M S Sripathy, Madhur Mittal, and the '800' team can take pride in the fact that they have narrated the tale of one of cricket's greatest legends, Muttiah Muralitharan, in the best possible manner. There's no chucking here! However, they will face intense scrutiny, for they dared to stand alongside the likes of 'Bhaag Milkha Bhaag,' 'M.S. Dhoni: The Untold Story,' 'Dangal,' and more. '800' will undoubtedly hold its ground.
That said, the 2 hours and 39 minutes long film feels like a montage of The Magician's life that, at the same time, works for and against the movie. It's not just another rags-to-(sports) riches saga but also a survival story of a Tamil in Sri Lanka. Sripathy, who co-wrote the story with Booker Prize winner Shehan Karunatilaka, has done this meticulously by selecting the right moments from Muralitharan's life to portray his perspective and game.
The sports action may not match the high-budget movies in this genre, but it suffices to tie the story together. Like Muralitharan, Sripathy is unafraid to make his point. Watching Madhur Mittal portray Muralitharan makes one easily forget the question, 'How would Vijay Sethupathi have portrayed Lankan legend?'. The 'Slumdog Millionaire' actor has done a fantastic job as Murali, not just in appearance but also in essence.
If Sripathy had chosen one pivotal conflict in the life of the Lankan Legend instead of attempting to cover as much ground at breakneck speed, this could have been Madhur Mittal's role of a lifetime. Sripathy initiates the story from the washed-out second day of the Sri Lanka vs India Test at Galle.
With Nassar as the narrator, he unfolds The Magician's life story over the course of the next 'three days' of the Test. It was a brilliant move by the director to position a Sri Lankan Tamil from the Eelam opposite Nassar. To effectively narrate the story of a figure like Murali, who faced criticism from Tamils worldwide for his neutral stance during the Lankan conflict, one must address those probing questions.
And that's precisely what Sripathy has chosen to do. In the climax, the filmmaker takes Nassar, his sports journalist son who lost his legs and cricket dreams in a bombing, and the Man from the North to the ground, all eagerly waiting to witness Murali claim his 800th wicket. The message he aimed to convey was clear: even those who pointed fingers at Murali had to acknowledge his greatness, at least on the field.
