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Champion movie review: A racy thriller worth your money and time

The screenplay flows smoothly without any lags. The match sequences are realistic and the action blocks warrant mention.

Director: Susienthiran

Cast: Vishwa, Narain, Manoj Bharathiraja, Vasavi

Champion from Susienthiran is a sports revenge drama set against the backdrop of north Madras. It is about a passionate underdog football player who struggles to become a champion despite all odds.

Jones Thiraviyam (Vishwa) a government school student from Vyasarpadi in North Chennai is an ardent football player right from his young age. However, his single mother Jayalakshmi (Vasavi), is averse to the sport and she wants her son to shine in academics. Despite the economic and societal problems that he faces, Jones leads a happy life, thanks to his classmate (Sowmika Pandian), who always encourages him to realize his dreams. He also gets the help of coach Santha (Narain), a friend of his late dad Gold Star Gopi Thiraviyam (Manoj Bharathiraja), also a football player in the area.

Meanwhile, Jones comes to know of a shocking revelation that his father turned a henchman to a local thug and a politician Dhanasekar (Stun Siva) was murdered by the latter. Now, its retribution time for Jones, but Santha wouldn’t allow him to go overboard.

Kudos to Susie for choosing an apt newcomer Vishwa, with a sports background for the lead protagonist’s role. Vishwa, a former squash and swimming champ shines every bit. It is evident that Vishwa has worked hard to nail the role of a football player. But he needs to hone his facial expressions. Narain gets a meaty role after Kaidhi and he proves his versatility once again. He even gets heroic moments in the climax. Stun Siva does a neat job. Manoj has sort of made a comeback with a decent character.

The screenplay flows smoothly without any lags. The match sequences are realistic and the action blocks warrant mention. But the school portions are a bit clichéd. And the film, which started with the focus of addressing the issues of sportspersons from North Chennai, totally deviates to the personal vendettas of the lead guy. Arrol Corelli’s breezy songs and BGM are biggest pluses to the film.

Nevertheless, these are minor flaws, and Champion is a racy thriller worth your money and time.

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