Por Thozhil is a huge triumph of conviction. Both Alfred Prakash and Vignesh Raja deserve to be praised for their exceptional writing skills. Although it follows the same template, patterns and tropes like many other thriller films, the character development, alone, is so satisfying (in terms of how the lead characters; Prakash and Loganathan evolve dynamically) that it makes Por Thozhil stand out, compared to the other movies that belong to the serial-killer-investigation sub genre.

Por Thozhil is essentially a technical film. The reason it takes time to flesh out its lead characters and relies heavily on building the tension and drama rather than compromising the film's screenplay and core values by adding commercial elements, is clearly because director Vignesh Raja's aim was to realistically envision and explore the criminology aspects of murder investigations and the psychological aspects of a maniac's mind and childhood. Vignesh Raja has made a nearly flawless film, and its biggest strengths lie within its screenplay, which keeps the audience engaging all the way towards the climax.

Unlike the majority of thriller films that have been released in the past few years in Kollywood, Por Thozhil has a lot of scenes with intensity that truly pay off as solid pack of thrills. Speaking of intensity, Jakes Bejoy's eerie background score definitely sets the tone and mood perfectly, which also contributes to uplift the film to a whole another level. The decorative, ravishing cinematography by Kalaiselvan Sivaji and the neat editing by Sreejith Sarang really go hand to hand and sync with each other very well.

Ashok Selvan, an atypical actor who has delivered remarkable performances in the past decade has delivered yet another prodigious performance in this film. Thegidi is probably one of the most important films in his career, and to see him coming back to the thriller genre with Por Thozhil is so refreshing. Veteran actor R. Sarath Kumar, on the other hand, has delivered his most prestigious performance of his career. What makes these characters interesting is the chemistry, bond and interaction between them. Both of these characters have beautiful character arcs that elevate the film's quality, while the costume colors symbolize their personality, characteristics and shades splendidly. Nikhila Vimal has also delivered a stellar performance in the given screen time, even though her character was underutilized. Both antagonists show a tremendous sense of evilness which makes this crime thriller more intriguing.

Although the film has memorable characters, a dark, gritty story, and stellar performances from the cast, Por Thozhil is not perfect. The motive of the antagonists could have been a notch better, as the motive presented in the film is not as convincing as one might expect. The story gets a little predictable towards the end as well, but those are the only flaws that I could find in this movie.

Overall, Por Thozhil is a smart, effective and engaging thriller that will get you hooked already within its first five minutes. It's nearly 2,5 hours long, but since the film is extremely well paced it felt like an hour just evaporated while I was watching it. Another great addition to Ashok Selvan's admirable filmography.