Policemen and rowdies are both popular roles for our heroes in masala films since they allow for stories that can easily incorporate all aspects of a commercial entertainer. Parthiban, for his 50th film Vithagan, picks a story that allows him to play both roles in the same film. As an actor, his acting style suits both the roles but as director, he disappoints with a film that starts off well, turns confusing, silly and ends disastrously.

Rowdhiran(Parthiban) is an ACP who doesn't mind flouting the rules or breaking the law as long as it helps him rid the city of bad guys. Mercy(Poorna), who works at a call center, becomes a witness to Rowdhiran killing one such bad guy but falls for him after realizing who he is. Rowdhiran's superiors hate his guts and want to get rid of him and they finally get their chance when Rowdhiran's past catches up with him.

Almost all movies with a policeman as the hero - Vellore Maavattam was another recent one - have similar settings with the honest cop on one side and bad guys and corrupt superiors on the other. Vithagan starts off in exactly the same way as Parthiban is shown to be a conscientious cop who goes after the bad guys and fights with his superior officers. But Parthiban adds some variety to the standard scenario with his methods of bringing the bad guys to book. As he frames and eliminates the villains instead of just fighting with them, he uses both brain and brawn and his plans are clever and interesting.

Parthiban moving over to the other side of the law nudges the storyline in an interesting direction but not much comes out of it once the movie actually goes down that route. As Parthiban continues to eliminate more rowdies while on their side, the film just seems to be Vijay's Pokkiri in reverse. Parthiban still uses his brains to reduce the rowdies' ranks but some of the reasoning behind the double- and triple-crosses are so confusing that it is difficult to follow who kills who and why.

Parthiban's flashback explains his dedication to the force and his living life without any friends or family (though his family's current state is left hanging as a loose end). But its main objective is to introduce us to Milind Soman, who is shown as a really ruthless villain. But his actions in the present show him more as a paranoid criminal rather than the international don he is supposed to be. The climax is set in a suitable location but gets drowned in unnecessary melodrama. The fate of Milind Soman's character also provides the film's biggest laugh.

Parthiban has a gala time, shooting quips and one-liners at the bad guys in his trademark style. He has lost some weight and so the police dress sits well on him while his hairstyle is a bit distracting in the rowdy avatar. Poorna is adequate though she is hampered by some very poor characterization. Milind Soman tries hard to seem menacing but isn't successful while not many among the huge cast of rowdies and bad guys stand out. Ikkudhe... is a very melodious number from Thaman and is the pick of the soundtrack.