'Retro' review: Suriya brings the necessary pizzazz to Karthik Subbaraj's tonally mismatched film 

Arul in Iraivi. Gandhi Mahaan in Mahaan. Suruli in Jagame Thanthiram. Paari in Retro. Karthik Subbaraj's fascination with wayward men who struggle to reform themselves and their women getting tired of their drama continues in his first collaboration with Suriya, who brings all the necessary swag, style, charisma, pizzazz or whatever you want to call it to this film that has a lot of things happening in it but not all of it makes the desired impact.

The film begins well, of course, with the information that Paari is an orphan kid who becomes the right-hand man of Joju George's character, Thilagan, a senior gangster whose boisterous personality is one of his most striking qualities. Paari is, to him, like his real son; their bond is strengthened by the fact that the boy once saved his life. But what happens when, one day, the boy, after growing into a man, decides to give up his gangster status in favour of a peaceful life with Rukmini (Pooja Hegde), the only woman seemingly capable of taming him? Things get quite... complicated. To keep it vague, someone loses their "right hand" in the chaos that ensues.

Long story short, Paari is forced to go to the Andaman and Nicobar Islands in the pursuit of fixing a strained relationship with a certain someone. Here's another interesting thing about Paari: He cannot smile. This should clear up the confusion of many who wondered why Suriya doesn't smile while showing off his moves in the now-viral 'Kanimaa' song. Upon reaching the destination, Paari sees that the inhabitants don't smile either. There is a reason, which we learn later. In Paari's case, it's caused by a mental block, the solution for which comes at a crucial point in the film.

Now here's the best thing about Retro: It's Karthik's most lighthearted film; it's a relief to see the director opting for a relatively calmer film if you consider the level of intensity dished out in his last one, Jigarthanda Double X. Retro is not, however, devoid of unpleasant imagery — after all, one doesn't go into Karthik's films expecting it to be free of discomfiting situations, especially this one — but the general idea is to have a blast. Suriya, on his part, is in top form, giving fans all the right amount of Suriya-isms, particularly in one scene where he goes to meet Joju with a tape recorder playing a certain "retro" song. I won't describe the scene because one doesn't see it coming; it's such a delight to see Suriya doing... that.

The film is most fun when Suriya has to play Paari as a smile-absent character. Of course, it's nice to see when a fix is finally found, but when he goes around with a deadpan expression doing activities and delivering lines that most people do with a smile, one is amused. In the comedy department, Joju and Sujith Shankar (Maheshinte Prathikaram, Moothon) do fairly well; ironic considering they are playing negative characters. Let's just say that there are places where Retro reminds you of the behaviour of the Singeetam Srinivasa Rao films.

So what about the island and its people? This is where Retro begins to falter a bit. I would've liked it if the film stuck to behaving like a Western where a stranger comes to an unfamiliar land and becomes a saviour. But Karthik goes slightly overboard with the quirks and spoon-feeding the evident mythological references that even a child could figure out. 

Some of the jokes from Jayaram (who is doing a slightly altered, Malayali version of his Ponniyin Selvan character) fall flat while others, delivered in Malayalam, work. And unlike in Jigarthanda Double X, the political subtext appears contrived. The major tonal mismatch in some of the post-interval portions, especially when Paari attempts to change Rukmini's mind (Hegde is a picture of grace, and aptly so); plus, the whole saviour element and the way the entire third act is staged, drains the film of its potency in the final moments. 

Film: Retro

Director: Karthik Subbaraj

Cast: Suriya, Pooja Hegde, Joju George, Jayaram, Nassar, Prakash Raj

Rating: 3/5

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