Etharkkum Thunindhavan - Suriya takes heroism to the next level
Suriya in recent times rediscovered himself by showing different shades of heroism as the ambitious nobody Maaran in 'Soorarai Pottru' and the underdog lawyer Chandru fighting for the oppressed in 'Jai Bhim'. In 'Etharkkum Thunindhavan' he has broken the stereotypes boldly to show another level of heroism.
The film opens with Kannabiraan (Suriya) the son of a village headman (Sathyaraj) and Saranya Ponvannan who is seen murdering seven people in cold blood. As the police go after him flashbacks show that he is a lawyer who especially takes up for female victims of sexual crimes. Inba (Vinay Rai) a stinking rich influential man belonging to the rival village of Kannabiran along with his henchmen openly involves in sex crimes, blackmail and murder. Kannabiran falls in love with Aadhini (Priyanka Arul Mohan) and marries her. In Kannabiran's fight against Inba his own family is affected in the most shocking manner and how he gets justice for all is what the screenplay is all about.
Suriya plays to the gallery in the initial scenes be it the bonding with his parents and romance with Priyanka Arul Mohan. As things turn serious he assumes a powerful persona who not only sounds the death knell to the villains but also instils confidence in the women around him. Kudos to Suriya for boldly accepting a key sequence in the film which most top heroes would have refused fearing for their image. The core message of the film which is not new but has to be repeated again and again gains credence due to Suriya delivering it and hence it is driven home. Priyanka Arul Mohan retains her cuteness from 'Doctor' and in the first half is mere eye candy. But when the unthinkable happens to her and Suriya she proves that she is a more than capable actress. Vinay Rai half convinces the audience of a sexual offender in his body language and the rest is just hamming it up. Soori's comedy works better than his recent films while Sathyaraj, Saranya Ponvannan, Divya Duraiswamy, Ilavarasu and Devadarshini add color to the proceedings.
What works best in the first half is the interesting sequence in which Suriya challenges Ilavarasu and marries Priyanka. The film holds attention in the second half by focusing on the issues. Bringing the unthinkable right into the hero'ss household and getting the families of the offenders involved to serve justice works big time in driving home the message emphatically.
On the downside the interactions between Suriya and his family in the first half are cliched. The first hour or so tests the patience and there is no finesse in the screenplay in general. The angle of Suriya's dead sister is pretty reminiscent of 'Karnan' though she gives impetus to the hero's character. There is contradiction when women are asked to be bold and face the society and fight for justice and then ending the story by taking the law into ones own hands.
D. Imman's songs provide the zest to Suriya fans and his background score underlines the visuals aptly. R. Rathnavelu's cinematography captures the moods effectively as always while Ruben's crisp editing make it racy especially in the second half. Director Pandiraj has based the script on the infamous Pollachi sex scandal and has successfully infused the much needed core message into the commercial format. He has cleverly used the strong voice of Suriya to deliver the relevant message and has come up with a winner. Sun Pictures has produced the film with its signature granduer.
Verdict : Go for this message driven heroic effort from Suriya and Pandiraj
