Leader TamilYogi Review: Weirdly sweet phrase of a father “designing” the mother to his daughter, lingers in the air long after it is uttered, a weird amalgamation of sorrow and fantasy that defines Leader quietly. It makes you know precisely what type of movie R. S. Durai Senthilkumar is attempting to create, a film that desires emotional closeness to co-exist with harbour-based crime and the increasing sense of danger. And it really works – at least awhile. The movie creates an atmosphere of tension and the mood where ethical issues are more important than muscles and where its hero is rejuvenatingly human. However, right as that balance starts to seem reassuring, the storyline starts to push too far, and twist after twist is added to it till the emotional heart is buried beneath its own aspirations.
The main character of the story is not a conventional mass-hero. He is a single dad, a mechanic and a man burdened with losing someone he loved. The film has emotional support in his relationship with his daughter. She has no hearing ability without the device, but more to the point, she is not a device to be used as an instrument of pity. Rather, she takes an active role in creating the story.
There was one moment I had remained. His telling her he had designed her mother, it felt strange, even surreal, but so heartfelt. It is a film that connects grief and imagination in a manner that the commercial cinema hardly tries to do. These heartfelt rhythms make the first half of this piece have the tone of the ground that I personally enjoyed.
The storyline takes off in the misty world of harbour crime. A don runs a large illegal network and the movie intelligently does not divulge too much at the beginning. This inhibition creates interest. Meet Inspector Indhra Sathyamoorthy, played by Andrea Jeremiah, who delivers her lines with command, and attempts to destroy the operation in house.
As she comes to the protagonist and implores him to insert bugs in the cars of the villain, he is quick and categorical, saying, I will not defraud my customer. In that line alone, his moral code is defined. It also establishes the main conflict.
After a short time mistrust sneaks in. The villain then comes up to him and inquires, what did that woman demand and what was it that you replied? The restatement of truth does not dismantle the question and tension builds up well. This was a fascinating part to me, and it was a nice mix of emotional tension and increasing peril.
The familiar patterns at work cannot be neglected. One father, an innocent child, anonymity, and the constant fear of abduction, all these are the time-tested tropes in Tamil commercial cinema. They are not reinvented by Leader, but in the first half, it employs them with sufficient earnestness to keep it interested.
The movie is ambitious technically. The action scenes are performed with excitement, particularly a train combat which has an air of stylised excitement akin to mainstream Hindi action movies. These moments are enhanced by the cinematography and sound design. The action sequences are distinguished by sharp cuts and effective sound cues, as well as the controlled chaos. The SFX work is fine but the VFX fails miserably in some parts.
One can find some hints of really interesting ideas. The psychological state of the main character, in which all the faces are the same to him, is quite an original concept. I continued to wish that the film would go deeper with this, but it is yet to be developed.
Equally, the hearing machine of the daughter used in the climax is an ingenious narration. It puts the vulnerability on a meaningful tension. These touches demonstrate that the film is creatively ambitious although not always through.
The second part is the one in which the movie starts to unravel. What begins as a well-managed story soon turns into a jumble of twists. At some point it almost seems that each scene is competing with the other one to provide another revelation.
The problem is not that twists are present but they are not effective. A big twist that the villain is two people does not carry the hefty it needs. The resurrection of a purported dead character is hardly felt. These scenes are artificial and not natural.
Rather than increasing tension, the twists constantly detract it. I got to a stage where I ceased to be emotional and just awaited the next disclosure. It is not a good omen of a thriller.
Legend Saravanan is much better than his earlier work. He does not indulge in fantasy such as forced romance or melodramatic utterances. It was an attempt to remain within the character, which I could discern. But the acting is shallow, in emotionally charged scenes.
The heavy lifting is done by the supporting cast. Lal, Shaam, Santhosh Prathap, Amritha Aiyer and VTV Ganesh all fit well in their place. They are there to make sure that the film does not entirely lose its ground even when the screenplay stumbles.
Logic is evidently violated in a few instances. The fact that several containers appeared in a few minutes, or even the choice of taking a family member in an active shootout, push the limits.
That being said, I do not anticipate that a movie with its origin in this genre will be strictly realistic. The actual issue is the lack of conviction. Even the most far-fetched moments would seem okay when a movie whole-heartedly invests in its logic. In this case, that belief is not congruent.
The last is an effort to gain ground. The final 30-40 minutes are fast-paced, with emotional rhythms and spectacle-heavy action. And there is also a definite suggestion of a follow-up, implying that the filmmakers are imagining a bigger story world.
I was able to discern the size, the will and the financial commitment on the screen. Nor can ambition alone make up narrative extravagance.
Leader possessed everything that made an action drama enticing. The first half demonstrates that it has the ability to strike a balance between emotion, tension, and spectacle. The second half though loses discipline, as quantity rather than quality is in question when it comes to twists.
I went away with the thought that the movie almost made it to the level of being memorable, but ended up being mediocre. It is movie that can be viewed particularly with an interest in an action thriller and with the ability to ignore tropes and logical shortcuts. But it also leaves the impression of squandered potential.
Rating: 2.5/5
