‘Jailer 2’ movie review: Rajinikanth’s flourishes elevate Nelson’s rousing herogasm

Over the last two decades, numerous filmmakers have attempted to make the defining superstar film. While 2010s films, like Petta, celebrated Rajinikanth in all his glory, the demands of the pan-Indian cinema market and a more action-weary, fidgety audience in the post-streaming era have reshaped what makes a quintessential Rajini film in the 2020s. Director Nelson’s 2023 hit Jailer understood that formula (even if it was far from perfect) so intrinsically that it wouldn’t be far-fetched to call this style of mass masala filmmaking a definitive sub-genre tailored for its larger-than-life superstar.

The allure of the first Jailer film might seem straightforward at first — it had a Baashha-esque no-frills plotline peppered with fan service and cameos from stars across the Indian film industry. But what truly worked in its favour was how on-brand it was for Nelson; other than banking on the dark humour he is known for (and Breaking Bad-inspired ideas), Jailer was a pitch-perfect union of Nelson’s penchant for underplaying the protagonist and modern-day Rajinism, which requires sober storytelling and verisimilitude. All shenanigans transpire only around the titular Jailer, Tiger Muthuvel Pandian. While Rajini thrives in narratively earned moments of heroism, the villains and secondary characters do much of the heavy lifting, both in narrative and in mass elevation.

In Jailer 2, Nelson almost perfects this masala cinema formula. The prescription once again has invisible snipers punctuating the screen on cue like a well-placed Anirudh Ravichander motif, crowds of henchmen getting reduced to a pool of flesh and blood in minutes, and amidst all of that, Tiger Muthuvel Pandian going about his life as if he isn’t the man who is already plotting Plan Z. And Nelson doesn’t wish to hide that he’s working with the template — the sequel begins with a carbon-copy scene that kickstarted the first film. Dhileep (Suraj Venjramoodu), furious that he is unable to find the man who murdered his friend Varman (Vinayakan; the character died at the end of Jailer), tortures and kills his own men for their incompetence. Of course, a bigger whale, Bodhi Kalpak (SJ Suryah), is breathing down Dhileep’s neck to get the job done.

Meanwhile, our man-with-a-past lives a quiet life in a hillside town with his wife (Ramya Krishnan), their grandson Rithvik and their daughter-in-law (Mirnaa Menon). A chance encounter with a local municipality officer cascades into trouble, which is when you realise that Dhileep wasn’t the one searching for Jailer; Jailer had been fishing for the statue-smuggling syndicate all along.

Nelson takes pleasure in making the plot revolve around Rajini. In a spectacular scene set on a bridge, Muthuvel shows what he could do with just a slight move of his glasses. But theatre halls are bound to erupt when this tiger roars — like in a rousing scene inside a tea shop in which Nelson goes the traditional route to unleash ‘saviour Rajini.’

Now, Rajini doing Rajini should hardly surprise one, and Jailer 2 fabulously comes into its own in the interstices between these moments. An in-form Nelson works humour with such precision and conviction that you almost wish these characters (most of whom are played by Nelson regulars) appeared more often. In the first Jailer film, Yogi Babu’s Vimal played the innocent stooge who fell for Muthuvel’s ‘family man’ act and, when he realised what was happening, was already into the thick of it. Vimal’s counterpart in the sequel is Namo Narayana’s Moorthy, and every scene with him leaves you in splits. In fact, the scenes featuring Moorthy, Vimal and Bjorn Surrao’s character might single-handedly carry Jailer 2 over the mark.

Humour is one thing, but Nelson seems to have retained and improved aspects that were effective in the first film. Beyond all of its sensational beats, Jailer was also a unique family drama about a man who is forced to kill his own son. And Jailer 2 takes off from this emotional core and weaves a strong sentimental arc that anchors the storyline — especially in the second half, where the film follows its larger ambitions. At the very beginning, we see Muthuvel and his family still recovering from Arjun’s death, with the latter’s wife seeming to be the most affected. Protecting the family — who are already vulnerable — becomes Muthuvel’s paramount concern. But Muthuvel (interestingly, the audience too) seems to have forgotten a key detail from the first film that hits home, and nothing prepares you for this moment when it arrives.

This is also why Jailer 2 doesn’t seem like a cash grab banking on its predecessor’s glory; it’s a proper sequel written with intent. If not for plot points, many little pleasures — like a character taking a tissue at a specific moment or one in which a weapon hidden under a vehicle’s seat is used — find great callbacks in the sequel.

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Similarly, Shivarajkumar, whose cameo in Jailer single-handedly boosted its theatrical run, finds more narrative purpose in the sequel. Jailer finally resembles a fictional world where these superstars are simply friends. Speaking of cameos and world-building, Mohanlal and Jackie Shroff, unfortunately, get even less screen space this time, but one special cameo in the second half by a former co-star of Rajinikanth guarantees a herogasm. Vidya Balan’s Kantha Kalpa doesn’t make much of an impression, though the character shows future promise.

And one can only call Jailer 2 an almost perfect version of the formula, except for a few niggles. The film could have done without the two item dance sequences; the first one (‘Ala Bolelo’) hinders the film’s momentum, and the song, too, feels like a sore spot in Anirudh’s otherwise satisfying album. Post-intermission blues plague the sequel as well; a scene set at a birthday party in Goa looks effective on paper but loses steam in execution.

But all these complaints hardly spoil what is otherwise a smooth, entertaining film. And watching an ensemble of stars play ball for a 75-year-young superstar is simply superb — as the dialogue goes, “frame-ah paarunga ji.” After 172 films, Rajinikanth owning the frames is old news, but watching the increasingly frail, ageing star give his all in every scene — and still with his signature swag and style — is surely inspiring (Neelambari’s dialogue comes to mind). But, as has been the case with Rajini films of late, Jailer 2 also reminds you that the superstar can no longer fight, dance, and move like before. This film, for instance, doesn’t feature him dancing at all, and one wonders if this is the Rajinikanth — one who has to underplay his strengths — we might see for the rest of his career.

Jailer 2 ends with a hint at a possible third film. Whether the Jailer template could sustain one more film, we can’t say yet. After all, before the first Jailer film, audiences had written off Nelson as a one-trick pony. But Jailer 2, especially, is proof of a serious filmmaker at the helm, who is also, incidentally, the funniest. Spotting this talent and trusting him to direct such a massive project — not once but twice — is another move only Rajini can make. In thalaivar we believe.

Jailer 2 is currently running in theatres