Super Deluxe

'Super Deluxe' is everything you cannot have imagined by just knowing the title. With Thiagarajan Kumararaja at its helm, I did have high hopes. The writing duties were shared between the director, Mysskin, Nalan Kumaraswamy, and Neelan K. Sekar - all promising names in the industry. The cast featured Vijay Sethupathi (in the role of a transwoman as revealed from the poster), Samantha Akkineni, Fahadh Faasil, Ramya Krishnan, Mysskin, and more. Did they deliver? A colossal YES!

Super Deluxe is 'Pulp Fiction' for Tamil cinema in 2019. There are four different storylines happening parallel to each other, yet somehow connected in ways that you would not see coming. Each frame in the film boasts a colour palette that only someone like Kumararaja can come up with. The opacity is rich and saturated, the costumes match the backdrops well, and the colour tones employed by cinematographers Nirav Shah and P.S Vinod blend with the respective storylines brilliantly.

The screenplay will throw a good number of surprises (and twists) at you. It's too random to be placed into a single genre (or even two, or three!). The undercurrent of black humour is certainly there, but when the emotions take centre-stage, the viewer has no choice but to treat it with the seriousness that it whole-heartedly deserves. The list of whammies include someone dying during sex, a husband/father returning to his household in the most unforeseen way possible, a porn movie that had more than what its teen viewers bargained for, and lastly, the struggles of a wife (of a self-proclaimed godman) whose son has met with an unruly accident.

When it comes to performances, Super Deluxe holds nothing back. If we thought Sethupathi did not have any more challenging roles to do (we last saw him as Ayya in Seethakaathi), here comes yet another cracker of a show by him, conveying the troubles that a transwoman often has to deal with in our world. This has to be Samantha's best performance as yet, where she doesn't play second fiddle to a masala/sappy hero, instead putting forth an extremely layered act. Fahadh Faasil is tremendous as usual, playing the husband who has to deal with his wife's infidelity and the unlikely aftermath that follows. The actors who portray the schoolboys who decide to watch porn at home on a regular working day, certainly show promise.

However, the top honours go to Ashwanth Ashokkumar, the child actor playing the kid excited to meet his dad for the first time. This has got to be one of the most well-written, well-acted child characters in a movie in a very long time. He wants to prove to his friends at school that he's not a 'test-tube baby', and he does not care who or how his father has turned out to be in the meantime. And it is for this reason that the finale of this particular segment felt the most satisfying (and heartwarming at the same time).

Leela's (Ramya Krishnan) segment could have been edited better, but the aesthetics (just look at Arputham's prayer hall and how it has been designed) are impressive. Everything in the movie has been placed to impeccable detail - the police station set, the gangster's house that the boys barge into, the roadside walls (filled with movie posters and a parked lorry with rusted barrels and what-not) and many many more. When it comes to comedy, Mugil's (Fahadh) monologue with his wife's dead lover will surely leave you in splits. Berlin, the cop, has been played with the right amount of nastiness by Bucks.

This isn't your regular commercial potboiler - it's a film with substance, well-rounded characters, tasteful aesthetics, clap-worthy performances, a moving background score (by Yuvan) and subtle philosophy. Watch it with people who appreciate cinema for the flagrant/expressive art-form that it is.

Yet again thiagarajan kumaraja proved he is king in story telling. Starting from story, props, visual, BGM and every actor role were apt and movie is definitely worth watch for more than once !

The movie sets the ball rolling big time even as the credits come on. Then the background music makes it's entry and then the first scene comes on, and you know, you are in the right theater.

The deep saturated colors in the frames feel so perfect. The frames are simply perfect - framing characters in different portions of the screen, amazing.

There are so many scenes that are so hilarious. The screenplay has a welcome randomness to it. You typically never know what is coming.

Vijay Sethupathi is on a push-the-envelope mode. While the old man in Aadhi was challenging, the transgender in Super-Deluxe is a level up in challenge and well met.

Fahad Fazil, on the other hand, did not have a better role here than say "Kumbalangi Nights". Some of his scenes almost did not work, while many others did.

Bagavathi Perumal, who plays the subinspector has given a truly outstanding performance, potentially surpassed only by Vijay Sethupathi, who had the advantage of much more challenging scenes.

Yuvan Shankar Raja has done amazing background music work, that stands out with it's subduedness. Music is used to enhance comedy at multiple points, and the result has been fantastic. Also, unique sound choices to communicate scene tension, background sounds to give a feel of a lot of background action.

Multiple unpredictable random threads of stories sometimes come together in such a sudden tight knot that you can almost touch. Randomness is just awesome.

The thread on god did not connect with me and hence, scenes on that thread, felt like a drag, as also did some scenes of Fahadh.

Deeply philosophical as well, the movie presents various valid stands. I did not quite like the ending as much, as it was a bit preachy. On the other hand, leaving it abstract might not communicate enough.

A must watch and more. Worthy of multiple watches for sure.

Thiagarajan Kumararaja has conveyed and compiled so many messages as much as possible in a movie. I am sure the might have forced to have omitted few messages due to the length of the movie.

How do you feel when you have something to say to the world and it displayed in the form of a movie, it was such a kind of a movie.

It is not easy to direct such movies without the influence of a higher intellectual.

It is high time people change their perception and start accepting realities in life.

Life is very simple, we spoil it because of our very own thoughts and deeds.

This movie is to all those who have the ability to perceive and be receptive to adapt a new life. You realise life, because you are alive !!!

Masterpiece would be the perfect word to describe this cult movie. It holds you with curiosity until the last-minute and creates a great impact. All actors have played their part so well that they stay in our mind as characters of the film. Vijay sethupathi as Shilpa, he has given an extraordinary performance as usual. Samantha as Vembu proves that she is a star performer. The end voice over philosophy creates a greater impact and connects all the important dialogues in the movie which points to message that the director tries to conveys to the audience. Thiagarajan Kumararaja deserves National Award! Close to 3 hours movie without songs must watch guys!