REVIEW: DSP – Falls behind in time in every possible aspect

Any actor who has become weary of playing distinctive, difficult, and mentally tough roles may take
a break and work on a cheerful, easygoing commercial film to unwind. Vijay Sethupathi may choose
something like DSP with no issues because he has already switched to roles like Sethupathi, Karuppan,
Rekka, and others. The issue with DSP, though, is that its narrative, story, production, and screenplay
are all glaringly antiquated.

The script is written in such a way that once the action starts, any audience can guess what will
happen next, and the movie did not disappoint. The protagonist, for example, is a typical sluggish,
carefree young man waiting for his government job and spends the rest of the time hanging around
with his pals. The protagonist is ridiculous, frivolous, and stupid. The father of the hero is a decent,
industrious person who also tries to fit in with society. The villain is a renegade who still steals from
the market or takes land from the underprivileged. The cliché persists in that any of the
nicest and kindest characters near to the hero in the movie are finally put up to give their life to
bring about that “Thoongitu irundha mirugam” moment.

There are no shocks at all because every character follows a pretty predictable or, rather, well-
known trajectory. With the exception of one scene where he is referred to as a weird name for a
policeman, Vijay Sethupathi’s portrayal of Vasco Da Gama is unassuming, amusing, and he eases the
part with his customary sarcastic comments to the villains. However, there are times when I’m
perplexed by his responses to the villain until he clarifies with his other performers. The most
dramatic role in the movie is arguably played by Anukeerthy Vas as Annapoorani, but she manages
to keep it in check most of the time thanks to the dubbing. It’s likely that Ilavarasu, who plays
Murugapandi, is the sole character to have scored among the array of actors.

The songs didn’t have much of an impact, and the attempt to differentiate “Nalla Iruma” from other
soup songs online also failed. With Pugazh in the first half and a lot of actors in the second, the
comedies aren’t amusing. Aside from the comedies, the movie appears to be split into two parts,
one before and one after the intermission, with the necessary commercial components in both. The
stunt scenes are the main component that, despite all the clichéd situations, may improve any
commercial action movie. DSP needed more creativity in the action scenes to redeem it to some
level, but it ultimately comes off as rather ordinary.

The narrative of the hero taking down minor villains one by one before taking down the main villain,
as well as the screenplay’s formula for the right ratio of music, comedy, action, sentiment, and love
in the right order, make DSP a film that is far too late for the big screen.