Mafia: Chapter 1 Review – Stylish, slow action flick with a brilliant climax

Mafia has created quite a hype since the release of its first look.

The casting is interesting that added to the hype. The teaser and trailer almost told what the movie would be about.

And when you are into watching the movie, you get to see the very straightforward narration that’s simple (both a pro and a con).

The narration is linear and the story is predictable, until you get to the climax.

Karthick Naren has joined the list of directors upon whom audience put on lots of expectations.

And surprisingly, he has just had one movie prior to Mafia. Did Karthick satisfy his audiences’ expectations? Read on.

Mafia, as the name suggests is about how a cop, with his team, hunts down the presumed leader of a drug dealing network.

The movie unfolds quite slowly in the first half, leading to a cat and mouse game.

Aryan (Arun Vijay) heads a narcotics operation with the help of Sathya (Priya Bhavani Shankar) and Varun (Bala Hassan).

There are a few loses in their team in the operation. Their senior official dies too.

Upon investigation they zero in on Diwakar Kumaran (Prasanna) aka DK. They learn about the mafia kingdom of DK.

Once they know about the illegal proceedings, Aryan is on to destroying that kingdom.

Whether he succeeded in it forms the rest of the movie.

Mafia takes time to lead to the core of the plot. Prior to getting there we are presented with numerous slow-mos, close ups and extended conversations.

There is also too much spoon feeding in the form of voices.

When it comes to character development, Aryan’s character is given the necessary depth.

Arun Vijay aces as the narcotics cop with his swag, physical fitness, conveying emotions without much of emotion and a serious tone.

DK is more of a brainy villain and his character arc is comparatively poorly developed.

However, Prasanna does total justice to the role with his style of performance.

Priya Bhavani Shankar and Bala Hassan fit the bill as team members.

But if you have been expecting Priya to have a strong role with an impact, no, it is not so.

She doesn’t have much of screen space. Nevertheless, her performance is neat and convincing.

The second half is where we get to see some tension build up leading to a brilliant climax with a surprise twist.

I call the climax brilliant because, it is not only surprising, but it will give the necessary push for the audience to keep eagerly waiting for Chapter 2.

Technically Mafia is sound. Jake’s music is awesome and it literally elevates the mood of every scene in the movie.

Even a simple frame gets the swag because of the BGM.

Cinematography is apt, though there is some over usage of colors that make some settings look unrealistic.

Overall, Mafia is all about style, swag, and the climax. The screenplay should have been crisper.

Even though the movie runs for less than two hours, sitting through the slow first half was quite tough.

Though there’s style in the making there could have been more richness and detailing. Budget issue?

If you can tolerate the slow first half, the second half will make up for it.