Review #508 - Theeran Adhigaaram Ondru (Tamil, 2017)

Plot

A case involving dacoity of the most ruthless kind takes years of investigation by Tamilnadu Police. The steely resilience of officer Dheeran and his team takes them past the levels at which other states had given up the chase. Do they get all the way to the point of nabbing the robbers?

What’s Hot

• Through the film, based on true events from 2000s, Writer-Director Vinoth presents the chilling episodes of robbery in a fashion that’s disturbing (in a good way!) and the arduous methods required to be adopted by the police in a way that lets us respect & appreciate the men behind the work
• Karthi, as the ‘never-say-die’ officer Dheeran, sets the screen on fire exhibiting a fiery performance and makes us believe the respect he earns from his fellow ‘boys’ in the operation (the prominent face of Bose Venkat among others)
• The robbers’ group is a sureshot casting coup by Vinoth! Oma (played by Abhimanyu Singh), Kali and the entire clan fascinates the viewer with their ruthless ways and the backstory that offers explanation on why they are the way they are takes the tale away from being a mere ‘revenge’ story
• The detailing vindicates the abundant research that has gone behind the case and the very setup of the case as presented (moving across states) brings about the intriguing aspects of the complexities that run deep-rooted with a country like India & also allows us to appreciate the technical advancements of today that have come to be of help to police investigations!
• The technical trio that hogs the limelight involve Sathyan Sooryan’s camerawork (providing the perfect stage for the adrenaline pumping action sequences to steal the show – the one with the buses is a screamer), Ghibran’s loud but effective background score & Shivanandeeswaran’s editing that presents heavy details in a manner that is consumable

What’s Not

• The film takes quite a while to warm-up and set the engines revved up thanks to an uninventive romance track between the lead pair, even though the writing behind the pair tries to make up for the clichés as the relationship progresses

The lousy start notwithstanding, Dheeran Adhigaaram Ondru showcases the earnestness of the team’s homage to the officers behind the real case with an unflinching & exciting coverage of the case, the physical and poilitical turmoil the officers had to go through & the dangerous adversaries they were after.

A Towering Tribute