Review for Etharkkum Thunindhavan:
•Language: TAMIL
•Duration: 02 Hours 31 Minutes.
•Genre: ACTION THRILLER.
•REVIEW BY ARUNJYOTHI.R
• POSITIVES:
1: Decent Making.
2: Socially responsible topic which the film discusses.
3: Performance of actors.
4: Climax.
5: Music and Background Score.
6: Cinematography.
7: Editing.
• NEGATIVES:
1: Unwanted Comedies
2: Regular family cliches.
3: Average Screenplay.
4: Poor First half
•ONE WORD: Suriya shines brilliantly in a watchable action movie with a strong message.
•STORY IDEA:
The story of Etharkkum Thunindhavan revolves around Adv. Kannabiran (Suriya) and his family. He lives with his loving mother and supportive father. Soon he falls in love with Aadhini (Priyanka Mohan) but she comes from the neighbouring village and has some problems with the village of Suriya. So Aadhini’s father was not happy with their relationship and decided not to marry her daughter to the family of Kannabiran. With the support from Kannabiran’s parents, he will marry Aadhini and soon the two families will join together. When their life was going happily suddenly an unexpected crime will occur to their family. What is the crime, who all is behind it and how Kannabiran and his family will overcome the crime is the rest of the story.
•ANALYSIS INTO DIRECTION, STORY, SCREENPLAY & DIALOGUES:
The Etharkkum Thunindhavan also known as ET is directed by Pandiraj and himself writes the story, screenplay and dialogues. The movie is provided by Kalanithi Maran under his production company of Sun Pictures and the film is distributed by Red Giant Movies With a running time of 151 minutes the film is running in theatres with a hundred percent occupancy.
I always love to watch Tamil rural village films, it used to have something different and when looking into the previous films of Pandiraj like ‘Namma Veettu Pillai’ and ‘Kadaikutty Singam’ it was portrayed in the backdrop of a typical rural village with family emotions. Here when it comes to Etharkkum Thunindhavan the director Pandiraj uses his same village story ideas with a mix of crimes and social issues on a thriller backdrop which reminded his hit film ‘Kathakali’ with Vishal. The direction and the way of making in Etharkkum Thunindhavan are following the regular style of Pandiraj, the commercially added elements and the social issue of women’s safety is what makes the script unfold. The screenplay is combined with many factors like parenthood, social issues, romance, actions, comedies so how do these factors make the connection and how does it make the way to reveal the actual story is what the movie is all about. How Pandiraj had executed the movie on a commercial angle with surroundings of an important social issue against women needs special mention, his intention on bringing out this issue was good but still his making and writing haven’t done proper justice to create an impact.
The plot of the movie was promising and the premise of the story was having enough space but the overall script was not strong enough to make an influence. The main drawback was the predictability, it is a story on a thriller backdrop but the written screenplay was not having sufficient components to make it thrilling. The situations and circumstances which lead the plot to the actual story were following a routine style. The time taken to establish the story was filled with romance, comedies and situational family humour which was ok but was not that entertaining because the comedies and these romance tracks were not having anything new. It’s something which we can see in all Tamil commercial films so when the movie touches on the real theme how does it connect with the above-mentioned elements and what are all the incidents that arrive and does it make an intense connection to the further upcoming events is what the screenplay is all about. So does the screenplay has done justice sadly no is the answer because everything till the end was predictable and the revealing twists and turns don’t surprise me, but still, the performance of Suriya and the neat making holds these drawbacks.
The first half was struggling, the writings of Pandiraj were following the style of a television serial. The family humour was typically seeking the Pandiraj old movie patterns and it was making discomfort in the viewing. The created comedies felt forceful, many comedies were added unnecessarily and most of them felt unwanted. The comedies of Soori and Pugazh were irritating at many points, it dragged and made me think why this is not ending. Next to the family sentiments, the mother-son moments happening between Suriya and Saranya was also not perfect, it was not having the right connection. Their comedies were fun but at some point, it went too dramatic and their relationship was not having a dominant connection, the emotional bond was slightly missing because of the careless writing. So the first half with all these regular outdated things ends with a promising bang and the pre-interval ending reveals for an action entertainer.
