Thudarum Movie Review: Mohanlal returns to glorious form

In the end credits of Thudarum, if you notice, Mohanlal's name arrives first followed immediately by the film's title. Mohanlal... Thudarum. It is perhaps Tharun Moorthy's way of declaring proudly that Mohanlal will continue doing what he's best at, irrespective of all the external noises. Over the last few years, there has been a lot of clamour around the actor's waning performances and his excess focus on amplifying his stardom. But he returns to glorious form with Thudarum where Tharun shows it's perfectly possible to strip Mohanlal of his superstar aura and still deliver the ‘high’ that the fans seek.

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Mohanlal playing a family man is nothing new. He has done that countless times, including the most memorable Drishyam — a film that Thudarum was often compared to before release. While there are some faint similarities between the two films, like Mohanlal playing an ordinary man who goes to any extent for his family, the treatment, performances and overall mood are a lot different. Unlike Drishyam which rode high on its twists and brainy screenplay, Thudarum is raw, emotionally charged and carefully plays to the gallery. Tharun opens the film on a remarkable note, throwing us off guard. This short sequence, which lasts for five minutes, grabs our attention for the next two hours. He follows it up with some tasteful touches in the title card, especially while displaying Mohanlal's name alongside a silhouette shot of a lone tusker. There are quite a few shreds of evidence in the film suggesting that the elephant is intended as the spirit animal of Mohanlal's protagonist, Benz aka Shanmugham. Just as the tusker, he's calm and protective while with his family, but dangerous and ruthless when cornered. In the initial few portions,