User reviews

Kurangu Bommai (2017): After seeing Balaji Mohan, Karthik Subbaraj, Nalan Kumarasamy and a series of other short film directors making their entry into Kollywood, here is one more joining the club! It is debutante Nithilan, who has directed Kurangu Bommai.Earlier this year, we witnessed Lokesh's Maanagaram, one of the best nonlinear hyperlink cinemas and now, with Kurangu Bommai, Nithilan joins the elite club of promising debutante Kollywood directors of 2017.

Plot: An honest driver Kathir (Vidharth) tries to find the owner of a bag with a monkey sticker on it, supposedly containing money to fund the marriage of the man's daughter, not realising that it was used by his own father Sundaram (Bharathiraja) to move a stolen idol.

My Review: Kurangu Bommai is also hyperlink cinema which involves two major narratives here. One of these involves Sundaram (Bharathirajaa), the elderly head of a family in Tanjore, who works for Ekambaram (PL Thenappan), a saw-mill owner and a criminal. The other involves Sundaram's son Kathir (Vitharth), who lives in Chennai and works as an on-call driver.

The film's biggest strength is its writing by Nithilan which is smartly taken care. The way one scene gives a lead to another scene is very interesting, and it has been knit well. The film moves on a nonlinear screenplay format, but nowhere in the movie, you could find it complicated.

The biggest positive point of the film is its casting.Bharathirajaa is phenomenal as a naïve old man who doesn't mind doing the wrong thing for his friend.here's a scene in the second half, where Bharathiraja tells a story to Kumaravel. That one single scene is enough to tell us what kind of a performer he is.Kumaravel steals the show with his shaky body language and dialogue delivery.Vidharth must be appreciated for continuously selecting good scripts and understanding the important fact that the core story is important than heroism.

Ajaneesh Loknath's background score is one of the biggest strengths of Kurangu Bommai.His score elevates the tense moments and Abhinav Sundar Nayak also deserves a special mention for his smooth and sharp edit. The running time of Kurangu Bommai is just 106 minutes, which is perfect for a crime thriller.

So,Kurangu Bommai is a worth watching thriller with tremendous performances and engaging screenplay.

My Rating 7/10

I expected this to be a typical gunda/smuggling movie but was grossly mistaken. An engaging thriller, with edge of the seat moments made an interesting watch.

I have always held a good opinion about Vidharth. Having watched Myna and Kutrame thandanai, I view him as an underrated actor with potential. In 'Kurangu Bommai' he fits into the character to a tee.

The movie boasts of excellent screenplay. I can feel the expertise of a short film director throughout, which allures the cinematic viewing pleasure. A well-made short film gets the message straight with crisp technical work, avoiding dragging the plot with unnecessary bgm and songs. It felt good to watch such an intellectual film after a long time.

A good lot of acting has been cast, with no underperformers. Each character has been given adequate weightage and screen time which is complimentary. Actor Elangovan of Abiyum Naanum fame has taken a new avatar, and has squeezed in all his acting skills. No character surpasses any other in terms of performance, even veteran yesteryear master director Bharathiraja has put up a humble show, which is appealing and touching. A big hats off to the team!

The movie was very realistic the villain was acted nicely. All should watch the movie

Movies like these only make Tamil film industry alive. A low budget film without any pomp or extravaganza. But the performance by the all the actors in the movie is strong and realistic. Actually they lived as the characters, devoid of being cinematic. This movie starts like some other movies of the same genre like Moodar Koodam. Only few people can guess the real plot. The twist comes near the end of the movie and it's really shocking as well as disturbing. But this movie glaringly reflects the grim reality of people's extreme greediness which forces them to extreme, unimaginable situations. A real gem that would have buried unnoticed but for the positive reviews by fellow movie fans. Praises to those who had rated this movie positively.

What a great movie . I wont say worth the money. Its worth the time. Hats Off!!!

