Captain Miller review: Dhanush’s period drama is ambitious but unmoving

Dhanush plays Eesa, a young tribal man who decides to join the British military, in Captain Miller, which released in theatres on January 12, 2024. (Image via X/Captain Miller)

Arun Matheswaran’s Captain Miller begins with an elderly woman narrating the story of Koranar, a legendary tribal hero whose bravery won his people the right to live in a village outside a temple. But in a country under colonial rule, the tribal people are doubly oppressed – by the royal family that rules over the kingdom and the British who rule over them.

Dhanush plays Eesa, a young tribal man who decides to join the British military when his love story dies before it can take off. His brother Sengayyan (Shiva Rajkumar), a freedom fighter, is furious with him. But Eesa asks a valid question – how are the British any different from the Indian royals who mistreat and oppress their tribe? At least, he says, the British give them boots to wear when the royals expect them to be barefooted. This is among the few moments in the film when the drama rises above simplistic good and bad politics, and looks at the complexities of oppression. Eesa becomes Miller when he joins the military, but awards himself the title of ‘Captain’ when he frees himself from the clutches of colonial power as well as the rules of his village.

There are several characters in Captain Miller. Velmathi (Priyanka Arul Mohan) is a princess-turned-rebel who goes against her family to fight for her country. Kannayyan (Elango Kumaravel) is the leader of a group of outlaws who rob weapons and money. He also doubles up as the sutradhar in the first half of the film, narrating Miller’s past to those who have captured him. Thaen (Nivedhithaa Sathish) is a female outlaw in Kannayyan’s troop. John Kokken plays a brutal, psychotic prince who has no respect for human life. Sundeep Kishan is Rafi, a Muslim soldier who joins the British army along with Miller.

But, what’s missing is a fulcrum for the plot – what does Miller want to achieve? At the beginning, Miller is confused about what he wants from life. The handheld camera effect documents his wavering mind. He grows into a more assured man after a traumatic incident. But, we understand nothing of his politics, shades of which he displayed in the scene with his brother. Instead, Matheswaran fills the screenplay with gun battles and high octane action set pieces that evoke very little emotion in the audience even as people are shot dead with alarming frequency. It’s exciting, yes, the background score quickens our pulse, yes, but we don’t care about any of the characters – and consequently, remain uninvolved.

The treatment is that of a Western but viewed through the lens of the oppressed. You get a couple of interesting shots here and there – a vision of a fight’s conclusion seen through cracked glass, the smear of blood foreshadowing what will follow. But, the film doesn’t have you in its grip because it treads a predictable path. Matheswaran’s last release Saani Kaayidham (2022), a rape-revenge drama, also suffered from the same problem. We wait to feel something because the story, in essence, ought to be moving. But there is something missing in the execution. So, when an arrogant British official orders that a tribal person is killed every half hour for withholding information, the sound of bullets that ought to land like whiplashes on the audience, is barely effective. All the villains are one-note…but the bigger issue is that Miller himself is one-note too.

Dhanush is a seasoned actor, and he tries to bring some nuance in his performance. When he speaks ‘Why this kolaveri di’ brand of English, you crack a smile despite the circumstances in which he speaks it. But, there’s nothing much written into his personality. Miller doesn’t have a strategy beyond shooting bullets non-stop. This could have been a gangster film set in contemporary times, and it wouldn’t have made a big difference.

Shiva Rajkumar nearly upstaged Rajinikanth with his cameo in Jailer (2023). Here, too, the Kannada superstar’s screen presence elevates the few scenes that he is in, but again, the weak writing means that we remain unmoved. The bond between the brothers doesn’t hit home as it should.

Priyanka Arul Mohan struggles with Velmathi. The actor is unable to pull off the gravity that the role demands. The always bankable Nivedhithaa Sathish is a lot more convincing as the firebrand Thaen, doing well in the action scenes too. Aditi Balan doesn’t have much to do though she may have a bigger role to play if there is a sequel.

There is no doubt that Captain Miller is an ambitious film. But the script needed more depth, the characters more meat, and the execution more conviction for it to be a compelling film.