BOTTOM LINE
A Poor Man’s Arundhati
RATING
2.25/5
CENSOR
A, 2h 30m
What Is the Film About?
Odela 2 resumes from where the first one ended. Tirupathi, the serial rapist-killer is given punishment even after his death. It led to more deaths, and eventually, Naga Sadhu Bhairavi sought to intervene and save the village.
Who is Bhairavi and how she saves Odela and its people from Tirupathi’s horror is the movie’s basic plot.
Performances
Tamannaah, seen after a long time in a direct Telugu movie, picks a unique role in Odela 2. She plays a Naga Sadhu and gets to do something different from her usual outings.
The character, unfortunately, doesn’t offer much for Tamannaah. While we expect the character to be ferocious especially in the clash sequences, her characterization looks passive and the performance is on similar lines as a result.
The ending sequence has her do a ferocious Act, but its impact is not entirely felt, much like the movie itself.
Hebah Patel, who was the main female lead in the previous part is relegated to an extended cameo kind of role. She appears during the pre-interval and pre-climax and is done with. There is nothing much to talk about her.
Analysis
Odela 2 has story, screenplay, writing and directorial supervision by Sampath Nandi. Ashok Teja is credited with directing the flick.
Odela 2 resumes post the events of the first part. The beginning, therefore, must not be missed. It’s enough to go ahead with Odela 2 if one has not seen the first part.
Coming to the actual content and movie itself. It feels highly repetitive and flimsy, with a focus more on gore and loudness instead of a well-knit story. The story seems non-existent. What we have is a series of gruesome incidents with titillating moments preceding it.
At the end of the first killing itself, one knows where Odela 2 is headed. The problem is the narrative takes ages to get there. We have two more kills and almost the entire first half before we reach the expected point of bringing Bhairavi (Tamannaah’s character) into play.
The interval frankly comes across as a relief due to the loud and tone-deaf dealing of the content. But, the introduction of the main theme around the intermission point gives some hope.
Sadly, the second half, too, follows the same pattern as the first, but in a different way. The face-off and subsequent sequences enhancing the evil power are good at an idea level, but they are not placed impactfully in the narrative.
What we have is one big block after another with escalating loudness. The result is a distancing watch rather than one getting immersed in the proceedings and feeling the pain and emotions of the people who are visibly undergoing huge trouble.
The divine angle, too, goes through the same issues. There is extreme subjection of torture, but it never permeates through to the viewer. Everything is felt from a distance.
And before we think anything else, the movie reaches a predictable end. We have many films in the recent past that have a sequel bait at the end, but none might be as anti-climactic as the one we have here. It practically makes the whole movie seem useless.
There is a lot of detailing in the processes of carrying out rituals or explaining the various religious things. One can see the effort in them. But, when they are not put in the service of the story, the result lacks the impact. Odela 2 is a prime example of such a case.
Overall, Odela 2 is a different beast compared to the first part, with more focus on gloss than in the actual story. Its premise of good vs evil offered potential like an Arundhati but the content lacks the emotional and divine appeal that it tries so hard.
Performances by Others Actors
Vasishta N Simha plays the antagonist. He is a tortured soul and goes on to wreak havoc on Odela’s people by turning pure evil. It’s a good character arc, but we don’t feel that way, as it never comes across like that. Vasishta goes over the top in every scene he gets and gets on the nerves pretty quickly.
Murali Sharma is undone due to a weekly written part that appears on and off. Srikanth Iyengar and others are alright, but have nothing to do after the initial few sequences.
Music and Other Departments?
Ajneesh Lokesh provides the music for Odela 2. There are no songs in the movie in the traditional sense. They come as part of the narrative and are okay. The music director is taken for his background score, and he delivers on that count. It is superb making a hat trick of sorts for him. His previous works in similar spaces were Virupaksha and Mangalavaram.
Technically, Odela 2 is an improvement over the first part. Soundararajan redeems himself for the weak work on Odela. The editing could have been a bit sharper though. The writing is okay carrying the Sampath Nandi mark throughout. The visual effects bring a tacky vibe to the proceedings.
Highlights?
BGM
Setup
Detailing In Parts (Related to Rituals and God)
Drawbacks?
Loudness
Flimsy Story
Length
No Emotional Connection
Did I Enjoy It?
Only Few Parts
Will You Recommend It?
Yes, only to those who like the religious stuff and don’t mind the story
Odela 2 Movie Review by M9
