War 2 (2025) Review!!

Synopsis – Major Kabir Dhaliwal returns to combat a new threat to the nation in a perilous undercover mission.

My Take – The hype was understandable, after all War (2019) was an awesome stylish, adrenaline-pumping success story that set new standards for Hindi action thrillers and re-affirmed Hrithik Roshan‘s Greek god status.

And as it was evident from the marketing material, the action-laden sequel, which also acts as a latest entry in the sprawling YRF Spy Universe, clearly not just aimed for high-octane thrills and international polish, but was also upping the ante by adding N. T. Rama Rao Jr. (in his much-anticipated Hindi debut) into the mix as the film’s key selling point.

Unfortunately, director Ayan Mukerji’s restlessly-mounted action thriller ends up being generic at best. Instead of being a tight, compelling spy thriller, the film unfolds as a cluttered and uneven spectacle, weighed down by a convoluted plot, poor VFX, and a surprising lack of emotional engagement.

Sure, it keeps you hooked for its 173 minutes run time with its cinematic grandeur and contains enough moments to warrant a watch, but it also struggles significantly with its narrative, losing its grip, particularly in the second half. Making it not just fall short of the action-packed legacy of its predecessor, but also result in the weakest film of the franchise.

Taking place 5 years after the events of the first film, the story once again follows Kabir (Hrithik Roshan), the fabled Indian undercover agent who has been masquerading as a rogue private mercenary, all in order to infiltrate Kali Cartel, a powerful criminal syndicate comprising members from India and its neighboring countries, aiming to control the Indian government.

But when he does, in order to prove his loyalty, Kabir’s first assignment turns out to be assassination of Colonel Luthra (Ashutosh Rana), his mentor. An act which not only puts him in cross-hairs with his former lover & Luthra’s daughter, Wing Commander Kavya (Kiara Advani), but also makes him the target of Major Vikram Chelapathi (N. T. Rama Rao Jr.), a duty-bound officer, who is as deadly and skilled as Kabir.

Indeed, the film’s visual spectacle is its primary focus. The action sequences are undoubtedly impressive in scale, and the production design is lavish. However, its dedication to grandeur seems to come at the expense of a well-developed and compelling story. The sequel simply lacks the emotional depth needed to make the high stakes truly resonate with the proceedings on screen.

The issue with script, from Shridhar Raghavan (War, Pathaan), is its simplistic reading of the conflict. The antagonist here is born bitter, a readymade rebel whose survival instincts mutate into no-borders bigotry. On the other hand, Kabir and his mentor’s old-school love for the country is more theoretical than practical.

In its strongest moments, the film presents some fun musical frolic between Kabir and Vikram, played by two of Indian cinema’s best dancers. However, the 70s-style backstory aimed at a last-minute grasp at class-centric themes, speaks to how lacking the central story, and its telling, truly are.

What’s more surprising is that despite being billed as one of the most expensive films ever made in Hindi cinema’s history, the VFX work is quite poor. Almost every frame in the film has some sort of green screen element, which just takes out the conviction from the film. There is this sequence in the beginning where a car is being driven on the top of a train, and a lot of drama is happening. The performance of the actors is such that they have no clue about the end result of the CGI-generated footage.

Six entries deep, Yash Raj ought to be aiming for better scripts not just scale, if they want their various star-led films to meaningfully cross over in the future.

Performance wise, Hrithik Roshan, as one would expect, turns in a predictably charismatic turn. The film is basically drooling over him. Unsurprising, considering how his effortless screen presence, graceful action choreography, and simmering intensity anchors the film whenever the narrative begins to wobble—which, regrettably, happens often.

Jr. NTR has his moments of strength, particularly in solo sequences that showcase his physicality and command, but in ensemble scenes, especially those laden with dramatic weight or over-the-top action, the Telugu superstar appears to be struggling.

Kiara Advani is decent enough, considering the most she has to do is the usual glamor showcasing. But in supporting roles, Anil Kapoor and Ashutosh Rana provide the welcome counterweight to the chaos. On the whole, ‘War 2‘ is a muddled high-octane action sequel that is watchable throughout but never quite finds its footing.