An awesome thriller that keeps you on the edge of seat. It's a movie where the characters meet each other by chance which is rare but not impossible after all it's a small place we live on. Has everything for a movie lover comedy, romance, thrill, crime and a message in the end. Overall 9/10

One of the finest crime thrillers. The film starts on a light note but then the series of events move the film at a great pace. The film revolves around the bag with the monkey face. It also has some comical moments initially, also shows romance for a short time. Overall A power packed thriller movie Cinematography 9/10 Background score 8/10 Story 9/10 Acting 9/10

Good start, excellent narration, excellent acting BUT... A horrible ending!!! Unnecessary deaths and unnecessary twist... to make things worse - there are quite a few blaring holes in the logic towards the end. I am very upset that a good film has been wasted... now I know why the film did not have a good run

I think 2017 was one of the best years for Tamil cinema, with lots of intriguing movies, including '8 Thottkal,' 'Mannagaram,' etc. Kurangu Bommai is a great watch and did enjoy the twists and turns which were an important part of the movie. Bharathiraja's acting was superb and all the supporting actors were great in their respective roles.

I got the same satisfaction I had when I watched 8 Thottakal. No one spoke of this movie back in 2017 but still, it was a big hit. I came to know about this movie from a Facebook group.

Try to watch it without knowing anything and you are gonna get an amazing experience. The climax is top-notch. One of the best Tamil films of 2017.

The film works fantastic in some parts and rather dull in other parts. The nonlinear narrative became rather tasteless after the first half hour, that which should have given a twist at the end became very predictable. The film never has any proper focus but the good parts are too good that gives some hope for the director's future works more than this debut.

Kurangu Bommai (2017) : Brief Review -

A Clever Tamil Anthology tells the old story in new way but man.. what a god damn freaking revenge it delivers. Crime anthologies have been made often in South Cinema, especially in Tamil Cinema and to be honest Tamil Industry has delivered some real international level classics in this genre. I mean the same kind of stuff British Cinema makes and is loved by foreign audience. I have seen some major classics recently and i can say it loud and clean that Tamil Cinema is nothing less than British Cinema when it comes to crime drama and anthologies. Kuranga Bommai is another fine example of classic crime anthology which makes my previous statement even more plausible. A loyal worker, Sundaram takes orders from his boss Ekamabaram, even when Ekamabaram asks Sundaram to smuggle a valuable idol in his car. Actually, the story is nothing new or outstanding but like they say in the film in one song, "I am telling you the same old story in new way, it is not Ramayana and Mahabharata".. The storytelling is unique and innovative. The same sequences are repeated in the film to tell us the time differences and what a Major breakthrough it provides to the narrative is surely a thing to watch. I wasn't convinced that it is a classic until the last minute when it shows some real painful and worthy revenge trick. All the actors in the film are fine in their roles. Yes, there are one or two fiascos but forgivable. The background score and the cinematography are major highlights of the film but only if you can understand the creative use of it. The real master behind this brilliant classic is Nithilan Swaminathan. He crafts an ordinary scrip with his extraordinary vision and keeps you hooked for the entire runtime of about 105 minutes. Overall, a new break in old genre and highly successful.

RATING - 8/10*

By - #samthebestest.

"Monkey Bag" (2017) is a captivating Tamil crime thriller that keeps viewers hooked with its intricate plot twists and engaging characters. The film revolves around a mysterious bag adorned with a monkey face, which becomes the center of a deadly game of deceit and betrayal.

The story unfolds through a non-linear narrative, cleverly interweaving past and present events to reveal the truth behind the bag's significance. The performances are exceptional, with Vidharth delivering a powerful portrayal of a man caught in a web of lies and danger. The supporting cast, including Bharathiraja and Delna Davis, also shine in their respective roles.

The film's greatest strength lies in its suspenseful atmosphere and well-crafted screenplay. The twists and turns are unpredictable, keeping the audience guessing until the very end. The cinematography and background score further enhance the film's gripping nature, creating a sense of tension and unease.

However, the film's non-linear narrative, while intriguing, may confuse some viewers. The frequent shifts in time and perspective can make it difficult to follow the plot at times. Additionally, some elements of the plot might seem far-fetched or rely too heavily on coincidence.

Despite these minor drawbacks, "Monkey Bag" remains a compelling and entertaining thriller. Its engaging characters, suspenseful plot, and strong performances make it a must-watch for fans of the genre.

