Leo Movie Review: The most-anticipated film of the year of Thalapathy Vijay, Leo was released recently and it left everyone stunned. The movie directed by Lokesh Kanagaraj has finally been released in the theatres and fans lined up to watch the early shows. Did the film live up to the expectations of the audience as the trailer raised the bar high with high-octane action scenes? Let’s find out the impact of the movie.
Story
Parthiban (Thalapathy Vijay) runs a coffee business in Himachal Pradesh with his wife, Sathya (Trisha), and two children. His life is turned upside down when he makes the headlines for a heroic act in his village and catches the notice of Antony Das (Sanjay Dutt) and Harold Das (Arjun), who assume him to be their estranged cousin, Leo Das. Who is Parthiban, and what is his relationship with Leo Das? Why is Antony pursuing Parthiban and his family? Is Parthiban able to overcome all odds? All of this, as well as the LCU link, play out in Leo.
What’s good in Leo?
Lokesh Kanagaraj’s fast-paced story kicks off Leo with a bang. He quickly establishes Thalapathy Vijay’s character sketch and immediately converts the protagonist’s narrative from a discreet coffee shop owner to a guy willing to go to any length to preserve his family. The storyline that forces Parthiban to resort to violence is widely recognized. The high points of the first half include the action block in the café, followed by stunts in the market, and the elevation point approaching intermission.
Lokesh Kanagaraj develops his LCU with Leo as well. While the interrelated cross-over of supporting characters isn’t as natural as one might hope, it works as an interesting crowd-pleasing feature to spark conversations and interest in the film. In fact, the film’s collections will be driven by the buzz of LCU Connect being a reality, as Leo promises the largest casting coup in Tamil cinema history.
The most valuable asset of Leo is Thalapathy Vijay’s towering presence and performance, as well as the element of his being depicted as the voice of the ordinary man, willing to go to any length to defend his family. Anirudh’s BGM is great as always, and it enhances the intensity of almost every regular passage. The production values are excellent.
What’s not good in Leo?
Leo is riding on a paper-thin plan – In reality, the plot is a lot of straightforward and predictable. While one anticipates some plot twists and turns, Lokesh disappoints with a pretty mundane concept. Lokesh attempts to infuse action to cover up the screenplay’s flaws, but the high-octane action scenes fail to make an effect because they dominate the storyline.
The entire Leo background with Antony and Harold is tedious and fails to elicit the necessary emotions. The flashback lasts far too long without contributing much to the story. Sanjay Dutt’s role is not written properly and it fails to leave much impact, and the weak track dilutes half of the film’s effect. The entire tension centred on Sanjay Dutt and Thalapathy Vijay just does not work. Following a strong first half, the second half falls flat. Vijay’s emotional outburst on Trisha has no impact since the arc around the latter’s character in the second half is unconvincing. The much-discussed hyena sequence is likewise not up to par. Dialogues also fail to leave an impression.
Performance
Leo rides on Thalapathy Vijay’s shoulders as the actor delivers a tremendous performance. He underplays himself when necessary and roars like a tiger during action scenes. Lokesh vowed to explore a different side of Vijay in Leo, and it’s clear from the opening shot. While he is natural in action scenes, keep an eye out for his portrayal in emotional blocks. Sanjay Dutt has a strong screen presence but is wasted in an underdeveloped role. The same happened with Arjun since Harold Das leaves no impact on the audience. Trisha works well in her short role, but Gautam Menon is the film’s surprise package. Gautam received one of the best-written roles in the film.
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