SandaKozhi 2 Review - Passable but nothing striking enough!

Bharath Vijayakumar

For most part of the first half of SandaKozhi 2 there is a constant doubt lingering in our minds. Is this a spiritual sequel or are the events a continuation from the first part? A mention about Meera Jasmine much later does make things clear. But on the whole it is still difficult to call it a continuation from the first story. This is more like another mission that the father-son duo (Rajkiran and Vishal) has to accomplish.

The film gets into the primary conflict right away. Two factions are at war and Rajkiran takes on the onus to ensure the safety of one life that is in constant danger. The plot is wafer thin like most masalas. This isn't a real problem if you buy into the conflict at hand. This is where Lingusamy slips. The characters are one-dimensional. Again this isn't a big problem if you buy into their motives. This never happens in the film. And you know what? The character whose life is in constant danger and around whom the plot should revolve is used like a set property. He plays an aspiring collector but all we see him doing is wait for Vishal to save him everytime he is in danger. It is baffling to see scenes where this character stays standstill without any reflex action whatsoever even as sickle wielding men are a breath away.

The central conceit aside, Lingusamy does show glimpses of hope. The light-hearted scenes involving Keerthy Suresh for instance. While you can write them off as being silly, they actually do work to an extent. The actress sort of plays a character similar to what Meera Jasmine played in 2005. While this isn't rocket science, it certainly is some good writing as this explains why Vishal easily falls for her when you get to know he has been single for around 7 years. I also liked how this heroine never makes a fuss when she learns about the hero's identity. There is an obvious class difference here between the pair but it was refreshing to see that there wasn't even a scene or dialogue to register this as even a point worth pondering.

The acting all around is pretty neat. It is the characterisations that needed more depth. Varalaxmi for instance does look the part as the villain with her body language but she doesn't get much to do apart from carrying that terrorising look. Yuvan makes his presence felt in the BGM. The stunts too are pretty good - midway between being overblown and realistic. But the lead to all the action scenes are damp squibs.

In the first part the reveal about Vishal's identity was the key. But here the father-son duo look invincible right from the start that the entire film is a one sided battle except for the brief while before intermission. So there is no tension as such in the screenplay. Few stretches in the film make little sense. For instance Vishal lies to Keerthy in the second half for a greater good. After a few scenes he reveals the truth. But what was the point of hiding it earlier if there is no impact in revealing it.

Bottomline:

Sandakozhi 2 is passable. While there are no big lows there aren't any compelling highs either.

Rating: 2.5/5