The much awaited "Jailer 2" hit the screens last Thursday & the box office has gone absolute bonkers as expected. The trailer & music track did create a hype prior to the release and with a couple of fresh cameos already promised, it remained to be seen whether the hype was real or whether it will die down within a couple of days. So how did I feel about it???
As in the prequel, Nelson has penned the script with the events in this happening three months later. Muthuvel Pandian (Rajini) & his family had moved to a new place with the former taking up the job of a supervisor at a local supermarket. However, his family who were unaware that Muthuvel had killed his corrupt son failed to come to terms with the loss. Due to an issue that props up, Muthuvel ends up being the driver of Moorthi (Namo Narayana), a local gangster. At the same time, Varman's friend & associate, Dileep (Suraj Venjaramood) was in search for the former's killer. Interestingly, Moorthi gets manipulated by Muthuvel to link up with Dileep via Vimal (Yogi Babu). So what was Tiger's plan???
The main aspect that I like about Nelson's flicks is his ability to marry mass moments with dark humour and it was showcased in full glory in the first half. There were both goose bump whistle worthy moments as well as hilarious sequences headed by Namo Narayana. The story is fast paced and we are treated to an exhilarating interval block. However, the second half deviates from this template with action sequences taking centre stage. There is no doubt that it is well executed but really wish that Nelson had paid more attention to the characterisation.
In the first part, the cameos had relevance with Lalettan & Sivanna providing gravitas to the sequences with their aura and style. But over here, there were reduced to side-kicks rather than an equal with Rajini shown as the all supreme. Similarly, the Kalpak family lacked the menace while Varman had it which made the face off in the prequel more impactful. On the technical side, Anirudh was brilliant & elevated the scenes with his music, Vijay Kartik Kannan's cinematography was impressive and the action choreography deserves praise.
This is an all out Rajini show & the veteran legend yet again proved for the umpteenth time that he is undoubtedly one of the biggest superstars that we ever had. Suraj did utmost justice to his part as he balanced the menacing nature and subtle humour. Namo Narayana absolutely rocked the first half with Yogi Babu & Kottayam Naseer doing their parts aptly. Coming to most of the Kalpak family, Mithun Chakravarthy, Vidya Balan, S J Suryah & Hakim Shahjahan were all fine, but they definitely suffered with not so well written parts. As for the cameos, even though Hrithik was given a stylish entry, it would be fair to say that his girl's team rocked the show while he was barely utilised. Similarly, Sivanna was reduced to a pawn while Lalettan was barely present.
Verdict: It is undoubtedly a mass masala that surely entertains & that is already seen in the box office collections with it likely to breach 400C before the end of the weekend. But in terms of the characterization and the utilization of artists, this one significantly lags behind. Hope the third part takes care of this!!!
Rating: 3/5
Regards...Ben
