Surrender Movie Review: Strong leads elevate this gritty crime thriller

Time of India

01-08-2025

Surrender Movie
Synopsis
Surrender Movie Review:
Written By:
Abhinav Subramanian
: A missing firearm and stolen election funds put a retiring cop in a gangster's crosshairs, forcing a young officer to defend his mentor.In Kollywood's gangster playbook, there's a well-worn page about thugs who make cops dance to their tune. Surrender doesn't just read from this page. It photocopies it, staples it together, and calls it a day.With elections days away, veteran cop Periyasamy ( Lal ) is counting down to retirement when politician Mansoor Ali Khan (playing himself) surrenders his firearm as per election protocol. But when the gun vanishes from Periyasamy's custody, there's a crisis in the department. The job of tracing the missing gun falls to trainee cop Pugazh (Tharshan). Meanwhile, gangster Kanagu (Sujith Shankar), already reeling from his stolen election funds, suspects that Lal was involved in the ruffing up of his brother and holds the old cop accountable. As threats mount, Pugazh steps up to defend his mentor's honor and life, becoming the son Periyasamy never had.The thing with Surrender is that there's a lack of nuance. Everyone communicates through grunts and threats. The cops here aren't just compromised–they're practically interns at Gangster Inc., showing up to meetings and taking notes. You keep waiting for someone, anyone, to display a personality trait beyond "thuggish" or "more thuggish."Thankfully, the film skips romance and song-and-dance numbers, sparing us from watching these bruisers attempt choreography. The emotional core surrounding Periyasamy works. Lal does a neat job in portraying this mild-mannered cop, and Tharshan is equally good in playing the other lead role of the young recruit who's smart and tough. The two of them carry the entire film. Sujith Shankar is such a versatile actor but his character here is very two-note. Munishkanth pops up for comic relief and the comedy works in parts.We're in a bit of a drought when it comes to great crime-thrillers, and that seems to continue. Everything in Surrender is just so provincial and grimy. It's a cop story, yeah, with gangsters and politicians, but why does it feel like everyone's uncouth and unkempt? Even career criminals presumably have hobbies, fears, or favorite foods–anything beyond violence as a personality. There are also a few logic-defying masala sequences, like when Kanagu and Pugazh defend themselves against multiple armed thugs in a very narrow hospital corridor. The film eventually circles back to its emotional center with Periyasamy, which provides some redemption.At least it's consistently committed to its one-note brutishness. Sometimes that's almost admirable. Almost.