'Jagame Thandhiram' review: The movie's first half makes you want to watch it in a theatre

Jagame Thandhiram is written and directed by Karthik Subbaraj, released on June 18, 2021, at 12:30 PM. The music for the movie was scored by Santosh Narayanan and the cinematography was done by Shreyaas Krishna. The movie stars Dhanush, Aishwarya Lekshmi, James Cosmo, Joju George, and Kalaiyarasan in prominent roles. The movie was edited by Vivek Harshan, and the duration of the movie is two and a half hours. 

What's the plot?

Jagame Thandhiram revolves around Suruli, played by Dhanush. He is a small-time yet invincible gangster back in Madurai. It so happens that a gangster called Peter, played by James Cosmo, hires him to trap and kill Sivadoss, played by Joju George. Sivadoss is fighting to get the refugees a better life in the UK, but Peter's political motivations do not allow it. Once in London, Suruli meets Attila, whom he falls in love with. Without giving out spoilers, she soon becomes a catalyst in forming Suruli's ideology. What conspires after he is face to face with Sivadoss, and Peter forms the rest of the story.

What works?

Right from the start, the movie gets its cinematography on point. It brings life to the movie, and the visual grammar is certainly elevated. Santosh Narayanan's music is a rager, and every song is as good as the other ones in the album. The background music is to watch out for. The first half of the movie is as entertaining as it gets. Needless to say that every performance in the movie, from Dhanush to Joju George, is impeccable. The movie will be a great watch for all the action fans, and each still from the movie is like an iconic poster.

What doesn't?

The film's runtime is its biggest enemy and the editing could have been crisper. When the second half begins, for a few minutes, until the last half an hour, it gets too dramatic. We do not see this coming because of the light and entertaining first half. Jagame Thandhiram would have been a greater watch without its overly dramatic moments. 

Final thoughts

All in all, Jagame Thandhiram is a great watch and Dhanush shines all through like a star. The music, performances and cinematography are all commendable. Had the movie been shorter, it would be one of the best movies ever. Jagame Thandhiram has shades of classic western movies like Kill Bill, and The Wild Wild West that make it even more enjoyable

Jagame Thandhiram's rating (out of 5)

Karthik Subbaraj is certainly instrumental in changing a lot of what a commercial Tamil movie is. Except for a few overly dramatic sequences and the duration, everything else is perfect. Karthik Subbaraj is a great storyteller, bringing the movie's rating to 3/5. 

• IMAGE: A STILL FROM JAGAME THANDHIRAM, NETFLIX INDIA INSTAGRAM