Critics' Review: Master Is More a Vijay Film Than a Kanagaraj One

The film is directed by Lokesh Kanagaraj.

After a long wait Lokesh Kanagaraj's Master has released in theatres on Wednesday, 13 January. The crime thriller features Vijay as a professor and Vijay Sethupati as the antagonist. Master is the first big Indian film to release in cinema halls after the coronavirus pandemic.

While viewers have taken to social media to give a thumbs up to the movie, here's what the critics have to say:

"Just like 'Petta', 'Master' sees a new-age filmmaker trying his hand at commercial cinema with a mass hero. Lokesh Kanagaraj manages to pass the test, even if 'Master' is more a Vijay film than a Lokesh Kanagaraj film. What Lokesh brings to the film is filmmaking flair. The scenes featuring the hero and the villain have distinct visual tones - cool blues for JD and fiery red for Bhavani. There are some cool shots, like an overhead shot that shows the correctional facility divided by sunlight and darkness, with JD in the sunlit area. He succeeds in building up the aura around his star with effective references from Vijay's previous hits. A kabaddi scene set inside the juvenile home is a great throwback to Ghilli (Anirudh's use of the Ghilli theme recalls a similar approach from Darbar). The pre-intermission portion is a callback to the famous Thuppakki scene.

M Suganth, The Times of India

"Vijay easily carries the film on his considerable shoulders, and Lokesh lets him, even playing to the gallery with a few homages to the star’s earlier hits. However, the script’s languid pacing is a far cry from the tightly-wound, electric screenplays of Maanagaram and Kaithi, which made both the director’s previous works so immensely watchable".

Gautam Sunder, The Hindu

"Director Lokesh not only impresses us with the making, but he serves a lot of unique Thalapathy moments on a large platter. Rather than presenting us the same trademark moments we've seen in previous films, he slightly modifies most of them and that makes the film refreshing. For example, the villain gets a hero introduction while the hero gets introduced 20 minutes into the film".

Behind Woods

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