretty average on paper, but the presence of Vijay and Nayanthara make them watchable.

Bigil finds its soul in the second half. We get to see an entirely different writer and director, who is charged up to convey what the film intended to do. From the bet match that happens in the second half, Bigil goes for an entirely different ride, which is exhilarating, inspiring and emotional to the core. Atlee should be commended for how he has handled the women empowerment sequences without being preachy. The sequences leading to the 'Singapenney' song are just priceless and form the perfect platform for the movie ahead. Even the mass sequences looked fresh, which was not the case in the first half. For instance, the police station sequence was pretty inventive that kept the audiences guessing despite being a routine mass scene.

Performances

Vijay appears as Michael and Rayappan. His portrayal of Rayappan is one of the best in recent times with the actor in him bringing a complete change in his body language as well as voice modulation. He is also impressive as Michael - the coach. Watch out for his performance in the emotional moments, where he inspires everyone with his words. Nayanathara plays the leading lady and her presence is there throughout the film. In fact, it is she who mouths some of the most important dialogues in the second half. The 'Singapenney' gang is simply awesome with each one of them coming up with a credible performance. While Yogi Babu scores with his comic numbers in the first half, it is Vivek who takes over the baton in the latter half. Kathir does his part pretty well but it felt like he was underutilised. Jackie Shroff looked good in his role and the dubbing was also perfect.

Technical Aspects

AR Rahman has set the songs according to the mood of the film and 'Singapenney' is the one that will stay with you after leaving theatres. He weaves magic with his BGM in the second half, with the notes leaving the audiences inspired. Editor Ruben has done an excellent job in the second half but he could have given more attention to the first half, which looked elongated. The cinematography work was also good.

Verdict

Bigil might have a lot of déjà vu moments but still, Atlee manages to steer the attention of the audiences in the right direction, especially in the second half, which lifts the film to another level. In total, the film will leave you inspired and emotional.