Por Thozhil Review - Solid Thriller Worth A Theatrical Watch!

Ashwin Ram

Por Thozhil is a murder mystery starring Ashok Selvan, Sarathkumar and Nikhila Vimal in the lead roles. The movie is directed by debutant Vignesh Raja.

Premise: 

Same pattern of murders takes place in and around Trichy. Highly talented investigative officer Sarathkumar is appointed to solve the case alongside Ashok Selvan and Nikhila Vimal to assist him.

Writing/ Direction:

For starters, it is a typical thriller by following the story flow pattern of the genre films out there. Murders take place, investigations happen, the killer is found and he reveals his backstory. The screenplay is what makes it interesting, the plot-points in the first half and the detailing given to the interrogations make the scenes intriguing. There are breathers too, glad that they are not in the form of songs, rather the portions explore the personal space of the lead artists and the track beautifully links with the main theme of the film. The chemistry between Ashok Selvan and Sarathkumar is so good on-screen, mainly because of their character contradictions. There is a big reveal in the interval block, the second half might have ended up being a flat one. But the writer hunts for more and there is a constant effort to excite the viewers, he has become successful in it. A little stretched out to reach the integral part of the subject, but the turnaround of events post that stands as the highlight. The backstory is convincing and the incidents taking place in two different timelines are knit in a splendid manner. However the flashback could have been presented in a better manner, the writing hides the flaws in the direction.

Performances:

Subtle performance from Ashok Selvan, he underplays for the most part, and it was so nice to see him take the frontline towards the end, attributes of a typical commercial cinema. This is by far the best role for Sarathkumar in his second innings, he is rugged but thankfully not loud. It is more like a dual hero subject and they both balance it out beautifully both in the professional and personal front. Nikhila Vimal seemed to have a sidekick role for a very long time but pays off well at the end when her character is the one that puts a full stop. There is a super interesting casting choice for the killer which no one would expect, best not to reveal the name.

Technicalities: 

It’s a technically neat film too, there nothing to be awestruck, but there is nothing bad too. There are no songs at all, background score helps to elevate the thrills. Pretty good camera work, the cinematographer has given what is exactly required for this particular genre film. Decent editing too, but it isn’t slick as the overall duration could have been a bit more crisper, however there is not much lag to bore us out. Appreciable work by the art department, adds immense value to the incidents taking place, both on-field and off-field.

Bottomline

A whodunit murder mystery that flows in the typical structure of the thriller genre films which we have seen before. The interesting screenplay with unpredictable twists, uniquely satisfying backstory and a gripping finale puts up a good show.

Rating - 3.25/ 5