Varisu Movie Review: Setting a family against the backdrop of a cutthroat corporate world, director Vamshi manages to weave a fairly engaging take of sons and fathers, warring brothers, jealous rivals, affectionate mother, light-hearted romance, a peppy songs and heavy-duty heroic moments. This is all powered by a sparkling star by Vijay turn that elevates ordinary moments into entertaining episodes.
The story revolves around Rajendran (Sarath Kumar, a business tycoon who pits his own sons against each other to ensure that he has the right successor. While the first and second sons, Jai (Srikanth) and Ajay (Shaam), have an eye on the chairman’s chair and act out as their father’s whims and fancies, the third son, Vijay (Vijay) has a difference if opinion with his father’s methods and choses to stay away. And just when Rajendran learns that he is counting his days, he gets to see his sons for who they really are, and ends up making Vijay as his successor, which results in the other two going on a warpath and worse, joining with his bitter rival Jayaprakash (Prakash Raj). Can Vijay prove himself to be a worthy varisu and also reunite his now-broken family?
Varisu does begin in a rather shaky manner, with scenes that seem somewhat alien to its milieu and rather cold. It feels like we have dropped into a version of Chekka Chivantha Vaanam; instead of the gangster backdrop, we get a story set against the corporate backdrop. There are moments that are rather flat, like the fallout scene between Vijay and Rajendran that appears early in the film. Even the intermission point isn’t exactly a rousing one.
But then, the film switches gear in the second half, and Vamshi scores in sixes and fours with the mass moments that have both comedy and heroism in equal measure. He also punctures the sentimental moments with comedy and ensures that things don’t get too melodramatic. Aythe same time, he also doesn’t hold back when he wants to reach for his audience’s tear ducts. This is a film that is quite self-aware. Family and relationships are what drive the plot, and this is a film that is woke enough to acknowledge that relatives can be toxic and old-fashioned enough to understand that sometimes, we got to make the best of what we have when it comes to family.
If there are slip-ups in the form of a rather slight romantic track, and less-than-formidable villains, the film makes up for all of it through its leading star. Vijay is in terrific form, cracking one-liners that have us break out into a smile, make self-referential punches and show earnestness in the sentimental moments.
