Movie Name : Return of the Dragon
Release Date : February 21, 2025
Cast : Pradeep Ranganathan, KS Ravi Kumar, Gautham Vasudev Menon, Mysskin, Vj Siddhu, Harshath Khan, Anupama Parameshwaran, Kayadu Lohar, Mariam George, Indhumathy Manigandan, Thenappan etc.
Director : Ashwath Marimuthu
Music Director : Leon James
Andhrawatch.com Rating : 2.75/5
Story:
The story revolves around D. Raghavan, a bright student who tops his intermediate exams, earning a gold medal. However, when he musters the courage to confess his love, he faces rejection. The reason? His crush believes that “bad boys” are more appealing than studious, disciplined ones like him.
Determined to change his fate, Raghavan rebrands himself as Dragon in engineering college, adopting a rebellious persona. He dives headfirst into his new identity, prioritizing his image over academics. Dating Keerthi (played by Anupama Parameswaran), he completely neglects his studies, leading to an astonishing 48 backlogs.
Post-college, Dragon spends two years pretending to be employed while, in reality, doing nothing. His world shatters when Keerthi ends their relationship, stating that love alone isn’t enough—stability and success matter. Fueled by frustration and a burning desire to prove himself, he takes a risky shortcut—securing a fake degree to land a prestigious job. Surprisingly, his natural talent helps him thrive in the workplace. Soon, he gets engaged to Pallavi (Kayadu Lohar), a wealthy woman, and even receives a lucrative job offer from the United States. It seems like he’s finally achieved the life he always wanted.
But fate has other plans. Just when everything appears perfect, his strict college principal (played by Mysskin), who never saw eye-to-eye with him, re-enters his life with a shocking revelation. Adding to the turmoil, Keerthi unexpectedly returns, throwing his carefully built world into chaos.
What brings Keerthi and the principal back into his life? Will his forged degree be exposed? Can he still marry Pallavi, or will the past come back to haunt him? More importantly, will he ever clear his massive backlog of failures?
Review:
Return of the Dragon also highlights the dramatic change in Pradeep Ranganathan, who slips smoothly from an innocent, good-hearted person to a rebellious figure. His performance is restrained and engaging, skillfully getting onto the stage a determined youth who wishes to prove himself both in society as well as before the people whom he loves. Ranganathan’s presence before the camera and sense of comedic timing are superb, and he is a one-man show of the film.
Anupama Parameswaran supports Ranganathan with her charm and emotional performance, lending depth to the narrative. She is exceptional in her character, playing the role of a character who is part of the narrative. On the other hand, Kayadu Lohar brings glamour but does not get much chance to display her acting talent, her role being more of a visual attraction.
George Maryan, who plays the father, brings intense emotions to his role, giving the plot a lot of depth. Mysskin’s performance also lends weight to the movie, with his intense dialogues and presence leaving an impact. The supporting actors, including Gautham Vasudev Menon, also contribute to advancing the plot, although some characters could have been developed further.
The first half of the film provides good setup and character work, with smooth pacing that maintains the audience’s interest. The lead-up to the transformation of the protagonist is well done and compelling. The second half stumbles, bogged down by formulaic and long sequences that slow the film’s pace. The pre-climax and climax do return some much-needed urgency, helped along by good performances that make the scenes work.
Director Ashwath Marimuthu brings a modern theme, which involves how youth often go down the wrong path and suffer the fallouts. The topic has potential, but execution is lacking in certain aspects, particularly in terms of pacing and script. The narrative, at times, appears to be formulaic, and the runtime of the film could have been reduced for a neater outcome.
The score by Leon James adds youthful vigour to the movie, with peppy tunes and colourful visualisation that go well with the mood. His background score efficiently complements the emotional high points of the movie, and overall production quality is good.
Return of the Dragon has a solid premise and solid performances, but its plodding pace and repetitive scenes keep it from its full potential. While it adds emotional depth and youthful charm, tighter editing and a more engaging screenplay would have made it a more compelling experience.