Don is a film written and directed by debutant Cibi Chakravarthi and produced by Allirajan Subaskaran under the banner Lyca Productions. The film has Sivakarthikeyan, SJ Suryah and Priyanka Arul Mohan in the lead roles while Samuthirakani, Soori, Radha Ravi, RJ Vijay, Bala Saravanan, Sivaangi Krishnakumar, and others in crucial supporting roles. It has music by Anirudh Ravichander and cinematography by KM Bhaskaran.
Chakravarthi (Sivakarthikeyan) is a person whose aim is to find what his aim in life is. After being forced into engineering by his father (Samuthirakani), he sets out to discover his talents. He meets his childhood love interest Angaiyarkanni (Priyanka Arul Mohan) and falls in love with her again. Amidst all this, his actions leads to him clashing with Boominathan (SJ Suryah), the discipline incharge. How he overcomes Boominathan's wrath and realises his dream forms the rest of the plot.
When the trailer of Don came out, it seemed like the film is an out and out entertainer, that will have the usual 'Engineers are the most affected species in this planet' emotions and jokes. And for most part of the film, it does seem like that. Chakravarthi and his friends (played by RJ Vijay and Bala Saravanan) seem to have mindless fun. Although a few scenes make you question the logic, you don't seem to mind it because of the humour.
However, the final act of the film provides us something else rooted deeply in father-son sentiment and it tugs our hearts as well. In fact, this final act is so strongly written that it makes you forget whatever happened in the film before. Even Sivakarthikeyan's performance in this final act makes this his best performance so far.
In the other portions, we see the Sivakarthikeyan that we've seen all this while - carefree, cracking jokes, mimicking other stars to perfection and what not. The college culturals portions give him the space to return to his entertainer mode last seen in his television days. The writing in the film can be tagged into two - the first two hours being smart, banking Sivakarthikeyan's skills, while the last thirty minutes or so is all about the actor surrendering completely to the director.
Apart from Sivakarthikeyan, SJ Suryah holds our attention with his eccentric portrayal of Boominathan. He has brought forth the same quality of acting he showed in his previous outings Maanaadu and Nenjam Marappathillai. Among the other actors, Samuthirakani, Priyanka, Sivaangi, Vijay, Bala Saravanan, and Aadhira's performances stand out, delivering exactly what's needed.
Anirudh's background score is the spine of the film. The instrumental version of the song Jalabulajangu, which is being used at various places is an interesting choice and it works out wonderfully. The editor Nagooran too deserves praise for the way the film has been cut. The cinematography by KM Bhaskaran could have been more innovative.
Overall, Don entertains and engages you with the humour running high in a lot of scenes. The performances do justice to Cibi Chakravarthi's writing with Sivakarthikeyan leading from the front. The film is family friendly and the message that the film holds is conveyed in a non preachy way. Don will be definitely an engaging watch.