HIT: The 2nd Case (2022) :
Movie Review -
Sailesh Kolanu & Adivi Sesh's Team-Up Builds A Thrilling Follow-Up Out of A Boneless Script.
Sailesh Kolanu's "HIT: The First Case" came from nowhere to surprise audiences (including me). The extended compilation of CID episodes gathered a worthy watch for thriller lovers, and it also showed how good a writer Sailesh is. HIT: The Second Case may look like an amateur story, as you have certain expectations from a sequel-a burden that doesn't come with fresh films-but the storytelling, compelling segments, and fine performances by the cast lead you to a nice follow-up to the First Case.
HIT: The Second Case introduces you to a HIT (Homicide Investigation Team) officer Krishna Dev, aka KD (Adivi Sesh), who has a knack for catching criminals in no time. He is super sharp and fast at solving murder cases and is enjoying his live-in relationship with his girlfriend, Arya (Meenakshi Chaudhary). One particularly brutal case leaves him shattered, and the investigation goes wrong despite his and his team's brainstorming as they are on a hunt to catch a serial killer. Will KD manage to cover up the mistakes of the police department and get a hold of the serial killer, whom he once underestimated? Catch HIT 2 in cinemas near you to learn more.
HIT 2 is not a smart script like HIT: The First Case. The film opens with a flashback scene, and then you know it's gonna be used later in the film, which kills a major chunk of thrills for you. The script allows the killer to look safe till the end, and then multiple cliches in the climax portion force you to scratch your head over "the hero's mandatory victory." HIT 1 had a lot of twists on the killer's identity and kept us guessing till the end. Here, you don't feel like knowing the killer because there are no substitutes for it, even in a deceptive way. Usually, we have to wait for the killer to commit another murder so that the cops can link it and find more clues, whereas in HIT 2, the killer is somewhat like, already done with his job. However, the amateur thriller gets interesting in the second half, as the protagonist seems helpless and the killer starts looking better than him. He also ends up being right from his perspective. Thank God, there was no drunken protagonist or any personal trauma from his past. A sophisticated character always looks better than traumatic ones.
Adivi Sesh and the thriller genre seem to be enjoying an intimate relationship from the last 5-6 years. With "Kshanam" (2016), "Goodachari" (2018), "Evaru" (2019), and "Major" (2022), he has had a fantastic record in the thriller genre, and HIT: The Second Case keeps the chain intact. Touchwood! May he keep doing the same throughout his career, and we will never get bored seeing him in such intense roles. Except for the romantic parts with Meenakshi, there was nothing wrong with him. There was less scope for other characters, including the villain, but they have done quite well. Rao Ramesh, Suhas, Komalee Prasad, Posani Krishna Murali, Maganthi Srinath, Harsha Vardhan, Srikant Iyenger, and Tanikella Bharani look fine in whatever scenes they have.
HIT 2 would have been called a senseless sequel if it wasn't handled smartly by Shailesh Kolanu's direction. Like I said, he is a fantastic writer, so he knows how to sow the scenes. Being a writer helps him to analyse and visualise the scenes better. Here in HIT 2, he tries the old trick of deception, which somewhat works, but the ultimate destiny of the film lands safely because of basic vision. Watch out for the climax scene when KD takes a sarcastic yet logically profound laugh at the killer. Very few thrillers manage to play such mind games out of the blue. HIT: The Second Case is saved there, despite many loopholes in the screenplay. Sailesh could have removed music, romance, and media stuff to keep it more clean and vivid. Nothing is majorly wrong here, so yes, it can be recommended for thriller lovers and fans of HIT: The First Case. Now, get ready for the third case with Nani.
RATING - 6/10*
