Jagame Thanthiram Review

Verdict : Passable entertainer that is a decent one time watch.

Review:

There are some films that leave you confused as to what to think of them when they end. JT is one such movie. The film clearly suffers from the Karthick Subburaj effect, where the first half moves like a proper popcorn entertainer and the second half feels like an entirely different movie. Petta had this problem, JT has it and on top of it falls well short of Petta.

But you can't shrug off the feeling that something is missing. The character arc of Suruli does not reach a satisfying end when the credits roll. I don't want to spoil the movie for everyone, but that is just me. A lot happens before the interval and second half fails to give us the right answers. Due credit to Karthick Subburaj for showing the plight of refugees as realistically as possible. It showed me that he has definitely matured as a director.

The plot, theme, acting and dialogues are good for the most part. The beautiful Srilankan Tamil accent is also captured well. The action scenes are terrific. James Cosmo, Joju, Kalaiyarasan and Aishwarya Lekshmi deliver exactly what is expected. James Cosmo is probably the only true foreign villain who does not feel like a caricature in the sea of horrible villains like Dong Lee, Tony Lee, Danny among others. I think Joju and Kalaiyarasan warrant better roles than these. Esp Joju. Kaliayarasan needs to step his game up.

The film boasts outstanding technical aspects. It's shot like a dream and it makes you miss the theatre experience. The music except the two hit songs really don't stand out. Most of the movie makes you feel like you're watching a British crime drama. I still don’t get why films like these need songs. They really slowed the movie whenever they showed up.

I still feel its a missed opportunity. Good for a one-time watch though.