I’ve said it many times before, and I’ll say it again—Suriya is the most unlucky actor in India. Every time, directors fail to use his full potential properly, and fans leave the theatre disappointed. But this time, there’s a twist, because the director is someone who, despite being in India, makes films with a Hollywood touch. If you doubt that, just watch Jigarthanda movie. I am taking about Retro movie. So, an unlucky actor teamed up with a Hollywood-style director- Karthik Subbaraj, to create a film that looks like an old-school movie.
Cast
- Suriya Sivakumar
- Pooja Hegde
- Joju George
- Santhosh Narayanan
- Jayaram
- Shriya Saran
- Singampuli
- Prakash Raj
- Nassar
Photos
Release Date
1 May 2025
Director
Karthik Subbaraj
Budget
₹65 Crores
Genre
- Action
- Romance
- Drama
Rating
2.5 / 5
Overview
This Retro movie has divided the public completely. Some people love it, while others think it’s the worst film ever made. It’s either a complete hit or a total miss—zero or a hundred.
The story is about a strange island full of slaves controlled by a king using like a remote. Their lives are literally in his hands. He can end them whenever he wants. His favorite thing is watching people die. There’s a violent game where two teams fight, and the losing team has to sacrifice one person to the king’s son’s pet crocodile. That’s the rule.
With all this brutality, there’s also a love story in this Retro movie. A hero tries to cheer up his upset heroine by acting like a clown in front of the whole village. Maybe if the village laughs, she’ll forgive him, and their love story will get a happy ending. But no one asks why she was upset with him in the first place.
Meanwhile, the king keeps enjoying violence and death. The real champion of the deadly game is Suriya. His past isn’t just dark—it’s blood red. But the story isn’t that simple, because the main villain is actually the hero’s own father, who’s hunting him down with a chopped-off hand, planning to kill him.
Then comes the finale, a part of this Retro film that was kept hidden from viewers until the end. It connects directly to the story of Lord Krishna’s birth. Remember how the evil uncle Kansa killed every newborn in fear of one who would eventually kill him? Just like that, this Retro film also has a hero who is about to change the entire story and fight a major battle for his Radha, leading to a chaotic climax.
The idea behind this Retro film is really smart—modernizing the story of Krishna. But there’s a difference between thinking well and making a good movie. Retro Movie won’t appeal to 99% of the audience because the director made the film for himself, not for the audience. That’s why the film becomes too complicated instead of being simple.
Instead of showing so many characters, the film would’ve worked better if it focused only on Suriya and made it his solo story. That way, the plot and his love story would’ve been clearer. Retro film feels confused—somewhere between love and violence. It tries to show action and romance at the same time, and in doing both, it ends up ruining both.
Honestly, I expected heavy, intense violence from this Retro film, especially after seeing Suriya’s fierce role as Rolex. He deserves a strong mass entertainer. That’s why people will be disappointed—the film barely shows Suriya’s powerful side, and when it does, it’s not done well. You’ll even be unsure whether the film has a real villain or not. The negative characters are weak and feel more like jokers.
The Hindi dubbing deserves a special mention—for being absolutely terrible. It’s of such poor quality that it ruins half the film’s experience. The entire theme gets messed up because of it.
Still, both Karthik and Suriya deserve some appreciation. They tried to make a very stylish film, even though the result wasn’t perfect. The effort was noticeable. The best part of the film is the climax, where Suriya’s real identity is revealed, and we finally get to see him shine as an actor—a side of him that was mostly missing throughout the Retro film.
I won’t tell you to avoid Retro Movie, but I can’t promise you’ll enjoy it either. Book your ticket at your own risk.
Suriya’s presentation in the climax and some visuals, considering the budget, felt impressive. The story idea was solid, but the execution was average. The story didn’t click. I couldn’t even spot any strong negative characters. Good actors were wasted.