#TheGreatestOfAllTime Review
#TheGreatestOfAllTime AKA #TheGOAT
2024-Tamil
Starring: Thalapathy Vijay , Prashanth , Prabhudeva, Mohan , Sneha , Laila , Ajmal Ameer, Meenakshi Chaudhary,Premgi and Jayaram
Directed by Venkat Prabhu
Plot : Gandhi , A Dedicated Officer at SATS (Special Anti Terrorism Squad) resigns his job after an Operation goes wrong and loses an family member. Years later , Gandhi's teammates start to die when they uncover something. Who is killer. Why is he targetting Gandhi's Squad members? And what is the connection between the Killer and Gandhi's past forms the rest of the story.
Performance wise , this is an one man show by Thalapathy Vijay. His Two Roles as Gandhi & Jeevan were portrayed with utmost perfection and was completely different from each other. The weariness of Old Character Vijay was beautifully portrayed. After Vijay, the squad members get more screen space. While Prashanth is on top notch form , Prabhudeva and Ajmal underplay. While one of them have a deeper role , the arc seemed a bit artificial at times but works on a whole. Their camaraderie on screen was amazing and realistic. Sneha as Elder Vijay's Pair looks beautiful together and her performance was also really good. Laila almost like a cameo and good performance. Meenakshi wasted only for song. Mohan as the Antagonist looks weak as his character was written very cliched. Jayaram as the squad head gets a good role and performs well. Vaibhav , Aravind Akash, Ajay Raaj , Dileepan & Parvathi Nair and YG Mahendran get very minor roles and have done adequately what is needed. Yogi Babu comedy track was partially good partially cringe. Premgi wasted.
Technically the film is a hit and miss. Cinematography by Siddhartha Nunni is amazing as he captures the locales and action brilliantly whereas Yuvan's Music is partially a let down. While some songs were good, the BGMs could've been much better. Editing by Venkat Rajen could've been much crispier and sharper. The Film's major USP , The De-Aging was actually pretty good. While the young version (Naalaya Theerpu) Vijay CGI was unintentionally funny, remaining De-Aging was good. The Tribute to Captain Vijaykanth was heartwarming and good. Rest of the VFX was good at places , clunky at times.
The film starts with the flashback portion which sets the stage for the main plot. The Entire Train Sequence with the CGI cameo was pretty good. Post the Intro song , the film shifts to a lighter zone with family track which was funny. While the ending of that track was predictable, the film quickly transitions to the present. The Moscow portions were visually great but the immediate cuts made the sequence disconnect a bit. While Chinna Chinna Kangal placement was good, after that film completely gets into the action zone. The Pre Interval Metro fight sequence was perceived and shot fantastically supported by a strong BGM by Yuvan.
Post Interval, the film actually picks up speed and gets into the Cat and Mouse chase between the Protagonist & Antagonist. While the scenes & screenplay was designed in a racy manner, the song placements play a huge speed breaker. But the film reedems itself in racy last 40 mins concluding in a bombastic climax.
Talking about the Negatives, the film's screenplay post Interval twist becomes very predictable. The CGI at places were so glaring (especially the Naalaya Theerpu Vijay CGI) and unfortunately made those unintentionally funny. The Songs placement especially in the Second Half were so bad that comes as a lag. While the film tries to classify itself as a Action Thriller , the sudden tonal shift makes it difficult to follow in one particular genre. The Last 40 mins which comes out as the heart of the film had magnificent build up but at parts felt like it was dragged intentionally. The Film's duration comes as a huge issue and the editor could've easily chopped of a chunk of 15-20 mins easily.
Writern& Director Venkat Prabhu has taken a very simple core line of a unique Cat and Mouse chase and has tried to intergrate with the Spy/Thriller genre has succeeded partially in that. His Trademark black comedy works here and there , and the political refrence/Vijay Vintage seemed like an overkill at times. VP successfully crafted a commercial cinema but was it completely unique was the question. The Cameos were good , one was a treat for the eye and one was for legacy passing down. VP did manage to bring a new dimension to Vijay after so long but was it effectively used? The answer is Yes and NO. To sum it all up , The GOAT serves as a Decent Penultimate movie for Thalapathy that is rich in Cameos and Vintage Vijay Refrence but a little less in good screenplay. Barring some minor lags and issues here and there , GOAT works as a satisfactory watch for General fans and a great watch for Vijay Fans .
Overall: The Greatest Of All Time might not be greatest film in VP or Vijay's Filmography but definitely not the worst also. The film's Antagonist Characterization and Some Twists here and elevate the film and make it an fun watch .
Rating : 3-3.25/5
Digital Rights: Netflix
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