When you head to a Vetrimaaran movie, you expect a 10/10 banger—nothing less. Let’s be honest: since Polladhavan, he has consistently delivered top-notch movies. With a stunning first part, my hopes were at an all-time high for this one. But there was also a fear, from the interviews, that this might be a film where political ideologies take center stage, leaving emotional connection and character arcs behind. Unfortunately, one’s worst fears come true.
In Part 1, you see the story from Kumaresan’s point of view. You relate to him, travel with him, and feel his journey. It left you pumped, gutted, and in awe, eagerly waiting for the next part. In this part, Vijay Sethupathi’s backstory starts off well, with a well-made Ken Karunas episode. But soon, too many things are conveyed incoherently via dialogues, laced with heavy political discussions that feel preachy at times. We couldn’t emotionally connect with Vaathiyar’s journey, and why he became Vaathiyar lacks a strong punch.
The interval also falls flat due to this missing emotional depth. Things improve in the second half as we shift back to the present and return to Soori’s point of view. This half had more memorable and impactful scenes, providing a fitting conclusion to the saga. However, several arcs and plot points are left incomplete. The biggest gap among them is what happened to Thamizharasi. The love track, which was so beautifully portrayed in the first part, is straight-up abandoned in this part, which came across as a letdown from Vetrimaaran.
As always with Vetri’s films, the movie is technically sound. The cinematography and set design were commendable, but the makeup and hairstyling were subpar, reminiscent of school cultural drama wigs. Ilayaraja’s songs were good, but the background score didn’t tonally match the movie. This was especially evident during the interval block, which needed a strong elevation but fell face-first into the ground like the pannaiyars. The acting was top-notch.
Vijay Sethupathi and Soori were, as usual, impressive. However, Chetan, much like in the first part, dominated every scene he appeared in and can be termed as the MVP. Ken Karunas made a solid impression in his brief 10-minute role.
The “right wing” in Tamil Nadu is in for a surprise as one of the popular faces on YouTube and several other platforms makes a cameo appearance in the film.
The movie is undoubtedly an engaging watch that leaves you with a lot of questions and educates you. However, with Vetrimaaran at the helm, one hopes for something greater. This can be termed as his weakest work so far.
Bottomline: Viduthalai 2 tires you a bit with excessive information and ideological exposition but is still a good, impactful watch with plenty of takeaways.
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