Does God exist? Who defines what is good or what is bad? Is someone's right another person's wrong? Thiagarajan Kumararaja's Super Deluxe will make you review these existential dilemmas through five sparsely interconnected stories that are not exactly defined by time. Kumaraja, who had made an arresting gangster drama in Aaranya Kaandam, has an eclectic cast in Super Deluxe, led by a chameleonic Vijay Sethupathi, Fahadh Faasil, Samantha Akkineni and Ramya Krishnan. Airaa vs Super Deluxe: Will Nayanthara’s Film Beat Vijay Sethupathi’s Tamil Thriller at the Box Office?

A woman calls her ex-lover at her home for an extra-marital fling that takes an unexpectedly dark turn. A group of horny teenagers come for a 'group study' that ends up with them trying to find ways to pay for a damaged television. A wife and her child are eagerly waiting for her runaway husband to arrive, and when he does, his new appearance leaves the family in shock. A miracle healer, who once miraculously survived the tsunami, questions his own faith when his own son ends up in an accident. These form the basic threads in Super Deluxe.

Super Deluxe begins with some morbid, wicked dark humour before getting into a thriller mode, throws in some gut-wrenching drama and then even gets into bizarre. To reveal more about the movie is to spoil the fun of getting into the unexpected. I assure you that Super Deluxe is not a movie you usually get from mainstream Indian cinema. Kumararaja and his excellent set of writers, Nalan Kumarasamy, Neelan and Mysskin, hop from a genre to another without actually making things jerky.

You really don't know what to expect next as the movie shifts from one thread to another, without pushing too much to connect them (even if they are linked one way or another). The writers play with both the Chaos theory and the Domino effect to create a multi-layered narrative that keeps us guessing till the end. And guess what, you will never guess how things turn out in some of the threads! Well, who would think that a tale of a few horny boys would turn out to be something that makes us question our existence? Who thought that a mother trying to desperately save a dying son could change our view on porn? Also, who thought that a married couple finds time to understand each other better when they have to dispose of a dead body?

Some moments feel out of place at first. Like when the cheated husband goes on a rant about society in general, on a couple of occasions. You really don't get it whey he does so, till he himself tell you the reason - he wants to be a star in Tamil cinema, and when you become that, a door to politics automatically opens up for you. For which you have rant out dialogues that question the system.

It is amazing to see how Kumaraja tackles humour and tearjerking moments, lust and childlike innocence with immaculate dexterity. You will laugh your guts off when the husband complains to his wife's 'lover' about making him Karthik from Mani Ratnam's Mouna Raagam. Or when a boy asks for porn from a CD-seller by explaining how important it is for education. And then you will feel a lump in your throat when a transgender is made to do unspeakable stuff at a police station. Or when a mother begs and cries at a hospital corridor asking for anyone for money to save her son's life through a brilliant tracking shot. And when you don't expect it, the movie enters bizarreness with a twist on how we perceive outsiders in our state as 'aliens'.

All four threads are wonderful in their own way. My personal favourite is the one with the transgender 'Shilpa' (Vijay Sethupathi in a potential National award-winning turn) and his son. It is a beautiful look at how something unique can be perceived in different ways. For the adults around him, the transgender is someone to be feared, laughed at and ostracised; for the kid, he is just special in his own way. And when we feel too bad for Shilpa, the kid makes him realise that he himself is not that bereft of giving others grief. Super Deluxe Trailer: Vijay Sethupathi’s Transgender Act and Samantha Akkineni-Fahadh Faasil’s Fresh Pairing Make This Black Comedy All the More Special – Watch Video.

My second favourite is the story of the teenagers, who are willing to even murder someone just to escape the wrath of one of their fathers. It is funny, whimsical, weird and it even manages to give another story a happy ending!

The tale of the married couple (Fahadh Faasil and Samantha Akkineni) starts off on a darkly humorous note and ends with our hearts in our throats. But the middle portions lag at times. The final tale of a desperate mother (Ramya Krishnan) and the healer father (Mysskin) wanting to save their dying son in their own is very insightful about how we look at faith. And also at porn!

Sure the running time at three hours is a bit too much, and middle portions drag. Some of the discussions about the hullabaloo over caste pride and how horniness can be beautiful are debatable. But, it is fun to connect the dots and go with the flow that Kumaraja steers for us!

Watch the trailer of Super Deluxe here:

The Performances

Very rarely have I seen a film where every character feels so aptly cast and terrifically enacted, Leading the pack is the once-again brilliant Vijay Sethupathi, who excels in a role that we never expect a Tamil mainstream actor to take on, It is not just the risk that Sethupathi took here that makes me in awe of this actor, but how he performs the role. From the scene where he wears a saree to his anguished outburst at the police, Sethupathi displays an amazing range of emotions that is simply spellbinding. My heart went out for him when he searched frantically for 'Rasukutty' in a cramped marketplace.

Malayalam actor Fahadh Faasil, in his second Tamil film, gives an excellent performance as the betrayed husband. His frequent outbursts, ranging from silly rants to abusive streaks, are hilarious. At first, I felt Samantha Akkineni felt out of place in the grimy world of Thiagarajan Kumararaja's world. However, as her story progresses, Samantha pulls off a convincing portrayal of an accidental 'Black Widow'. She was too good in the scene in the warehouse near the climax.

Ramya Krishnan delivers a powerful act as the mother who is not ashamed of her past. Mysskin proves that he is not just a terrific director but also a fine actor. The youngsters who play the teenagers are all natural and wonderfully cast. The usually funny guy Bagavathi Perumal will invite your disgust as a sleazy cop, who swings both ways. Ashwanth Ashokkumar who plays the young Rasukutty is adorable and spunky.

Yay!

- The Screenplay

- The Performances

- Vijay Sethupathi's Transgender Act

- Kumaraja's Direction

Nay!

- The Runtime

- Drag in the Middle

- Some Themes are Debatable

Final Thoughts

Thiagarajan Kumararaja earns another critical winner with his sophomore effort, powered by an excellent cast. Super Deluxe is a riveting piece of cinema that is dark and humorous, intelligent and gripping. Highly recommended for those who want their cinema to be a smorgasbord of various themes and emotions!

Rating:4out of 5

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 29, 2019 01:08 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).