Endrendrum Punnagai

This 2013 Tamil film follows three people who have been friends since school. Gowtham, who does not trust women after his mother left home, makes a pact with Sri and Baby never to marry; years later the other two want to break it. The question is whom the promise serves. Gowtham weighs his friends' decision through his own hurt; the narrative does not vindicate him and, as it proceeds, shows that he is the obstacle. Jiiva, Trisha and Vinay Rai take the principal roles, with Santhanam carrying the comic line. The tone is light, the songs foregrounded and the settings showy. The narrative raises its emotional emphasis in the second half. Who it's for: those who like Tamil friendship and romantic comedy. Who it's not for: viewers uncomfortable with a misogynistic attitude used as comedy for a long stretch; the film only addresses it at the end.