Kick 2 Movie Review

Cast: Raviteja, Rakul Preeth Singh, Ravi Kishan and others

Directed by: Surender Reddy

Produced by: Nandamuri Kalyan Ram

Banner: NTR Arts

Music by: SS Thaman

Release Date: 21-08-2015

Rating:2.5/5

Kick is one of the finest films in Raviteja's career. It was remade in Hindi with Salman Khan that went on to become one of the biggest hits in Indian cinema history. Now Team Kick is back with second installment of the franchise. Surender also has plans to do Kick 3!

What is it about?
Kick's son Robinhood (Raviteja) looks for comfort in whatever he does. Somewhere in Bihar there is a village called Vilaspur. People of this village are tortured by Thakur (Ravi Kishan). They look for someone to come and put them out of their misery. Robinhood seems to like the right person to save them. But how can they convince Robinhood who is extremely selfish and doesn't pay heed to others problems? So the villagers execute a plan! 

Performances:
Raviteja:
Raviteja is at his energetic best. He excelled in comedy scenes and is equally good in action episodes. However care should have been taken on his styling and looks. Ultra lean look didn't suit him at all. He looked bad in the closeup shots.

Rakul Preeth and Others:
Rakul Preeth's good looks will please her fans. She did alright as an actress. Ravi Kishan is okay as the villain. Brahmanandam's comedy is routine but it works to an extent. Bollywood actors Sanjay Mishra and Rajpal Yadav made debut in Telugu with this film. They are okay within their limitations. Tanikella Bharani is over the top at times.

Technicalities:
Direction: Surender Reddy is known for making masala movies with good dose of fun. This is another formula film from Surender who has mastered the genre. There are few scenes that has shown his command over the formula and commercial elements. But his direction is uneven in this film. He had excelled in getting the right mix of emotions and entertainment in his previous film Race Gurram. He is certainly not at his best in doing the same for Kick 2.

Music and Others: Vakkantam Vamsi's script is half baked. He has taken too many liberties that logic goes for a toss. Dialogues are just okay. Cinematography is too good. Editing is not up to the mark. Music by SS Thaman stands out as an asset to the film. Peppy songs and interesting background score lifts the spirits. Production values are rich. 

Positives:Raviteja
Comedy
Music

Negatives:
Uneven Screenplay
Weak Script

Analysis:
Kick is a very popular film that has struck chord with the entertainment lovers. It is not entirely bad idea to make it a franchise. However the writer and director should have spent enough time on the script to repeat the success of Kick. The second edition of Kick has few moments here and there but fails to recreate the magic of the first one.           
Kick had a near perfect screenplay and had the right mix of everything that commercial cinema lovers look for. Kick 2 is an half baked attempt to cash in on the success of its predecessor. Thankfully Raviteja has put in lot of energy to save it from being a damp squib. Despite his best efforts and entertainment quotient Kick 2 suffered a lot due to poor writing and silly premise.
First half is entertaining in parts. Surender Reddy tried to make it an out and out entertainer by treating it in lighter tone. Vilaspur episodes are neither entertaining nor emotional. Few good scenes towards the end come as a welcome relief but that is not enough for the movie to raise above the mediocrity. Kick 2 will disappoint Kick fans but may seem average if you keep your expectations in check.