‘Newton’s 3rd Law’ movie review: Sumanth spearheads a largely satisfying, minimalistic crime thriller

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Director Rajesh Karna’s Telugu film nearly succumbs to the second-half syndrome, but solid drama and clever twists help it sail through

Published - July 31, 2026 04:53 pm IST

Sumanth in a still from the film | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

Thrillers have become such an overused genre in recent years, so much so that it feels like an invisible formula is in place to ensure an adrenaline rush. Filmmakers have been relentlessly toying with similar ingredients — violence against women, superstitions, revenge and graphic action designed for shock value — in different proportions, making little effort to craft a satisfying, cinematically-exciting experience.

Writer-director Rajesh Karna brings back the much-needed zing to this space with Newton’s 3rd Law, a minimalistic, noir-like crime thriller. The film frees itself from the excesses associated with a tale featuring familiar faces. The storyteller’s intent, for the most part, focuses on staying true to the genre. There is no attempt to oversell the plot or its twists and the execution is sure-footed.

A clear hook for the story is in place as an elderly man named David (Srinivas Avasarala), grows increasingly anxious about a copy of a novel that lands on his doorstep. The novel comprises incidents predominantly set in 1999, where a cop, Vasudev (Sumanth), tries to find a link between two incidents in the city: a college-going youngster dropping dead from a building and a single mother being hit by a speeding car in the middle of the night.

As the officer peels back the layers behind the student’s death, multiple theories emerge. Considering the family’s dicey financial situation and accounts from those near and dear to the victim — including a suspicious friend, an alcoholic father and a hard-working nurse striving to clear her husband’s debts — the tragedy feels less like an accident and more like a well-orchestrated plot.

One of the major irritants in an investigation thriller is often the forced urgency to heighten the importance of the case and that of the officer’s — usually a man’s — enhanced flamboyance in resolving it. Vasudev doesn’t belong to the breed of super-intelligent cops seen in thrillers. He is cool, calculated and smart, but every second sequence is not written to overstate his investigative acumen.

While Vasudev is the one trying to solve the problem at the heart of the story, the film is more interested in unraveling various angles to the crimes, woven around karma. The title, Newton’s 3rd Law, lends the narrative a supposedly scientific dimension, where every action begets an equal and opposite reaction.

Beyond the thrills and deceptive packaging, it also explores the interpersonal drama and tensions that trigger the explosive events. The dead are not merely cases. It speaks of their lost, unlived existence with sensitivity.

The first half focuses on tropes common to the genre: the incidents, the suspects and the investigation. However, the atmospheric staging allows viewers to look beyond the obvious plot points. The investigation unfolds during the rainy season, the score is relatively upbeat and the dialogue is to the point. The second hour answers all the questions about the crimes, albeit in installments.

Even though the filmmaker attempts to avoid a typical post-interval flashback, the tension dips as the events leading to multiple deaths come to the fore. The precision in the writing is amiss. A few developments are over-explained and the rest are rushed through with an air of restlessness. An edgy twist, the USP of the film, timed for the climax, and the philosophy behind the title are rattled off in a hurry, denting the overall impact.

In an otherwise smart film, Stephen Mercury (Jagapathi Babu) is too stereotypical a villain. Donning his usual salt-and-pepper look with dapper black suits, smoking a cigar and rolling out the same old dialogues, the menacing killing machine is devoid of a unique personality. David’s reactions to the novel towards the end of the film, although justified, are quite over the top.

In Sumanth, though, the film finds a cool, suave protagonist who means business. With a measured, unhurried performance, he makes his presence felt without screaming for attention. Trinadh Varma, playing a vulnerable youngster in a dysfunctional household, proves to be a promising find, striking up a good on-screen rapport with the formidable Pandit Goutham.