White Rose Movie Review: Anandhi is the silver lining in this monotonous thriller with a reasonable premise

Ten minutes into White Rose, a question gnawed at me: How can one person face such relentless hardship? Divya (Kayal Anandhi), already ostracised by her parents for marrying a Muslim, loses her loving husband in a tragic accident moments after they celebrate her birthday with their four-year-old daughter. As if these weren't setbacks enough, the newly widowed Divya then finds her daughter kidnapped by a loan shark she owes money to. While these conflicts seem overwhelming, they merely make up the prelude. With an eerie musical score and unexpected jump scares, White Rose initially thrills, but a sense of tedium sets in soon afterwards with an endless barrage of misfortune and many illogical plot holes.

Director: K Rajashekar

Cast: Kayal Anandhi, RK Suresh, Rooso Sridharan, Vijjith, Baby Nakshathra, Sasilaya, Dharani Reddy

In dire need of money, Divya turns to sex work to retrieve her daughter from the financier. Unfortunately, in her first attempt, she is taken by a murderer who is behind young women. Will Divya escape this predator for her daughter's sake? And what dark secret fuels the killer's rampage?

Initially, although the film’s world-building takes time when the conflict is set in motion, it is adrenaline-pumping. There are a few red herring jump scares and scenes, accompanied by haunting music that makes your heart beat faster way before the protagonist even faces danger. So, you patiently watch the film up until the first half, despite a few hiccups in the screenplay here and there. The makers have gone for a slightly non-linear narrative, which makes things ambiguous for a while, but you’re willing to overcome such inconveniences for the overall thrill factor, initially. 

At the heart of White Rose is a rarely acknowledged crime that is often disguised as a psychological disorder and that often escapes legal repercussions. While awareness about the disorder, which is sexual in nature, is limited, it was recently addressed extremely well in Ranam, starring Vaibhav. In this film too, the issue is tackled efficiently, but it is what happens before and after that derails the purpose of this message. Additionally, the terrifying nature of White Rose, the violence, and the central topic of the film made me wonder how it cleared censorship formalities with a U/A certificate.

RK Suresh plays the antagonist in White Rose—an interesting role as he has no lines at all throughout the film's runtime. His character, a serial killer grappling with a psychological disorder, presents an exploration of criminal behaviour that is promising. However, the film fails to capitalise on this potential. A minimal backstory leaves the audience emotionally distant, neither fearing nor understanding his motivations. The makers could have definitely spent more time exploring his character than on the ‘how-Divya-finally-breaks-free-and-survives’ portion of the film.

White Rose maintains a gripping pace for most of its runtime, building suspense until the major reveal around the 90-minute mark. However, the final 30 minutes of the film suffer from repetitiveness. The focus solely on Divya's escape attempts becomes tiresome; despite the escalating danger, her actions occasionally defy logic. Even basic survival instincts seem absent at times, as she repeatedly gets attacked by the villain without utilising readily available objects for defence. For example, in a scene, she is thrashed by the villain but doesn't bother to pick a lamp or a centrepiece from the table near her to use to her advantage. This mundanity undermines the tension built throughout the film.

Anandhi delivers a powerful performance, effortlessly embodying a worried mother and a terrified young woman. She's the bright spot in a film that starts strong but descends into repetitive monotony. The ending, while predictable (think Manik Baashha's quote, "Aandavan Nallavangala Sodhipaan aana Kai vida maatan"), takes an unnecessarily convoluted path. When the credits began rolling, I had one question in my mind: “What does the title White Rose have to do with any of this?” Despite my efforts to find the meaning, the title felt as distant from the film's themes as I was emotionally involved by the end.