War 2 trailer review: Style, swag and jarring bikini moment in Hrithik-Jr NTR's film

India Today

3 days ago

The trailer for 'War 2' makes one thing clear right from the start: this film is all about the clash between Hrithik Roshan and Jr NTR. It's high on VFX, filled with stunning visuals and striking glamour, but also with a lot of whys. Why does it all feel so familiar? Why does it already seem like an overdose of everything - action, drama and spectacle? And why are we looking at an Indian Air Force officer being paraded in a bikini? Most importantly, why are we still excited about this?advertisement'War 2' is a part of YRF's growing spy universe. It has everything to make it a big-ticket entertainer: scale, ambition, and visual appeal. The trailer does justice to it. But, something doesn't add up in the middle of all that gloss.The trailer, right from the first scene, builds towards that one epic showdown - Hrithik vs Jr NTR. It sets the stage for a high-stakes battle, closely inspired by the Mahabharata-like moral complexities, where warriors from the same ideological family find themselves on opposing sides. As the trailer suggests, both Roshan and NTR play soldiers who are at loggerheads. These are soldiers shaped by different beliefs of what 'India First' means, and they seem willing to sacrifice everything - their pasts, futures, even themselves - to fight that one defining battle.
Visually, 'War 2' looks stylish from the word go. But are we in for a film that's all style and little substance? The trailer hints at a tone that feels at odds with the dignity associated with India's armed forces. The glamour, while cinematic, risks undermining the depth expected from the genre. Reducing an Indian Air Force officer to an object of gaze in a shiny bikini feels both jarring and unnecessary.The spy genre is not just about action set pieces and larger-than-life appeal. It's also, and in fact, more importantly, meant to grip, thrill and reflect by offering stories that are as layered as they are entertaining. It's a genre that can pay tribute to the silent, mostly unglamorous, courage of intelligence and defence personnel. It can unfold on the screen to show you something you didn't know before, and at the same time, acts like a tribute to our armed forces. 'War 2', at least from its trailer, seems more invested in surface gloss than its emotional depth.
Of course, it's too early to say whether 'War 2' will ultimately deliver on its promise. Trailers, you see, are only glimpses. But, it's not too late to observe that the film risks becoming a spectacle rather than a story. It seems to be chasing adrenaline over authenticity, and choosing scale all the way over everything else.All the extra gloss might look great on screen, but it may not be what the story truly needs. Whether 'War 2' can balance its cinematic ambition with the weight of its genre is something we'll only know on August 14. The film is hitting the screens as the big Independence Day release this year, and is directed by Ayan Mukerji.It also features Kiara Advani, Ashutosh Rana, Anil Kapoor, Shabir Ahluwalia in important roles.- EndsMust Watch
IN THIS STORY#Hrithik Roshan#Kiara Advani