Charlie Chaplin 2 movie cast: Prabhudheva, Prabhu, Nikki Galrani, Adah Sharma
Charlie Chaplin 2 movie director: Sakthi Chidambaram
Charlie Chaplin 2 movie rating: One and a half stars
Tamil cinema witnessed a maximum number of sequels in the past two years namely — Kalakalappu 2, Sandakozhi 2, Goli Soda 2, Tamizh Padam 2, Velaiyilla Pattathari 2, Saamy Square, Chennaiyil Oru Naal 2 and Thiruttu Payale 2 among others.
But why make a sequel when you know it’s not an improved version of the original? Charlie Chaplin 2, a wasted sequel, is carelessly written with a bad screenplay and outdated ‘jokes’.
I didn’t know Charlie Chaplin (2002) was the “first Indian film to be officially remade in six languages” until a friend pointed out. But this sequel has no connection to the original except Prabhudheva, Prabhu and of course, Sakthi Chidambaram directing both.
The film starts off with a scene where a group of friends lose their way. Then there’s this unwanted fight sequence between Prabhudheva and a villain-like-guy. Next, the narrator RJ Shiva takes you through the characters. When Prabhudheva appears on the screen, the voiceover says, “romba varushama avaruku adhe vayasu dhan” (for the longest time his age has been the same). Your quintessential heroes in Tamil cinema don’t age. Get that?
Again, you’re expected to laugh when the voiceover says, “kadhailaye ivar dhan weight aana character.” (No, they’re not talking about veteran actor Prabhu, rather how important his role is to the story). Isn’t it funny? If not, there’s another ‘joke’. Prabhu calls his son-in-law ‘maro’. Why ‘maro’? (brother – ‘bro’, marumagan – ‘maro’). Thiru (Prabhudheva) works in a matrimonial site and falls for Sara (Nikki Galrani). He drunk texts her a few days before their marriage but wants to erase the message. How he does that and what happens eventually forms the rest of the story.
How on the earth this film was given a “clean U certificate” when laced with insensitive dialogues and body shaming-jokes that objectifies a female actor? Also, Sakthi Chidambaram thinks it’s funny to make ‘jokes’ on a gay person. That’s what Tamil cinema usually does, right? It’s a ‘trend’ that’s followed in films like Iruttu Arayil Murattu Kutthu. At least, that was promoted as an “adult comedy!”
Coming back to the story… The audience is being told that they can’t delete a WhatsApp message permanently, and there are time limitations to it. Seriously? The director can’t think of a story, okay. But can’t he even think of packaging his films without the basic factual errors? The story revolves around WhatsApp, and it’s an irony that the makers didn’t know how the platform really works.
Charlie Chaplin 2 would have worked had it been sharper with a strong story to tell. If only the director knew how to tell one and where to stop.
