Buffoon movie review: Vaibhav's action thriller is enjoyable in parts, thanks to a few earnest performances

2.5/5

Story: A young street play artist turns a driver to earn money to secure a job abroad to make ends meet. But little did he know that the vehicle he drives carries illegal drugs and that cops are after a notorious drug kingpin. He comes up with various plans to escape from cops with the help of a few friends. As if this isn't enough, the protagonist also becomes the victim of a power tussle between a couple of influential politicians and goons. Does he stand a chance to escape from these unfortunate circumstances?

Review: Debutant filmmaker Ashok Veerappan's Buffoon is aptly titled in two ways. Its protagonist Kumaran (Vaibhav), an ambitious street play artist is known for the characters he takes up to evoke laughter among the audience. Quite dejected with the lack of financial stability in life, he decides to bid adieu to his profession in order to search for a job abroad.

But circumstances land him in various unexpected troubles; he becomes a scapegoat in different ways in a span of a few days, and situations make him run for his life. At a crucial juncture in life, he realizes that he has become a 'buffoon' owing to his greediness.

Little did Kumaran know that his decision to take up the job of a driver after quitting street play would land him in a soup. He, along with his friend Muthaiya (Anthakudi Ilayaraja), gets to know that the vehicle, for which the latter is a driver, is being used to transport illegal drugs.

The cops, under the leadership of Haridas (Tamizh), get a whiff of the plans through informers, and nab Kumaran and Muthaiya. Despite explaining their lack of involvement in drug trafficking, the two are produced before the Magistrate. Later, the duo gets indirectly involved in a power politics that happens between a few politicians and goons. Will they be able to prove their innocence?

The manner in which a wafer-thin plot surrounding a middle class youngster has been developed to create a world that includes drug trafficking, crooked politicians and terrifying nexus between cops and goons deserves applause. The filmmaker succeeds to an extent in keeping the audience hooked to the screen.

The performance of Vaibhav and Tamizh lent ample support to the plot that engages in parts. The cat-and-mouse game between the protagonist and the dutiful cop is intriguing in the beginning, but loses steam later when the story takes different turns. The former's role is a welcome relief from his regular humour-laced characters.

A romantic track between Vaibhav and Anagha doesn't take us anywhere despite the latter having a decently written role. Naren and Munnar Ramesh put up decent performances, while Joju George's suspense-laden character isn't explored completely. Santhosh Narayanan's background score is effective, so is the action choreography by Vicky Nandagopal and Dinesh Subbarayan.

One of the reasons which makes viewers glued to the screen is the realistically shot stunt sequences, which also aids in bringing in the required tension during a few instances.

The film touches upon various social-political issues as well, but none of them, including the Sri Lankan refugee crisis, has been explored fully to its potential. There are attempts to take a dig at some of the current political scenarios in the country, too, but they appear futile on screen.

Verdict: Buffoon has some interesting ideas, but only a few of them have been brought in an engaging manner on screen. A few earnest performances, decent twists and riveting action choreography make this an okayish entertainer.

Buffoon is streaming on Netflix.