The second half was different, the totality of the film completely changes into a different sphere. The emotional side with a serious issue of women’s safety is largely focused which was interesting to watch. So these happening crimes and how these crimes connect with the family of the central character was surprising and it was also unexpected. The cat and mouse play between the hero and villain was entertaining and those scenes were making a proper hook, it will make the viewers thrilling. The second half was not having any unnecessary cliches, a song was added but it matched the ongoing situations. The stunning fight scene of Suriya and the tough fight given by the villain against the hero makes the second half engaging. Still, the twists and surprises are predictable, but they maintain a flow and are convincing. The ending was made brilliantly, the climax was executed with the fights and it was also having a favourable emotional angle. The exploitation of women in the name of fake love was shown satisfyingly also the breaking of trust to the loved ones was portrayed evidently. In the climax how the villain and his gang are getting killed had created a big impact and the ending was satisfying. In the climax, it’s all about shocking revealing, for example, the scene like how do parents react when their child had turned into a criminal and what will a sister do when she came to know that her brother shoots nude videos was shown emotionally and painfully in the end. The emotional burst on that scene and how the villains are getting killed and by whom they are getting killed was compelling to watch. The ending was satisfying, the fights made more thrill and the sacrifices by the hero at the end was making a standard ending.
The character development could have been better because the antagonist Vinay Rai was not strong enough still the villain was not that weak. The villain character used to give a moderate tough fight but the method used by the villain could have been written better. The twist and fears from the side of the villain were not much surprising, a wow factor was missing but Vinay Rai’s incredible performance was balancing these issues. So overall the writing of Pandiraj was above average but he has formulated a neat steady making, till the end he had made the movie watchable without creating any lag. His dialogues don’t forget to create a punch, some of the mass heroic dialogues of Suriya were driving me to make some loud applause. The emotional dialogues were also written well especially the dialogues at the climax were extremely effective and will remind some good lessons. Also, the dialogues in the second half between Suriya and Priyanka Mohan was exceptional, their love and their trust and also their willingness to fight against each other was mixed with powerful words. So the first half and the regular family cliche with the unwanted comedies was the drawback in the making of Pandiraj but still due to the good second half he had managed to make Etharkkum Thunindhavan as an enjoyable movie for every type of audience.
- PERFORMANCE OF ACTORS:
Actor Suriya plays the central character called Adv. Kannabiran and Priyanka Arul Mohan as Aadhini Kannabiran did the heroine role and Vinay Rai as Inba is the antagonist. Sathyraj, Rajkiran, Madhusudhan Rao, Jayaprakash, Hareesh Peradi, Saranya Ponvannan, Devadarshini, M. S. Bhaskar, Soori, Redin Kingsley and Pugazh join the cast.
The movie is all about Suriya’s extraordinary performance and it makes Etharkkum Thunindhavan worth a watch. Suriya’s last two movies like Jai Bhim and Soorarai Pottru were released on the OTT platform and the movie was a highly discussed movie with a top-notch rating, the content and his stellar performance was accepted all over the world. So after some serious thriller dramas, he is back to do an action film. Suriya doing a mass heroic film was the thing which attracted me and it had given me an expectation of a mass heroic film, fortunately, he hasn’t failed to beat my expectation, Etharkkum Thunindhavan is all about the mass heroic comeback of Suriya. From the very beginning till the end his screen presence was making the movie more enjoyable. How Suriya portrayed the character Adv. Kannabiran is interesting, the village living style with the traditional costumes and the rural mannerism which he expresses shows the true tone of an educated brave villager. The traditional cultural accent on his Tamil language was also appealing and the way he speaks the dialogue with the precise timing was good. His fight sequence was exhilarating with the best thrilling moments because he was having the precise intense looks and also his mass dialogues while he showed anger was captivating to make some good applause and big whistles. For the Fans of Suriya, he had given whatever they wanted, the fans were celebrating by seeing his active vigorous performance. The whistles he got for the powerful dialogues and the applause he received from the fans was reminiscent of his old FDFS movie celebration. The character Adv. Kannabiran was completely safer in the hands of Suriya, I couldn’t find any fault in his performance. How he undertook the character and what are the things that need to be added for the character was safely rectified on the performance. Also, the village mannerism in the acting and the dialogue with the village accent was maintained accurately till the end. The emotional scene was also acted out well by Suriya, the sister-brother bond and family sentiments stood higher on his performance. As usual, he shines in doing the romantic scene and also his style of performing the dances was amazing. Therefore nothing more, it’s all about his extraordinary performance, Suriya is back as a mass hero and you guys will love it. Priyanka Mohanan as Aadhini Kannabiran did the heroine role and her performance was satisfying. Her combination scene with Suriya was creating a romantic mood and some scenes had emotional angles and both of them shared great chemistry. Priyanka Mohanan was good at the emotional sequences, the cry on her face with the sentimental dialogues was wonderful.
