'Leo' Movie Review

Cast: Vijay, Trisha, Sanjay Dutt, Arjun Sarja, Gautham Menon, Mysskin, Priya Anand, Mansoor Ali Khan and others.

Music: Anirudh Ravichander

Cinematography: Manoj Paramahamsa

Producer: Lalit Kumar

Writer - Director: Lokesh Kanagaraj

Though 'Leo' is a dubbing film, the movie was released on a grand scale. The craze of this film among the audience is almost the same as the Telugu releases and Lokesh Kanagaraj is the reason for it. He created a brand for himself with 'Khaidi' and 'Vikram'. 'Leo' has Vijay playing the lead role while musical sensation Anirudh gave the music. This much-awaited film arrived amidst huge hype and expectations. Let us see how it turned out.

Story:

Parthiban (Vijay) is a businessman who has his own café in Himachal Pradesh. He is a regular guy who loves his wife and two children very much. When Parthiban beats a criminal gang who tries to destroy his hotel, he becomes famous in the media. Though he gets released by the judicial system as it was an act of self defence, some mafia groups keep on attacking him. Parthiban sees a lot of new people too in these attacks. They claim that he is not Parthiban and call him 'Leo' and target his family. They don't listen to Parthiban when he says that he is not Leo. After a few incidents, even the police and the hero's wife start having doubts. What is Parthiban's background? How is he linked to 'Leo'? What is the story of 'Leo'? How did Parthiban put an end to all of this forms the rest of story.

Analysis:

The craze Lokesh Kanagaraj garnered after movies like 'Khaidi' and 'Vikram' is huge. The way in which he linked all his previous movies in 'Vikram' and created a cinematic universe is nothing short of amazing. People went into a euphoria by the end of 'Vikram' and the expectations reached to a whole new level when Lokesh announced his next movie with Vijay. People were so blinded that they even tried to find hints regarding Lokesh Cinematic Universe in a poorly edited 'Leo' trailer. They showed a person in the shadow and suggested that it might be 'Rolex' and even thought that Ram Charan would make a cameo in this movie. Looking at a police officer in 'Khaidi' film being a part of 'Leo' made them expect something huge from Lokesh. Just a few minutes into the movie, all those bubbles were completely burst. Bringing all the hopes down, Lokesh made a pretty disappointing movie and tested the patience of the audience for over two hours and forty-five minutes. He only made five movies till date and proudly said that he will be making a complete ten films till date and not more than that.

While we don't know how his next five films are going to be but 'Leo' has all the qualities to be the poorest film in Lokesh's career till date. He got inspired by 'A History Of Violence' which was already freemade a 'Gaayam 2' in Telugu. He attached his regular drug racket theme to that story and cooked up 'Leo'. There is not much of a story to tell in 'Leo' as it is the same 'Basha' story that was dealt more than a hundred times in Tamil cinema. The concept of a big don deciding to leave everything and lead a normal life but his past catches up to him in a plot that is beaten to death. Every group comes to him and claims that he is 'Leo' while the hero denies it. This happens multiple times in the movie and it is followed by a silly flashback and the whole thing repeats once again. While the makers tried to keep the audience guessing but the viewers have become too clever these days.

The conflict point in 'Leo' is so silly that a big mafia lord believes in superstitions and sacrifices his own daughter. He even tries to kill his own son who attempts to stop it. Hero is part of the same crime world and who does all the atrocities suddenly changes after this incident. Bringing the concept of human sacrifices into a modern concept like 'LCU' is tough to digest. One fails to understand how Lokesh took such a silly point and made a film with such a big cast and a grand budget. We don't understand the motive of the villain as he constantly tries to make Parthiban agree that he is 'Leo' but does nothing else. Also, what the hero wants to do is also unclear. When the scenes are getting repeated again and again for hours together, the patience of the viewers reach the maximum level. People who expected a big reveal at the end and connection to 'LCU' will also be disappointed as all Lokesh does is to make Leo speak on the phone with Vikram (Kamal Hassan). There is not one scene that is entertaining or thrilling in the movie. On the whole, 'Leo' is a failed attempt that disappoints the audience so badly.

Performances:

Basically, Vijay is an ordinary actor. If the story and character are weak, his flaws will be highlighted a lot. The same happened for 'Leo'. It is tough to see him as Parthiban. His poor hairstyle and look is also a reason for this impatience. It is not easy to relate or connect with his character. He excels in Leo Das' role but even that character is not written properly.

Talented actress Trisha Krishnan has been confined to confusion, shock and worry throughout the movie. The looks of Sanjay Dutt and Arjun were great but their roles lacked any kind of substance. Gautham Menon too was not utilized properly and Lokesh should be questioned for all the subpar roles he has written. The rest of the actors too did not get good roles.

Technicians:

Even a sensational music composer like Anirudh needs a bit of stuff in the scene in order to elevate it. If the content is disappointing, no matter how much effort Anirudh puts into the film, it becomes a waste. Despite his best efforts, Anirudh failed to elevate the proceedings. He gave different BGMs to characters and did all he could but his efforts went in vain. 'Naa Ready' song was badly dubbed in Telugu and no other song is worth remembering. Manoj Paramahamsa's visuals are great to watch. The car action sequence, flashback and climax fight showcase his brilliance. His work stands out in the movie. The production values are top-notch. Lokesh Kanagaraj got exposed as both a writer and director with this movie. One can see a bit of overconfidence in his work this time. 'Leo' did not have a proper story and one wonders how he managed to bring such big stars onboard and convince the producers to spend this much money on practically nothing. He disappoints with Vijay once again after 'Master'.

Verdict: 'Leo' – Glossy Outside & Shallow Inside!

Rating: 2/5