PremiumThiruvin Kural Review: Arulnithi's thriller fails to tap on the interesting premise and ends up becoming a tedious watch
Harish Prabhu's film is let down by weak writing and inconsistent screenplay which play spoilsport to the interesting premise
Last Updated: 06.18 PM, May 14, 2023
Story: A partially deaf and speech-impaired youngster is drawn into unforeseen circumstances after his father gets admitted to a government hospital
Review: Arulnithi's name has become synonymous with thrillers and director Harish Prabhu's Thiruvin Kural is the latest addition to the list. This time around, the actor plays Thiru, a partially mute and speech-impaired man. The film, however, doesn't try to cash in on the factor.
Thiru's family, including his fiancee Bhavani (Aathmika) dote on him. Bharathiraja plays Marimuthu, the patriarch of the family and there are many feel-good moments in the beginning as we get introduced to Thiru's world.
The conflict begins when Marimuthu meets with an accident at his construction site. When Marimuthu is rushed to the government hospital, things are not all hunky dory there. There is a lecherous and menacing lift operator Aarumugam (Ashraf), ward boys and attendants who take a fiendish delight in hurting people who do not bend to their will and a sinister morgue worker who plays their sidekick. With these ominous forces on the prowl, Thiru has to be prudently watchful. However, an incident forces him to rub them the wrong way and things quickly exacerbate from there. Will Thiru be able to save his father and the rest of the family?
The antagonists of the story are etched in a straightforward manner. They are ruthless people baying for people's blood. Their looks are so menacing that it can make one's blood run cold. When Thiru's niece is stuck among these very murderers in a scene, it gives an eerie feel.
The way they nonchalantly commit murders at the hospital and outside, makes us wonder how the hospital management doesn't catch a whiff of anything that's going on in the premises. Imagine going to a hospital like this where people around you are plain cold-blooded murderers.
Arulnithi is earnest as always in his performance and plays a youngster who bashes up the bad guys, but is forced to retreat a bit when his father's life is at risk. He fares well as a speech-impaired and partially deaf guy, who has to protect his family at all costs. Aathmika has nothing substantial to do in the film, except playing Thiru's love interest. When will our filmmakers stop relegating their lead actresses to being just eye candies?
Monekha Siva impresses as the teenager who is the first to discover a murder by the gang and carries the secret with her for a long time. Bharathiraja, Subratra Robert and the rest of the characters impress.The film also explores how vulnerable people from the poor and marginalised sections of the society are exploited by these very people when asked for help.
Despite all these factors, the film doesn't impress, courtesy the weak screenplay where many scenes do not come across as convincing. The characters, too, don't get the window to show their full potential. For instance, though Thiru shares a warm bond with his father, we don't get many moments between the two. Neither do the antagonists or the protagonist get to reach the zenith of their respective revenges.
The cinematography by Sinto Poduthas works to an extent but Sam CS's music doesn't do much to complement the scenes on screen. As the film crawls towards the climax, it gets completely bogged by convoluted writing. Many questions remain unanswered and unresolved. With many loose ends, Thiruvin Kural ends up as an average fare and after a certain point of time, becomes a tedious watch.
Verdict: A thriller that ends up as a pretty average fare, courtesy its weak writing and screenplay