Vinay Rai as Inba was spectacular, he was like a dreaded villain. To perform his character was having plenty to do and it was like a challenging one. His character is demanding various types of expression and the behavioural change into a villain will make us wonder. As a villain, he had given a tough fight and his extreme anger was exhibiting anxious moments. A psycho mentality and his thinking on gender discrimination considering women as weaker were ideally seen in his performance till the end. How Vinay Rai’s acting skills had fitted for his role and how he undertook the emotions and thinking of the character also until the end how he maintained the right negative villain attitude was proving his talents, his personality and the kind of mannerism was genuinely matching for the script. Sathyaraj as the father of Suriya handled the character called Kannabiran. His role was very crucial and as a father Sathyaraj had done a great job with the good emotional scenes. Saranya Ponvannan as the mother of Suriya had delivered a gorgeous performance. Her smile and her motherly love are always pleasant to watch and her joyful behaviour was filled in the movie. Saranya Ponvannan and Suriya as the mother and son were having the scenes of parenthood sentiments and their few situational comedies and worked out well. Soori was fine at delivering some comedies and his way of telling the dialogue at the comedy scene was nice. Hareesh Peradi and Rajkiran also did complete justice to their supportive rules.
- MUSIC AND BACKGROUND SCORE:
The musical composition of the film is made by the hitmaker D. Imman including the background score. The song “Summa Surrunu” sung by Armaan Malik and Nikhita Gandhi was dominating to make dance moves and the song was synched with the cool dance of Suriya. The impact of the song on the theatre experience was awesome and the fans went crazy because of the heavy instrumental beats. The voice of Armaan Malik and Nikhita Gandhi was creating a great combination and the lyrics by the actor Sivakarthikeyan was passing the vigorous vibe for a big impact. When the song “Vaada Thambi” was released the song had given me a mediocre experience but with the visuals, the song was different to hear. The dance of Suriya and the vocals of G. V. Prakash Kumar and Anirudh Ravichander with the festival mood visuals had made the song tremendous. The song was a perfect song for a good intro and Surya had nailed it through his dance. The lyrics by Vignesh Shivan and the combined voice of G. V. Prakash Kumar and Anirudh Ravichander were energetic and the beats had made the song more vibrant. The third song “Ullam Urugudhaiya” was nice to hear because of the beautiful voices of Vandana Srinivasan, Pradeep Kumar and Brindha Manickavasakan. The song was hoped to create a romantic mood and D. Imman had given the proper tunes with a small Carnatic touch. The voice of Vandana Srinivasan was making the song more luminous and the lyrics by Yugabharathi pointed to the romantic connection.
The background score was also amazingly composed by D. Imman, he had given the favourable background score according to the situations. Also, for the hero and villain character, the background score made the character depth extremely well. The emotional scenes went adequately with the suitable background score. The background score at the family sentiments scene was matching the situation and helped those scenes to make the correct impact and the tunes will formulate the right emotions on the viewing experience. As a thriller action film, the background score stood higher to build the tension mood, the creation of curiosity and anticipation on what next was properly seen in the background score of D. Imman.
