Theri Movie Review: With the right material, Vijay can elevate even an ordinary scene with his amazing screen presence. And he can effortlessly play to the gallery. It is these aspects that Atlee repeatedly calls upon from the actor in Theri, a cop story that is entertaining despite being predictable. And the actor, too, responds in style — he appears in different looks, bashes up the goons, swoons over the heroine, plays along with kids, lectures on raising a child, using a helmet and quitting smoking, and even gamely turns into a dwarf for a brief moment!
As he did with Raja Rani, Atlee borrows tropes from earlier films (the elderly villain from Chatriyan, the metal rod being used as a murder weapon from Ghajini, the gigantic henchman who has to be vanquished before the hero can lay his hands on the villain from various masala movies of the 80s and 90s, the mother as the best friend from the post 2000 movies, the cop who quits the force for his offspring from Yennai Arindhaal) and with help from his cinematographer George C Williams, presents them in a riot of colours that almost makes us believe that we are seeing something new. But this is a formulaic film and can be best described only with another cliché — old wine in a fancy, extra-large bottle.
Theri (English: Spark) is an upcoming Indian Tamil action film written and directed by Atlee and produced by Kalaipuli S. Thanu. The film features Vijay, Samantha and Amy Jackson in the lead roles, while Prabhu and Raadhika Sarathkumar amongst others form an ensemble cast. Featuring music composed by G. V. Prakash Kumar and cinematography handled by George C. Williams.