Maharaja movie director's first movie of 2017 while Maharaja was his 2nd direction in 2024. Watched it since it was hyped with lots posts around. Entire movie rotates around the circus to get possession of a bag which gets exchanged among many hands. A very low production value crime thriller. Not worth all the hype though story n execution is very average n climax is good, also doesn't have any big starcast. Available in YouTube dubbed in Hindi. My ratings 5/10!

Maharaja movie director's first movie of 2017 while Maharaja was his 2nd direction in 2024. Watched it since it was hyped with lots posts around. Entire movie rotates around the circus to get possession of a bag which gets exchanged among many hands. A very low production value crime thriller. Not worth all the hype though story n execution is very average n climax is good, also doesn't have any big starcast. Available in YouTube dubbed in Hindi. My ratings 5/10!

It all started when Sundaram(Bharathiraja),an old-aged loyal man of Ekambaram,a local Don carried something of value form Thanjavur to Chennai.'Kurangu Bommai' is a non-linear representation of all the incidents that happened before his travel to Chennai and after. Kathir(Vidharth),Sundaram's son who is a taxi driver got mixed up in events that follow unknowingly.He was joined by an ambitious local thief who was exploring easy ways to become rich.The movie then follows bloodshed and later became a revenge thriller.



Most of the people try to survive their life by toiling hard each day.While,there are some who awaits their one shot of their life.But Karma becomes a bitch a times and waits for them.'Kurangu Bommai' takes a turn at one point of time and towards the end it became a perfect revenge thriller.The legendary director Bharathiraja was a perfect for the role of Sundaram.,One would remember his sharp narrations during most of his movies.But here,he enacted Sundaram according to requirements of the role.One would feel sympathy on his character,especially when he narrated his story on how he joined Ekambaram.Vidarth is a specialist in these type of roles.Especially his role Kathir was quite similar to that of 'Kuttrame Dhandanai'.The movie was unpredictable at times and later with the non-linear narration,lots of mysterious flavors were added and when the dots were connected it took a fast paced turn to end as revenge thriller.

Finalizando:'Kurangu Bommai' is a flawlessly designed revenge thriller which will hook up the viewers to their seats for the thrilling experience!!

Fans of the recent blockbuster Maharaja, this one's from the same director (Hard to believe he's only two films old and has come up with screenplay masterclass in his very 2nd film, but Kurangu Bommai is where you see him trying out this approach in a thriller that's very underrated.

Crime thriller fans, this should totally be on your list. You'll feel that it's slightly dated, which it is, came out a while back but that's likely going to be because you've watched similar content since this one released. For a 2017 movie, this is definitely brilliant and you can see shades of Maharaja in here.

An underrated movie with a different plot unpredictable climax that satisfies the viewer

Happened to watch this underrated, unknown movie accidentally. This is a terrific movie with brilliant characterizations and a back-and-forth screenplay. Every scene is detailed and picturized beautifully. The screenplay is taut with no loose ends and every character has its own motive induced by the women of the movie. One of the best films from Tamil cinema!!! Sad, that it is unknown to many people. Do watch!! I hope the director gets another project backed by a good marketing team!!

Good Movie. Everybody acted well in the movie. BGM was good in the movie. The movie was interesting and thrilling at 1st half. The movie bored and lagged a lot at 2nd half. The movie had many unwanted scenes. Good Movie.

A must watch movie for movie lovers. The non linear screenplay makes this movie very interesting.

After watching Maharaja, which I consider one of the best thrillers in recent years, I decided to give the Hindi dubbed version of this movie a shot, especially after seeing so much hype on Reddit. Some users even claimed it was better than Maharaja. Sadly, it doesn't come anywhere close.

Budget aside, the movie feels like a B-grade production. The Hindi dubbing is atrocious, quite possibly the worst I've ever heard. There's even a song near the end that's been dubbed in Hindi, and it's laughable. Despite the poor camerawork and bad acting, I held on, hoping the film would at least deliver a solid payoff.

Unfortunately, it's blatantly copied from one of the greatest thrillers out there. If you're a fan of the genre, you've likely already seen the original. In short, this movie was a major letdown and not even remotely on the same level as Maharaja.