“White Rose” is a 2024 Tamil thriller film directed and written by K. Rajashekhar. It is produced by N. Ranjani under Poombarai Murugan Production. Anandhi and R. K. Suresh has starring roles in the movie.
The movie is about “Divya”, a common middle-class woman whose life turns into a nightmare when her husband is brutally killed in a mistaken police encounter. Determined to survive, she gets into the hands of a psychopathic murderer. Her misery increases when her young daughter is kidnapped, and she is forced into a desperate fight for survival.
The film opens with a gory discovery of a butchered body, setting the stage for a thriller featuring a remorseless killer. Emotional depth in the agony of Divya's ordeal is left unfinished, though, and this disenfranchises us from her ordeal and distress.
The film is full of convenient plot turns. Divya's daughter is kidnapped in the daytime when she is waiting outside a supermarket where Divya is employed. This makes it easy for loan sharks she owes money to take advantage. Similarly, the death by suicide of Swathi, a doctor who was being stalked by the killer, and the suspicious handling of her body in the mortuary, raise questions about the sense and direction of the film.
Adding to the discontinuities, “Senior ACP Vetri” (Rooso Sreedharan) consistently encounters the “Psychopath” (R.K. Suresh) all by himself despite the obvious need for reinforcements. These sequences undermine the tension in the film and make it less engaging than planned.
Now come the biggest questions: Will Divya be able to escape from her abductor and rescue her daughter? Will Vetri be able to nab the killer once and for all?
While “White Rose” tries to serve up an entertaining experience, it falters with gaps in the plot and issues of execution. That being said, those who enjoy dark thrillers and crime mysteries can still enjoy watching it.