Thug Life

Action Crime Drama Tamil

In a world ruled by crime and betrayal, mafia kingpin Sakthivel and his brother Manickam rescue a young boy, Amaran, during a violent police shootout and raise him as their own. Years later, when an assassination attempt shakes Sakthivel's empire, suspicion turns inward. Consumed by vengeance, Sakthivel sets out to destroy the very family he once built.

Cast:	Kamal Haasan, Silambarasan, Trisha Krishnan, Ashok Selvan, Abhirami, Nassar, Joju George, Ali Fazal, Mahesh Manjrekar, Sanjana Krishnamoorthy, Aishwarya Lekshmi
Director:	Mani Ratnam
Writer:	Mani Ratnam, Kamal Haasan
Editor:	Sreekar Prasad
Camera:	Ravi K. Chandran

All Guild Reviews of Thug Life

A Strange, Lifeless Film From Mani Ratnam and Kamal Haasan

Aditya Shrikrishna | Independent Film Critic writing for OTT Play

Thu, June 5 2025

It is hard to make out what interested Haasan and Ratnam in this head-scratcher of a film

It is not prudent to use business terms for art but as this concerns mainstream commercial cinema anyway, here we are. Usually, a Mani Ratnam film promises minimum guarantee. No matter what the film has in store — it works, meanders, dips or is politically dubious — there is always something cinematic, something inspired scattered here and there. Something you can take home, something you can watch in isolation years later. A shot, a stray scene or line or exchange that we can search on YouTube long after the release of the film. Kadal has some exquisite kinetic shotmaking. Guru is magical in some of its interpersonal dynamics. Thiruda Thiruda, for all its vacuousness, is a great ride and rarely a slog. Kaatru Veliyidai at its core has a wonderful premise that is lifelike and probed with intent even if timidly. So far Chekka Chivantha Vaanam was that odd one out with hardly a Mani Ratnam stamp. But here we are: as celebrated as Nayakan is and will remain forever, Mani Ratnam’s weakest film, for now, is his second collaboration with Kamal Haasan — Thug Life.