The Skin I Live In
Nandini Ramnath, writing for the website Scroll.in, noted that "Moondram Pirai" contains elements common in Balu Mahendra's other films: "realism, evocative and naturalistic cinematography, strong performances, and psychosexual themes that drive the characters to make unusual and often tragic choices." Hari Narayan of "The Hindu" said Cheenu "looks like a melange of [John] Keats’ tragedy and [Sigmund] Freud’s psychoanalysis." Narayan explains the idea of Cheenu keeping Bhagyalaskhmi with him not only as an act of sympathy and love, but also with the intention to preserve her like a portrait. Narayan also states that the character, Robert Ledgard's attraction to Vera Cruz in the Spanish film "The Skin I Live In" (2011), is similar to Cheenu's attraction to Bhagyalakshmi. When Bhagyalakshmi recovers her memory and forgets him, Cheenu is hesitant to come back to his quiet existence, realising that in reality, dreams feel like its antithesis. Malathi Rangarajan of "The Hindu" considers the usage of a railway station in the climax scene to reflect the Tamil cinema trope of "Turning points, crucial interludes and significant twists" taking place in such places.