‘Dude’ Movie Review: Pradeep Ranganathan’s Comic Energy Drives This Romantic Entertainer Through Cracks of Its Contrived Screenplay (LatestLY Exclusive)

Dude Movie Review: Pradeep Ranganathan, who has already built a loyal fanbase with Love Today and Dragon, seems to be taking over the space once ruled by Thalapathy Vijay and Dhanush in the 2000s and early 2010s - the zone of breezy, emotional romantic entertainers. That streak continues with Dude, where Ranganathan once again dominates the frame. He can do comedy, action, and emotion with equal ease, and his self-aware style makes even exaggerated scenes work. He grimaces, grins, has a showy set of hand gestures (borrowed from Thalapathy) and delivers one-liners with spite - and somehow still makes you smile. ‘Dude’: CBFC Clears Keerthiswaran’s Pan-Indian Film for Release With U/A Certificate.

But Dude, written and directed by Keerthiswaran, also sees him tapping into a now-familiar territory - the 'sympathetic heartbroken single man' space, designed to appeal to the emotional instincts of young men who see heartbreak as heroism. While the film is intermittently funny, it falters when it tries to find emotional depth in its melodrama.

'Dude' Movie Review - The Plot

Ranganathan plays Agan, a man perpetually unlucky in love who runs an event management company that organises elaborate surprises and prank-based celebrations. Working with him is Kural (Mamitha Baiju), daughter of the State Dairy Minister Athiyamaan Azhagappan (R Sarathkumar) - and also Agan’s maternal cousin. And yes, she’s in love with him.

Watch the Trailer of 'Dude':

When Agan rejects Kural’s marriage proposal, she leaves for Bengaluru to pursue higher studies. But her absence makes him realise he loves her too, and he soon approaches her father to propose marriage. As both families begin preparations, Kural returns with a shocking revelation that turns Agan’s world upside down.

'Dude' Movie Review - A Shaky First Half That Begins to Hold Well Before Interval

Like Dragon, Dude is a full-fledged Pradeep Ranganathan showcase, and the opening sequence sets the tone - Agan gate-crashes his ex-girlfriend’s wedding, creating chaos in a scene that perfectly demonstrates Pradeep’s physical comedy chops (his Jackie Chan-esque chair climb deserves a mention). His expressive body language, impeccable comic timing, and self-deprecating charm make him immensely watchable. At the same time, it also displays the immaturity of his character through his attention-seeking antics. Something that is sustained ahead, but we need to see it as cute.

Before Kural’s return from Bengaluru, the film treads on shaky ground. The 'maama ponnu' (cousin romance) trope should have been retired long ago, but family-approved incest feels a minor issue in the plot compared to the rest. The bigger problem is how easily avoidable the drama feels - the entire film hinges on characters refusing to communicate. A mother hides from her son the real reason for a family feud. A woman proposes without asking if the man’s interested. A man pushes for marriage without speaking to the bride. It is this annoying lack of communication that creates most of the mess, and theby heavily impact the emotional factor of the film.

Because of this, the emotional weight never quite lands. The relationship between Agan and Kural feels thinly sketched, more told than shown. Even the supporting characters, like Agan’s friend Lux (Dravid Selvam), come across as immature. His constant guilt-tripping of both Agan and Kural feels grating and unnecessary - the film confuses emotional manipulation for emotional depth.

'Dude' Movie Review - Trying to Sail Two Boats at Same Time

Dude tries hard to appear progressive. Agan occasionally drops solid lines - there is a line where he downplays the significance given to the matrimonial thread and says it is the girl's feelings behind it that should be given more importance, or how it’s fine for a woman to reject a man if her feelings change. Bravo. The film even touches upon caste discrimination, honour killings, and patriarchal pressures that take away a woman's assertion. Double bravo.

But for every step forward, it takes two back. The “maama ponnu” love angle remains unchallenged. The guilt complex around rejecting someone’s affection persists. There’s even a sequence where a woman is okay with choosing death over dialogue. Add to that a few scenes where a bonding manifests through slaps and scolding, and Dude becomes a contradictory mix of woke intentions and regressive tropes.

'Dude' Movie Review - The Comic Scenes Save The Film

That said, the film finds its groove around the interval. The wedding sequence leading up to it - complete with twists, a new character reveal, and some smartly written comedy - is the best stretch of the movie. Pradeep’s comic timing is on full display here; his reaction shots are priceless.

The second half brings more complications, more revelations, and plenty of familiar déjà vu. Ranganathan’s Agan often feels like a spiritual successor to Vijay’s sacrificial, lovesick hero from Shajahan or Dhanush’s emotionally wounded romantic in Yaaradi Nee Mohini, the former more than the latter. That's evident in several of the emotional scenes.

However, once Dude moves into its emotional beats, the film begins to feel shaky again - largely because of how it handles the relationship between Agan and Kural. Their bond already lacked a strong emotional foundation, while the narrative tries hard to make us empathise with Agan’s sacrificial nature. The scenes attempt to give Kural more depth as a character, but never truly allows her the space to explore it.

The roadside conversation scene, where Kural decides she cannot forsake Agan’s happiness, should have landed with far more emotional weight. Instead, it feels flat - a result of how contrived the writing makes this relationship seem.

The finale predictably shifts gears into hero mode - Pradeep gets his action beats, delivers a few sermonising lines, and wraps things up with a conveniently redeemed villain. It’s functional, but lacks conviction. What's annoying is that the way Dude ends in trying to give everyone a happy ending, it seems it has not learnt its own lessons.

'Dude' Movie Review - The Performances and Music

Despite its flaws, Dude works well as a Pradeep Ranganathan vehicle. His charm, energy, and knack for humour hold the film together. Mamitha Baiju handles the emotional beats with grace, even when her character’s writing lets her down. R Sarathkumar is convincing as the authoritative yet conflicted father.

All We Imagine as Light and Bad Girl actor Hridhu Haroon shines in his introduction scene, especially in how he conveys his character’s enthusiastic nature. However, in the second half, despite having decent screen time, his presence feels more peripheral - often lingering in the background while the lead hero takes centre stage. Rohini, as Agan’s mothe,r is underused. Neha Shetty has a three-scene cameo as Agan's ex, and she is decent. Satya, as her husband is entertaining despite limited screentime.

As for the much-hyped musical debut of Sai Abhyankkar (whose earlier work was in Malayalam cinema’s Balti), the soundtrack is middling. The songs are passable, the background score occasionally lifts key moments - particularly in the pre-interval stretch - but overall, the music doesn’t leave a strong impression.

'Dude' Movie Review - Final Thoughts

For all its energy and charm, Dude keeps tripping over its own mixed messaging, torn between being mature and still sticking to outdated tropes it pretends to challenge. Pradeep Ranganathan’s comic energy keeps the engine running and the movie has its stretches where it really entertains, but the storytelling feels too contrived, too familiar, and too afraid to grow up.

(The opinions expressed in the above article are of the author and do not reflect the stand or position of LatestLY.)

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Oct 17, 2025 02:03 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).