Thalainagaram proves that films on rowdies are definitely the flavor of the moment in Tamil cinema. The film marks the debut of director Sundar.C, who is well known for making illogical comedies, before the camera. But for his acting debut, even he has chosen to play a rowdy. As 2005's Chinnaa showed, action movies are not Sundar's forte and he has wisely chosen another director to helm his first film. That turns out to be a good move since the director, newcomer Suraaj, shows a knack for style that helps make the cliched tale watchable.

Right(Sundar.C), true to his name, is the right-hand man of Wasim Bhai (Judo Rathnam), a dada. He has a reputation for getting things, however impossible they may seem, done and this earns him the enmity of Wasim Bhai's son. Divya(Jothimayi), a friend of a girl who lives in Right's neighborhood, falls for Right after seeing only his good side. Right is forced to go up against Wasim Bhai when his principles come in the way of completing a task.

Style triumphs over story in Thalainagaram. With some nice editing and fast cuts, director Suraaj gives the impression that things are on the move. So though the underlying story is a familiar one of a rowdy eventually crossing swords with his boss, the movie's slickness makes it seem somewhat fresh. Naturally, its the action sequences that lend themselves to techniques like this. So the movie's best parts happen when Sundar is on the wrong side of the law initially.

The movie slows down in the middle since the slickness seen in the action sequences is ofcourse lost during romance and comedy. So as Sundar and his friends turn over a new leaf and Jothirmayi sings duets with him, the movie slows down. But it is rejuvenated by some exciting sequences towards the end. Sundar's plans to eliminate some enemies are clever and the fast editing and high-tempo music increase the pace.

Helping things is a little more plausibility than usual in the romance between Sundar and Jothirmayi. Movies with a rowdy as hero are usually hampered by the fact that the rowdyism of the hero make it extremely unlikely that the heroine would fall for him. But the director avoids that here by making Jothirmayi develop an impression of Sundar that is very different from what he actually is when she starts falling for him. Sure it is contrived but it makes the resulting romance more acceptable. It becomes even more acceptable once Sundar turns over a new leaf.

Since he's been around a while and has had some funny tracks recently, Vadivelu has reached the stage where his very appearance on the screen leads to some chuckles. But he doesn't build on this successfully here. The initial episodes are unconnected to the main track but the director manages to cleverly connect him to Jothirmayi. But surprisingly, the initial sequences have a few small laughs while the segments become progressively longer and less funny as the movie proceeds. And since the main track moves at a fairly good pace, the comedy segments turn into unwelcome intrusions from being merely unfunny interruptions.

Sundar is definitely wooden but is saved since the role doesn't require much emoting. He's a little stiff in the fight and song sequences but overall, it is a decent debut. And he is a lot easier on our eyes than other director-turned-actors like S.J.Surya and Thankar Bachan. Jothimayi, another Malayalam import, performs well but there's no chemistry between her and Sundar. 'Delhi' Ganesh plays a corrupt minister against type but the role doesn't suit him too well. The Thalainagaram Thalainagaram... background score works well but when played a little slowly, it reminds us of the Ennulle Ennulle... number from Valli.