Ace Movie Review: A fun but flawed heist ride soared by Vijay Sethupathi and Yogi Babu

Plot Summary
In Ace, Yogi Babu appears as Arivu, a rag picker functioning in Malaysia who acts as a wealthy businessman.

His life goes haywire when he brings Bold Kannan (Vijay Sethupathi) home thinking he is a business acquaintance from India. Unaware of Kannan’s past, Arivu is instrumental in getting him a job in a restaurant run by Kalpana (Divya Pillai), a woman who is secretly the love of Arivu’s life.

Into the picture steps Rukku (Rukmini Vasanth), Kannan’s opposite number in more ways than one — she’s Kannan’s love at first sight, and his next-door neighbour, who’s caught in a stranglehold that is her abusive stepfather Rajadurai (Babloo Prithiveeraj).

Irrespective of risks, Kannan decides to try to get her released in a last-minute heist with Arivu as his assistant. But the pair’s plan is disrupted by local gangster Dharma (BS Avinash), who has a bone to pick.

Performance & Direction

The real strength of Ace is the camaraderie between Vijay Sethupathi and Yogi Babu. The pair also inject a certain unpredictability and levity into the story that helps offset its many rough edges. Yogi Babu is in great form and punches above his weight with Yogi Babu Jaga Jala Killadi’s signature style punches, and Sethupathi’s good sense of humour and boyish enthusiasm make the otherwise skeletal plot interesting.

The film unfolds as a stylish, light-hearted heist thriller with a splash of romance, promises director Arumuga Kumar.

However, the implementation lacks the necessary level of refinement. The first half drags with tedious exposition and character introductions, and the second half turns into a messy blur of actions, chases and a prolonged climax.

Technical Aspects

Technically, Ace has its highlights. The background score of Sam CS injects some life into the action-heavy scenes but that covers up for the flaws in the movies’ script.

From the album, the melodious Urugudhu Urugudhu sung by Justin Prabhakaran is a heart-rending emotional track. While DOP Karan B Rawat presents Malaysia in an eye-pleasing manner, a more rigorous Fenny Oliver could have snipped the 154-minute film of all the fat that slows down the proceedings.

Rukmini Vasanth debuts in Tamil with Ace. Though her performance is heartfelt, the script doesn’t provide her much to work with.

Divya Pillai is a revelation with her confident screen presence, and Babloo Prithiveeraj makes the most of one of his few opportunities to play a full blooded antagonist. 7SuttruKannada actor BS Avinash does justice to the brooding villainy.

Verdict

It’s far from perfect but Ace is a visceral throwback to the masala movies of the 90s with a high gloss finish.

Logic is thrown aside, the story is banal, and the comedy is sometimes ludicrous.

But the film is quite engaging, mainly due to its leads. If you’re in the mood for a brain-off, heart-light caper powered by the comedic timing of Yogi Babu and the magnetic charisma of Vijay Sethupathi, Ace might be the film for you.

Final Word: Ace is breezy and inconsistent but has a good time. If you are a Sethupathi or Yogi Babu fan (or both), go for it.