After the promising thriller 'Thoongavanam', director Rajesh M. Selva is back with his second directorial 'Kadaram Kondan' (KK), starring Vikram, Akshara Haasan and Abi Hassan in central roles. The film is kick-started with a tense chase, and what happens next forms the rest of the film.

Kadaram Kondan revolves around Vasu (played by newcomer Abi Hassan) a doctor and his pregnant wife Aathira (played by Akshara Haasan), who had recently moved to Kuala Lampur. Their lives become entangled with crime when KK (played by Vikram) a mysterious man with a dubious criminal record gets admitted to the hospital, where Vasu is working in. The film opens with a chase as a bloodied KK is on the run from armed men. The aerial shots by Srinivas R. Gutha adds a lot to the intrigue of the sequence.

But then on, the film focuses on the relationship between Vasu and Aathira. The film gives more space to the moments between them. The first half is mainly focused on KK's recuperation and the procedural that is triggered by his presence. The film suffers from minor pacing issues, especially during moments where the plot relies on Vasu and KK alone. During these portion, the sense of threat is conveyed in a less-effective manner.

The plot shows a lot of promise, there is a fine instance of double-cross and KK's ambiguous nature are interesting on paper, but they do not reflect on the screen due to middling execution. However, the second half uplifts the film as we get to know about Vikram's motive, and the danger become more visible. We see the characters trailing for clues that leads them to a serious conspiracy, but it could have been better had they given setups for that subplot earlier in the first half.

The second half lands on an engrossing climax, where KK breaks into the police headquarters, leading to a loud commotion in the building. The payoff for the scene is well-achieved, but the fact that our hero sneaks into a highly protected area without a plan questions the logic. The latter portions are much more focused and well-staged, unlike the first half.

Abi Hassan and Akshara excel well in their combination scenes, but could have done even better in their induvidual sequences where they had to pull off heavy-duty emotions. Lena gives a powerful presence in her limited role, but it is Vikram, who takes the top honours in the acting department with his impressive body language. The silvery mane and the muted demeanour adds more depth to the ghost-like identity and effortlessly portrays KK's menacing attitude. Ghibran's music effectively punches up many moments and the climactic stretch is well-edited, where the scenes are presented as an intercut between multiple cliffhanger moments.The audiography department has excelled in capturing the visceral sounds of gunshots. Overall, Kadaram Kondan is a decent action thriller that is anchored by Vikram's stylish performance.