Retro (2025) Movie ft Suriya – Bollyflix

The much-awaited Tamil action-romance film Retro hit theaters on May 1, 2025, bringing together superstar Suriya and acclaimed director Karthik Subbaraj. This period gangster drama features a stellar cast including Suriya, Pooja Hegde, Jayaram, and Joju George in a story spanning different eras.

Set in 1960s Thuthukodi, the film follows Paarivel Paari Kannan, an orphan with mysterious origins who grows up under a gangster’s wing. With a runtime of 168 minutes, Retro promises romance, action, and drama with its tagline Love-Laughter-War.

Retro Actor Name

Plot and Storyline

The story centers around Paarivel Kannan, a man with unknown origins who cannot smile due to his broken childhood. Raised in 1960s Thuthukodi, he transforms from a feared gangster to someone seeking peace after promising his wife Rukmini to abandon violence.

The plot follows his journey through different life phases as he searches for his true origins while trying to reunite with his lost love. However, the storyline suffers from pacing issues and feels disjointed as it jumps between time periods.

Cast Performance

Suriya delivers a powerful performance that showcases his impressive acting range after exploring different genres. He effortlessly transitions between emotional moments and intense action sequences, carrying the film throughout its nearly three-hour runtime.

Pooja Hegde brings charm to her role as Rukmini, though her character lacks sufficient depth for lasting impact. The supporting cast, including Jayaram and Joju George, deliver solid performances but feel underutilized despite their talent.

Direction and Technical Aspects

Karthik Subbaraj’s direction showcases his signature visual flair with strong production values. The cinematography effectively captures the retro aesthetic, creating an authentic 1960s atmosphere through excellent costume design and art direction.

However, the film struggles with tonal inconsistency as it tries to balance gangster drama, romance, and action thriller elements. This affects the narrative flow, making it feel like disconnected well-shot scenes rather than a cohesive story.

The film’s music by Santhosh Narayanan deserves praise, particularly the standout track Kanimaa. The background score effectively elevates the theatrical experience, capturing the retro feel while maintaining contemporary appeal.

Critical Reception and Ratings

Retro received mixed to positive reviews from critics and audiences. The film holds a 7.0/10 rating on IMDb, indicating decent reception despite its flaws.

Critics praised Suriya’s performance and technical aspects while pointing out pacing and narrative issues. Public reviews were polarized, with fans appreciating the nostalgic elements but criticizing the confusing narrative structure.

What I Liked and What Could Be Better

What Works: I found Suriya’s commanding performance to be the film’s biggest strength, showcasing why he remains one of Tamil cinema’s finest actors. The authentic period setting and cinematography transported me to the 1960s effectively.

The Kanimaa song stood out as genuinely memorable, and the action sequences provided the mass entertainment I expected from this collaboration.

What Could Be Better: I felt the film suffered from inconsistent pacing that affected my engagement with the story. The tonal confusion between romance, action, and drama made it difficult to connect emotionally with the narrative.

The lengthy runtime could have benefited from tighter editing, and I wished the talented supporting cast had more substantial roles to showcase their abilities.

Box Office Performance

Despite mixed critical reception, Retro emerged as a commercial success, grossing between ₹97-250 crores worldwide. The film’s strong opening demonstrates audience appetite for stylish period films and continued support for Suriya’s return to action.

Final Verdict

Retro benefits from Suriya’s stellar performance and technical excellence but struggles with narrative coherence. While it provides visual spectacle and entertaining action, the movie fails to create lasting emotional impact due to muddled storytelling.

For Suriya fans and lovers of stylish action films, Retro offers enough entertainment value, particularly for its visual appeal and the lead actor’s committed performance. However, those expecting tight storytelling might find themselves disappointed.

Rating: 6.5/10

Retro stands as a visually impressive but narratively flawed film that showcases Suriya’s return while highlighting the challenges of balancing style with substantial storytelling in modern cinema.