It took a long time coming - almost three years. But it is here at last! Yes, we are talking about "Chandramukhi", the new film of Rajnikant or, as the adoring masses call him, the Superstar.

The movie was rumoured to be loosely based on the Fazil-directed Malayalam classic "Manichitrataazhu", which won Shobhana a National Award for her portrayal of a schizophrenic woman. In fact, the movie is a scene-by-scene adaptation - except for a few changes tailored to fit Rajni - of the original.

Unfortunately, "Chandramukhi" is not "Manichitrataazhu". It is a superstar film - from reel one to the last minute. He is in the thick of it all, starting with when he hits 30 hoodlums out of the screen - vintage Rajni fare that masses expect. Rajnikant as a mind-reading psychiatrist who also possesses Neo's ability to twist his body around bullets? Now, that's an unexpected twist!

For the uninitiated, "Chandramukhi" is the story of a house haunted by the ghost of a dancer, who suffered severe depravities at the hands of an evil king years ago in the same place.

Rajni plays the role of Prabhu's psychiatrist friend who attempts to sort the whole sordid mess out. For most of the movie, however, he is the superstar and not his character, Dr. Saravannan. But then Rajni is a treat to watch for the multitudes who worship him and it is unlikely that any other portrayal of the man would be accepted by the audience. If you are a Rajni fan, you'll add Dr. Saravannan to your list of favourite characters - right up there with Annamalai, Padayappa and Baasha.

The movie is as much Jyothika's as it is Rajni's. However, she does not do as good a job of it as Rajni does. In fact, her eye-rolling and eyebrow-raising begin to grate after a while.

Comic relief is supplied by Vadivelu, whom I would call the villain of the movie - mainly because of his loud, irritating performance that even drowns the superstar's voice in many scenes, not to mention his slapstick comedy that is more likely to find its fans in kindergartens.

Talking of direction, P. Vasu has done a pretty decent job in essaying an entertaining superstar flick, except for a couple of flaws (one that comes to mind is how night turns into day and then back again to night during the course of a single scene). But then Vasu's job was probably not too difficult, considering how he has let Fazil inspire him.

The music by Vidyasagar is catchy, and Rajni is in his element as he dances away in a sherwani, in red cargos and white trainers, and atop the Alps wearing a colourful shirt and sunglasses.

If you are a fan of the Thalaivar, you've probably already watched the movie by the time this review hits the stands. If not, you can see it once. But, if you have watched Mohanlal's and Shobhana's performances in "Manichitrataazhu", I suggest you give "Chandramukhi" a miss.