A powerful villain who oversees to give a tough fight is something I always like to witness and if the character is backed up by a cool background score then it’s a stellar show. In the movie, the villain is Vinay Rai and he is braced by a background score called ‘Venom’ sung by Joewin Shamalina. I was speechless by hearing the tune, it’s a flawlessly composed background score by D. Imman. The background score ‘Venom’ was boosting the villain’s character quality, his attitude, his way of thinking and his dreaded activities. The sound of Joewin Shamalina was lifting the darker villain shade and the various sound and beat modulations in the song were making the desired villain shades. The clock ticking tune on the background score and at the sound of electric beats was making the villain personality of Vinay Rai more charismatic. The ‘Pouncing Tiger’ was an unexpected mass background score and it made the action scene look mass. The background score called ‘The Prey’ was split as Part 1 and Part 2 and it was sentimental, the violin notes in the background score will melt our emotions and the sister-brother relationship was carried out emotionally.
- TECHNICAL ASPECTS:
The technical aspects of the film had come out well, the cinematography, editing, art direction and stunts were highlighted more among the technical division. The cinematography for the film is done by R. Rathnavelu which was excellent. His visuals were of the desired quality and the whole camera work was handled perfectly without any errors. The camera movements on the stunts were awesome, the way he composed the different shots for the fight sequences was thrilling to watch. The camera was positioned at the right angles in the action sequences and some sudden shift of the camera to another angle was appealing for the action sequences. The style of Suriya while performing the action sequences was captured stylishly and it gave a made appeal for his stunts and movements. It’s a movie that is happening in a rural village, so their culture and the village living conditions were accurately brought by the cinematographer. The temples, their festival and their rituals were drastically captured which suited the premise. The exquisitely composed wide-angle shots of Suriya were attractive, especially before the action scene. The warehouse’s house fight scene and also the fight sequences at the brick factory scene was enriched with phenomenal wide-angle shots. His intense look and his way of performing the fight scene was soaring great through the wide-angle frames. Also, some of the wide-angle shots were taken in less lighting conditions and it looked sharp and some of the silhouette frames had given the correct heroic mass feel. The songs were also shot beautifully, all three songs looked colourful and the frames were enhanced with stunning dance moves. In the sentimental scene, the camera has stunningly focused on the close-up shots so that the emotions of the central character was able to be seen radiantly. Vinay Rai had exhibited his best expression and his change of behaviour was artlessly seen because of the closeup frames. The lighting methods used by the cinematographer were approximate for the entire scenario, especially for the indoor scene with the dark tone, it deserves special mention. The editing by Ruben was faultless, mismatches were never felt, the scenes were ended with the right cuts. The transition of the scene was also fitting for the continuity and the colour grading also looked fine. The stunt choreographer Anbariv had done an incredible job in bringing out some terrific action sequences. Suriya was at his best form, his style and his mannerism on the fight sequences were exciting to watch. The choreographer Anbariv had composed the fights according to the style of Suriya and some of the movement of Suriya will cherish us to make some whistles. The art department had also done a neat job on bringing out the proper set. The set made for the song “Ullam Urugudhaiya ” was lovely, the theme had matched the romantic song glaringly. Also, the village and its surroundings were looking real, the properties used and the arrangements made had shown the culture of a real rural village.
- CONCLUSION:
So overall the film Etharkkum Thunindhavan had given me a fair cinematic experience and I would say the film is a decent choice for a one time watch. The fight scenes of Suriya and his screen presence is thrilling and the story which the film discusses is a relevant one to the present society. The average first half is followed by an above-average second half with a satisfying climax. So if you are planning to watch Etharkkum Thunindhavan better to watch with fewer expectations. The previous two films of Suriya like Jai Bhim and Soorarai Pottru was magical so don’t expect something like that, watch it if you love Suriya.
- VERDICT: AN AVERAGE WATCHABLE ACTION FILM.
- FINAL RATING: 2.5/5
