Annaatthe movie review: Despite an earnest attempt from Rajinikanth, this family-action drama is outdated and drab

2/5

Story: A doting brother gets the shock of his life when he is told that his little sister eloped with her lover. However, the sister's happiness does not last long after she moves to Kolkata with her lover-turned-husband. A ruthless businessman makes life difficult for her. After knowing about his sister's troubles, the brother goes to Kolkata and vows to take on those who messed up with his younger sibling. Will the brother and sister unite?   

Review: Perhaps no other Tamil director in the recent times has been as lucky as Siva with regard to making back-to-back projects with big stars. After joining hands with Ajith in four consecutive movies, he has teamed up with Rajinikanth for the first time in Annaatthe. 

Though the third project in Siva-Ajith combination, Vivegam, was a colossal mess, their last outing, Viswasam, turned out to be one of the highest grossing films in Tamil Nadu. Thus, fans of Rajinikanth and other movie buffs had a solid reason to pin hopes on the movie. Moreover, it's after a long time that a Rajinikanth-starrer is set against a village backdrop. Has the film satisfied the viewers?  

The movie begins in Kolkata, where a few dreaded goons are after Kaaliyan (Rajinikanth), who is new to the city. Cut to flashback, we are told how he landed in the City of Joy from his native town Soorakottai, a village in Tamil Nadu. Kaaliyan, who is the panchayat president, is adored by many villagers for his commitment towards people. 

His life revolves around his younger sister Thanga Meenatchi (Keerthy Suresh), who is back to the village after completing studies at Kolkata. Kaaliyan, who always wants the best for his sister, starts searching a groom for her. 

He fixes her marriage with the brother of a small-time goon (Prakash Raj) who gets reformed by the former. However, little did Kaali anticipate that his sister would elope with her lover. Meenatchi moves to Kolkata after getting hitched to her lover. But their happiness does not last long. 

Manoj Palekar (Abhimanyu Singh), a cruel businessman and his brother Udhav Palekar (Jagapathi Babu), a notorious don, are after the couple's lives. Upon knowing this, Kaali aka Annaatthe lands in Kolkata to save his sister from the clutches of these baddies. But will he be able to do that?  

Annaatthe has almost everything you expect in a Rajinikanth movie - a high-voltage intro scene (okayish) with pulsating background score by Imman, fight sequences (unimpressive) by Dhilip Subbarayan, dances (nothing spectacular) and emotions (exaggerated) - but the lack of an engaging screenplay makes it uneasy to sit through the whole movie. 

Though Siva has scored successes in the past with tried-and-tested formula, this time he seems to have taken things for granted as the writing is visibly lazy and characterizations hardly impress you. The brother-sister bonding is the core theme of the movie, but when you don't empathize with their emotions, the songs, dance and fight sequences hardly interest you.

Rajini tries his best in action and emotional scenes, but it is clear that his age restricts him to deliver what he used to till recently. Yet, it is a delight watching him oozing energy and utter punch lines (though most of the lines on life philosophy fall flat). Keerthy Suresh's character and a few scenes in which she feature reminds us of Siva's Vedalam (thanks to the Kolkata connection). She emotes decently, but the lack of a convincing relationship between brother-sister characters, makes her helpless. 

About other artists, the less said, the better. Khushbu and Meena, who share screen space with Rajini after more than two decades, do not impress with their underwritten roles. They also go missing after a while like a few other characters. Nayanthara is there for the sake of placing a female lead in a Thalaivar film. 

The baddies played by Abhimanyu Singh and Jagapathi Babu lack conviction, and as antagonists, they hardly pose any threat to the protagonist. With lack of novelty, predictable scenes and logical loopholes, Annaatthe is a disappointing fare, despite an earnest attempt from Rajinikanth.   

Verdict: With hardly any whistle-worthy moments for Rajinikanth fans, Annaatthe, which has a presentation which is as old as hills, is a forgettable fare from the Superstar after a long time.