Director Kalyan Shankar’s follow-up to his 2023 comedy “Mad” is neither fun nor funny. Titled “Mad Square,” with square as in the algebraic expression, the Telugu film is supposed to multiply with itself. It is understandably an effort at exaggerating the entertainment quotient of the sequel. With a string of bland, repetitive gags coming one after another, “Mad Square” is one flat joke. There is very less to feel entertained by, but a whole lot to be ‘mad’ about. To quote Math, instead of raising to the power of two, the film should have subtracted itself from itself.
The sequel places itself some four years after the events of the first film. With a nod towards the engineering college setup of the first film, “Mad Square” shows a band of engineering students being taken to a high-security prison. It is baffling why those students, possibly taken in for unruliness or some petty misdemeanor, are thrown in together with hardened criminals. But it is not that kind of movie. So, this Reacher-like setup is simply a plot device to throw a curveball towards the audience of the first film. Through the eyes of these engineering boys, we find Laddu (Vishnu Oi) is in jail. So, it piques your interest to see the beloved character from the first film, the friend of the ‘MAD’ gang, in jail.
Like a buddy comedy where things escalate chaotically and friendship is tested, a la “The Hangover,” “Mad Square” shows a character in significant trouble. It then backtracks to show us how exactly they got into that. Like “The Hangover” (once again), an eccentrically unhinged gangster plays a pivotal role. Written by Director Kalyan Shankar, the story is a haywire mess. It puts Manoj (Ram Nitin), Ashok (Narne Nithiin), and Damodhar (Sangeeth Sobhan), the original ‘MAD’ lads, outside of the college campus at the gateway to adult life. And it is quite clear none of them are ready for it.
The biggest problem with “Mad Square” is that it is stuck in a loop of one particularly unfunny joke, like a ludicrous “Black Mirror” episode. It begins with Laddu’s marriage getting called off on the account of his bride eloping with another guy on the day of the wedding. So, Laddu’s friends, our MAD boys, take him to Goa to cheer him up. However, they bring up his failed marriage to almost every topic. Kalyan Shankar must have thought this to be an excellent place to dig up humor. Except it never has any life to begin with. Every time a joke his cracked at Laddu’s marriage’s expense, I can only think of “The Simpsons” meme: “Stop, it is already dead.” But “Mad Square” keeps on flogging the dead horse.
I am not unaware of the structure and the style of Telugu masala entertainer. Of course, we will have intros after intros for every character. Of course, we will have impromptu, well-choreographed dance numbers. It is not something I disdain. On the contrary, some of the better moments of the film come from its traditional potboiler elements.
For example, the inept police officer is introduced with him fumbling with the cool signature of lighting a cigarette. One of the funnier moments of the film comes when Laddu takes his head out of the car window, like Joker in “The Dark Knight,” only to be smashed by a beer bottle. But the film struggles with its dated jokes and stale skits. Some of the jokes are too old to be termed ‘WhatsApp forwards.’ ‘SMS forwards’ would be the best way to describe them.
Sangeeth Sobhan as the cocky “Damodhar” is perhaps the saving grace among the cast. The film demands a lot of slapstick comedy. Sobhan and Oi (Laddu) seem to suit them most. Veteran actor Sunil as the unhinged gangster who abhors any advice is the best part of the film. There are some genuine laughs to be had when he refuses to beat up the boys, like a villain should, just because his uncle advises him to do so. Amidst the sea of weird gags and sadly unimpressive skits, Sunil’s Maxx has five or six minutes of chuckle-worthy moments. For a film like this, that is a lot. And that says a lot about “Mad Square.”
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