Robber

Robber Movie Synopsis: A man who has moved to Chennai to make a living gets into the world of robbery and crimes for money. Will his morally wrong ways have any consequences?

Robber Movie Review: SM Pandi’s Robber is a very literal film. As its title suggests, the film revolves around a robber named Sathya (played by actor Sathya). The film follows the protagonist as he transitions from a regular guy who came to Chennai to make a living for himself to a snatcher who doesn't feel any remorse while committing murders.

Even though the written material isn't great in itself, the film could have definitely fared better if it had been handled with more finesse. Another issue with the film is its unnecessary one-liners. But, in more than a few instances, the jokes themselves aren't the problem but the issue lies in the way these lines have been delivered and shot. In the scenes set inside a cell of the police station, the actors tell certain quips with a sense of extreme nonchalance. Even the way the camera captures these scenes comes across as, for a lack of a better word, lazy.

Sathya’s story is narrated by a prisoner to others he is sharing the cell with. The film gets more engaging as it focuses on Sathya’s life. But the protagonist’s transition to becoming a ruthless criminal from an everyman happens so abruptly that it's hard to fully wrap our heads around it. The world of this film is filled with several powerful gangsters. But, as the film goes on, Robber does an increasingly bad job of making us feel terrified of either Sathya or the other gangsters as these characters engage in extremely amateurish methods. Even when the acting of many from the supporting cast is solid, the actions of their characters sometimes become too silly for us to be invested.

The film's biggest setback is its casting of the lead. Sathya is just not able to pull off the various dimensions of his character. But, Johan Shevanesh deserves a special shoutout for trying his best to cover up the film's minuses with his music.

Not one female character in Robber is well-written or well thought out. Sadly, it is yet another film where Deepa Shankar, who plays Sathya’s mother, is wasted in a badly conceived role.

Robber is one of those films where the execution doesn't help elevate the script and rather brings it down several notches.