Thalapathy Vijay

(Amazon Streaming, June 2022) The good thing about the globalization of film distribution through streaming platforms is that we get exposed to quality cinema from around the world, most notably the many film industries of India. The not-so-good thing is that going off-Hollywood is not necessarily a guarantee of originality. Master may be unusual in that it comes from the Tamil film industry, but it’s incredibly familiar with what it ends up showing: the story of a capable man going up against impossible odds, fighting criminal corruptions through big action sequences and a few musical numbers. Writer/director Lokesh Kanagaraj does score a few hits: Thalapathy Vijay is good as the protagonist, Vijay Sethupathi does well as the out-and-out villain, and notable action sequences include a metro car fight as well as a late-film sequence involving trucks and archery. I’m also partial to the musical numbers, even if they contribute to the film’s overbearing and unjustifiable three-hour length. For an action film, that’s a lot – especially given how there’s no significant romance to make it more varied. In that, though, Master also feels like far too many other Indian films – they would be much better if they were shorter: they dilute their strengths in far too much… more. The generic nature of the plot doesn’t help, which is a shame considering that, from a cinematographic standpoint, Master (and its brethren) often feel just as polished as Hollywood productions (if not even more so, considering how they eschew pseudo-realistic shaky-cam aesthetics). Ah well – no matter the language barrier, Indian films aim for a very specific effect, and Master certainly delivers on those expectations.