Sabari is meant for Vijaykanth fans only

For those familiar with Captain Vijaykanth's movies, nothing comes as a surprise anymore -- for others, the imaginative leaps his films make cause the jaw to drop.

Sabari is about Sabarivasan (Vijaykanth), a heart surgeon and son-of-the-soil who can't stand anything wrong. Extremely talented, in fact the best surgeon in the world, he has operated over a thousand hearts in just five years with a 100% success rate. If fact, there's a scene in the film where he directs a surgery over a mobile phone!

An extreme sense of duty towards his profession earns him immense public respect and the attention of two beautiful women. With Nandhini (Jyothirmayi), a software employee, it doesn't start off too well. But when the doctor saves the daughter of her colleague, she falls in love with him. A little later they get married. Malavika, whose role has nothing to contribute to the story, provides the sleaze.

Meanwhile, Vajravel (Pradip Singh) and his brother-in-law are busy with their illegal activities. Goons enter Sabari's dispensary with Vajravel's brother-in-law, who is shot by a police bullet while trying to escape. Sabari saves his life and hands him them over to the police. Vajravel's brother-in-law, who was charged with murder, is executed, making Sabari the subject of Vajravel's wrath. Finally, Sabari, who is averse to killing anybody, is forced to end Vajravel's life in the interest of safety.

The story is extremely Vijaykanth-centric and almost every other character except the villain, Pradip, looks insignificant.

Vijaykanth's performance is apt for the character he plays, and the number of times he has played similar roles is countless. Given the significance of his role in the story, Pradip's performance is disappointing. He ends up becoming comical every time he tries to act scary. Given the short role that she has, Jyothirmayi does fairly well. Malavika's role is too short to comment on, while Aishwarya's small cameo towards the end is entertaining.

The editing is an utter failure. Cinematographer Y N Murali has tried too hard to give the movie an action-comic book like look which only manages to strain the viewer's eye.

Director Suresh has written the screenplay.

This is Captain's 150th film but this is the first time he is playing a doctor with fighting skills. The only consolation is that his stethoscope didn't serve as a weapon at any point!

Rediff rating: