Okay, let me be clear about this. I am an ardent fan of Thalapathy Vijay. But I'm pretty sure that my review will not be biased.
Thalapathy Vijay's swag is the one which I personally loved in Pokkiri. His mannerisms and dialogues were different compared to his previous commercial entertainers. Director Prabhudeva understood the pulse of the Tamil audience and us a clinical commercial entertainer of 2007. It ran for more than 100 days in many theaters.
Pokkiri is a full length Action Thriller with a fine twist in the end. I believe that in those days, the films with a twist or too much action were branded as "Thrillers". If Pokkiri releases today, even now I guarantee it can fill the theaters full of audience for 50 days or above except the fact that it will not be called a "Thriller".Again, if the songs ( which are actually Chartbusters ) are cut, maybe we can that thrilling experience.
Never ending laughs are given by Vadivelu. Famous "Vada Poche" started here. Sriman, Vaiyapuri and Karate Raja are also given importance and justice. Sriman becomes one of the core actors in the second half of the film. Asin's performance was lethal and measured throughout the film. Nasser takes a deep dive into the story in the last 30 minutes of the film. His part is less in the film even though it is satisfying enough. Napoleon comes in as a Police officer and does the job wonderfully.
It's time to enter into Villain's party now. Mukesh Tiwari was too good as a bad cop, even though his character wasn't needed. Vijay-Tiwari scenes were quite unbelievable yet enjoyable. Anandraj as Narasimman is introduced as a devil but killed too easily. Vincent Asokan as Guru looks like a true don but given limited screen presence. Subbaraju is the one I loved a lot. The conflict between him and Vijay starts from the first scene and continues till the end in a funny way. Brindha Parekh as Mona is not necessary. Her scenes can be cut too. Finally, Prakash Raj is the main villain of the film. He has given his best in his short screen presence. He could have been introduced in the first half which could've given a depth to his character.
All the characters in the film become important at last because each one is connected with the other. I appreciate Director Prabhudeva for this "Connection" as it not easy. Action and comedy are well balanced in Pokkiri. As I said earlier, even Villains make fun at parts. Even though songs are a barrier, they are enjoyable. Manisharma has done a great job with BGM and Music. My personal favorite is 'Dole Dole dhan'. Again, Kudos to Prabhudeva for giving Bollywood one of the best remakes in the decade 2000-2009. Cinematography by Nirav Shah deserves an applause too.
So finally, Pokkiri is a film which ticks almost all the boxes of being a commercial entertainer. Running time is almost 2 hours 40 minutes. It could have been trimmed to 2 hours 15 minutes mercilessly. But, Vijay in top form and co-actors doing well, it doesn't give you a boring experience at all. I am writing this Spoiler Free review after watching Pokkiri for more than 10 times maybe.
