Spoilers ahead…
The story is a mix of the usual creature-features, like Alien or Predator– but without the scares, the tightly held atmosphere, the A-level visual effects.
Shakti Soundar Rajan likes the high concept. He likes to say “I directed the first zombie thriller in Tamil cinema”. (That was Miruthan.) He likes to say “I directed the first space adventure in Tamil cinema”. (That was Tik Tik Tik.) He likes to say “I directed the first ‘giant talking bear’ movie in Tamil cinema”. (That was Teddy.) With Captain, he’d have liked to say, “I directed the first alien movie in Tamil cinema” – but the MGR-Nambiar starrer Kalaiarasi got there first, and then we had Super Deluxe. But maybe Shakti Soundar Rajan can say this one thing: “I directed the first alien action movie in Tamil cinema.” The creatures in this film behave like soldiers and they face off against soldiers of the Indian Army. Let the fireworks begin!
You can read the rest of the review here:
https://www.galatta.com/tamil/movie/review/captain/
And you can watch the video review here:
Copyright ©2022 GALATTA.
Baradwaj Rangan 
bart
September 8, 2022
Captain nu per vachuttu pakistan dheeviravaadhingala kaatama uttutangale…
Instead an ode to the original captain could’ve been made – Captain Narasimma..
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vijay
September 8, 2022
why did you have to review this one in the first place? is it some sort of recalibration exercise before the biggies? 🙂
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Sri Prabhuram
September 8, 2022
No matter how bad or good we perceive them to be, directors and writers will always be the most stubborn people on the planet.
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Macaulay Perapulla
September 8, 2022
Once upon a time, RK Selvamani made a sequel to “Captain Prabhakaran” movie titled “Asuran”, which was an unofficial remake of Predator. I remember watching the movie one lazy afternoon. Having seen Predator, it was quite innocuous fun.
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Siva
September 8, 2022
Wannabe does not always turn fruitful. Sometimes, more than once.
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Yajiv
September 8, 2022
Anyone remember the ’90s movie Asuran? It was a very poorly made B-movie but I think that was the first time someone in this state tried to copy the Predator (alien hunter in a jungle) motif.
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Yajiv
September 8, 2022
Sorry @Macaulay, didn’t notice your comment. Glad I’m not the only one who remembers Arun Pandian romancing an alien Roja in the jungle 😉
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Macaulay Perapulla
September 9, 2022
@Yajiv. Oh yes. I was actually a fan of RK Selvamani then. I remember watching Captain Prabhakaran in Albert theater with a packed house. He had a flair for action and soft corner for Roja I guess. He made one family movie with Prashanth and Roja which had an interesting underwater sequence towards the second half. It was quite a packed audience when it was screened in Kamadhenu theater ( before it became a kalyana mandapam).
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K
September 9, 2022
Asuran (1995) was directed by Velu Prabhakaran (not R K Selvamani). That forgotten film, now gained popularity thanks to the song Chakku Chakku being used in Vikram.
Velu Prabhakaran earlier directed Naalaya Manithan, Athisaya Manithan. Shakthi Soundarrajan makes very similar films post 2010.
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Priya Arun
September 9, 2022
“You have to take us into this world, not drag us out of it.” – Wow! A great tip for all writers.
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Priya Arun
September 9, 2022
I make it a point never to miss BR’s reviews of B-movies! They are the funniest!
#cheapthrills
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Macaulay Perapulla
September 9, 2022
@K You are right. RK Selvamani was the producer. He directed Captain Prabhakaran in which Mansoor Ali Khan plays the same character he did in Asuran.
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Honest Raj
September 10, 2022
But maybe Shakti Soundar Rajan can say this one thing: “I directed the first alien action movie in Tamil cinema.”
Like, “world’s first single-shot non-linear movie in Tamil cinema”. 🙂
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