Rathnam review: Vishal show in typical Hari entertainer

By now, we all know what to expect from Hari's films and if you are a fan, you won't be disappointed.

The plot

Rathnam (Vishal) is a loyal henchman for a local MLA Paneerselvam (Samuthirakani) in Vellore. Pannerselvam uses Rathnam and his other goons only to deliver justice to people and help the needy. They commit crimes only for the betterment of people.

Life moves smoothly for Rathnam in his town until he meets Malliga (Priya Bhavani Shankar), who is a mirror image of his mother. He is baffled by the resemblance and when a group of henchmen from Andhra Pradesh try to murder Malliga, Rathnam saves her. As a result, he earns the enmity of their goons’ bosses.

The rest of the film moves towards the grand reveal, the secret behind Rathnam's parents, what is the connection between Malliga and his mother and why Malliga is being chased by the goons.

Racy action sequences

Compared to his previous films, Hari has moved up many notches when it comes to his action sequences, which are now racy and technically brilliant. His long single-take shots are also very good. It's evident that Hari has invested a lot of time in creating the elaborate stunt sequences in the film.

But ‘Rathnam’ turns out to be a tad too violent for family audiences with a lot of bloodshed and cuss words. However, the filmmaker manages to maintain an emotional undercurrent through his characters in the film, which is his biggest strength.

Racy first-half

The first half of the film is fast-paced with several surprising twists and turns. But in the second half, the director springs a big surprise for the pre-climax and hence, the film drags and takes too much time to reach the final closure. One or two action sequences could have been easily trimmed to reach the climax.

Though Vishal's previous film ‘Mark Antony’ was a hit, the film largely worked because of SJ Suryah. The best part of ‘Rathnam’ is Vishal, who looks very energetic and fit reminding us of his good old days.

The actor looks good in the over-the-top action scenes with his well-built, tall physique and fierce expressions. It’s good to see the talented Samuthirakani in a well-written role, and he does not disappoint by delivering an eloquent performance.

The female character

Priya Bhavani Shankar's role is also neatly written and the actress has pulled it off with her sincere performance. Gautham Menon, who comes just in a couple of scenes steals the show with his screen presence.

The reason behind Vishal's love for Priya's character works well but his mom's flashback and the dramatic twists that come along with that could've been revealed to the audience much earlier.

Weak link

The film sags due to the weakest link – the three villains. Though their backstory sounds interesting, they seem like caricatures in front of a powerful hero who easily fells them.

Yogi Babu's comedy somehow fails to evoke laughter and falls flat. Hari should resist writing weak comedy scenes and stick to action and sentiment, which are his key strengths.

Devi Sri Prasad's songs are not something you take home with you but he has elevated the mass sequences with a good background score, which can be a bit loud at times.

Sukumar's cinematography is impressive, especially in the stunt sequences. On the downside, both the directorial and editing departments could've worked more on the second half of the film.

Overall, Rathnam is a watchable masala entertainer with a gripping first half.