Viduthalai Part 2 Review – Watchable Cop Drama that Stumbles at Parts!
Viduthalai Part 2 Review – Watchable Cop Drama that Stumbles at Parts!
Viduthalai Part 2 Review – Watchable Cop Drama that Stumbles at Parts!
Ashwin Ram
Viduthalai 2 is a sequel to the yesteryear action drama starring Vijay Sethupathi and Soori in the lead roles. The film is directed by Vetrimaaran and the music is scored by Ilayaraja.
Premise:
After constable Soori arrested the rebel leader Vijay Sethupathi at the end of the first part. This one showcases Vijay Sethupathi’s early life into the violent world and also what happens after the cops take him into custody.
Writing/ Direction:
The detailing in the internal conflicts of the several aspects of the system is fascinating. The opening 40 minutes is solid, especially Ken Karunas’ action stretch is the major highlight. Post which the film goes deep inside Vijay Sethupathi’s character, the love angle between him and Manju Warrier was presented in an adorable manner, the conversation at the very end is meaningfully written too. There are many clap-worthy moments in terms of drama, relatable hierarchy shown commercially well. A major junk involving Politics before the interval is dry, and there are way too many talkie portions that land in a preachy manner. The interaction between Vijay Sethupathi and the cops raises a lot of questions. But the message-heavy monologues appearing in crucial shoot-out places are overwhelming, it does feel like a value education class at times. The backstory where the core subject lies barely creates any impact, the intention of the interval block is to give that high, and it falters as a bummer too. The present portions are far superior and a lot more interesting than the routes. The last 30 minutes is gripping and has many elements to cheer the crowd, the final act by Soori to be specific.
Performances:
Vijay Sethupathi shines in the romantic scenes more than anything, his star status is apt for him to play the ‘Vaathiyar’ character, but not really a memorable performance. On the other hand, despite getting way less screen time in this venture, Soori remains the soul of the story, his innocent yet mindful decisions are a banger. Chetan and Tamizh characters are written very well, they both get solid payoffs. Kishore has ample screen time, but he sadly gets ineffective scenes. Manju Warrier has a neat character arc from start to finish.
Technicalities:
Ilayaraja’s songs are pleasant like the first part. His background score helps the situations at many places, but the finesse is missing. Many gritty frames and night shots are presented well, unfortunately the colour grading has consistency issues. Scope for betterment was very much there at the edit, the repetitiveness in dialogues could have been easily avoided. Mid visuals effects work, and some technical decisions like the jitter effect are bothersome. Barring the action in the first reel, absolutely no freshness in the other fights and chases.
Bottomline
The Vetrimaaran stamp indeed exists, but not as strong as his previous works. Decently engaging and it is solely due to the cop drama and the internal conflicts within the system. The never ending socio-political talkie conversations are extremely dull.
Rating – 2.75/ 5
