Change Your Image
spruthvi35
Ratings
Most Recently Rated
Reviews
2.0 (2018)
Good Story plus Extraordinary Technicalities = 2.0
Story:
A fifth force, a force that is scientifically alien and has no proper definition is all over the city of Chennai and is pulling away phones and cell-phones alone. The super scientist Vasikaran (Rajni) is summoned along with all big shots of the government to pursue this evil force which has allegedly killed people too. So, as we all know, Vasi brings back Chitti to find a solution. But, why is 2.0 called for? What is such a need? Is all for us to see, in 3D ONLY.
Screenplay:
Not a minute wasted. No unnecessary intro songs or elevation scenes. Nothing. Shankar sir simply jumps into the film right away and before you realise, the intermission's here. The first half is solid and is superbly paced, but as and when we realise the back story of the fifth force, we generally assume a conclusion which surprisingly isn't challenged by Shankar, which is disappointing. He could've done much more with the story, but he gives that away for the VFX galore he planned for us. The emotional punch Robo, its prequel, carried was way more in terms of magnitude than this one did. Bulliguvva song had so much potential but wasn't used to its full.
Direction:
He is the master of visionary filmmaking in India. He just takes his imagination to the next level in this one. The final home-run he hits in the very climax is so very unexpected and is such a touch of pure genius! God level visuals, easily surpasses many many Hollywood films. Had he handled the story in the way he handled the VFX, this film would've beaten any film in the world.
Music:
I don't have much to say here, which might be because the score was mostly a background thing in this film. And as said by Shankar sir himself, ARR is more abstract in scoring for scenes and thus we seldom find a solid continuity from scene to scene, but the relevance of each track to its respective image is present anyhow. Keeping the BGM away, there's no need to talk about the 3 songs. Just go listen to them if you haven't already.
Cinematography:
To bring a director's imagination straight from his head onto a silver screen is a tough task in itself. And if the director is Shankar sir, then this very task has just become impossible. But all thanks to Mr.Nirav Shah, he just pulled such a magnanimous task with ease. Such craft he brings to his frames. Wow. There are few instances where you can feel the jitters in the framing and wobbling of the camera, which might be due to the lack of backup stock footage or due to after effects from the post-production VFX works. And there are also instances where you can see the CGI being way too unreal, but we need to cut them some slack there, for the amount of VFX here is manyfold greater than any average Indian film and it will take time for the VFX here in India to evolve to a Pixar standard.
Performances:
Amy Jackson has done a decent job. Akshay Kumar had more of a virtual portrayal here. He acted really well as the antagonist, but it only shows in a few instances only for the rest of it is shrouded in heavy VFX. It is unnecessary of me to talk about Thalaivar, but one this is for sure, he just fired up the canvas as Chitti, after 8 long years!
Production Design:
Right from Muthuraj, the production designer, and Mary Vogt, the costume designer, to the 100s of crew members who worked hard for making this film appear in the way we see it today, kudos to each and every one of them. They did good, Real good. Shankar sir is so adamant that even for a 40 secs sequence, he literally made them build real sized army tankers and bunkers. That's really nuts! And also shows how much the producers believe in this man and his vision! Hat's off!
Final say:
If you wish to see a really good, Indian made 3D film with generous and entertaining servings of VFX, then go watch it. It raises concern about a really relevant social issue too. Kids will definitely love it. Watch it in 3D ONLY.
Rating: 7/10
Aravindha Sametha Veera Raghava (2018)
Trivikram Srinivas proves yet again that such impeccable writing is possible only when it comes from his pen.
Story:
The story solely revolves around how Aravinda becomes the only answer to various questions and implausible problems that Veera Raghava faces in his post-traumatic quest of finding oneself. This is probably Trivikram's best writing of female characters in his films. Though this film does not wipe out all the criticism against him in this regard, it does until a certain extent.
Screenplay:
Guruji wastes no times at all. Right from the heart pounding opening sequence up until the exhilarating conclusion, with each act he keeps taking the movie a notch higher. The character arc of Raghava is really fascinating to watch as it is kinda first time in TFI that this type of a factionist's portrayal has taken shape. Whenever possible, guruji hasn't hesitated to add few sparkles of his own comic relief and boy did they seep in seamlessly! The only biggest disappointing aspect of the film is the complete misplacement of Peniviti song which; one - wasn't picturised aptly and two - wasn't in sync with the emotion of that particular scene. To that matter, even Reddy Ikkada Soodu wasn't necessary, but hey... dance!? All said and done, the prime MVP of this film is its detailing of the nuances that one can observe in the Rayalaseema dialect. Rustic dialogues from Trivikram and professionally infused dialect by Penchal Das is a treat!
Direction:
Be it in Mirchi or more so in Dhammu, you see the protagonist change their opinions about how killing and fighting will only fuel more killing and not peace, which actually they realise after only one key incident/episode that affects them the most; on the contrary, Guruji showcases how step by step this so call "enlightenment" dawns upon Raghava and how Aravinda plays a pivotal role in this revelation. All these scenes are delightful to watch and they both acted really well. The opening sequence was next level taking. The best part of the film is how Guruji brings Raghava's as well as his fellow villagers characters (few specific characters) to the point of catharsis to the very end is remarkable or shall I say Trivikram 'mark'able, since the masses are so fond of this "mark" of late. There is a camouflaged analogy hiding in plain sight here. In more than 2 instances, you see 2 important characters (not naming them to avoid spoilers) narrating stories and a similar situation arises in the climax and here Trivikram clearly hints at how one's life is in the way one writes it and also at the same time, the things they do also directly/indirectly impact many lives. Raghava's character here is like The Last Jedi of the factionists who does things out of the stereotype character, as far as the Hollywood references go. But one flaw with Raghava is that as the time progresses he transforms into a mirror image of Aravinda's ideology without having any trace intricacies of his own way of thinking or characteristics, leaving Raghava as a person unexplored.
Music:
Yada Poinaado is the most impactful song in the whole film. As I've said earlier, Peniviti was the only let down with regards to filming and not as a standalone song. But the best part is the way in which Thaman gave various themes of BGM for different parts of the film. One of the finest outing for him.
Cinematography:
Remarkable shots! Great and slick use of VFX and perfectly executed fight sequences. He is known for stylish taking and this is how he showcases a raw Rayalaseema fight.
Performances:
Pooja Hegde was really good with her dialogue delivery and lively portrayal of Aravinda. Though Supriya Pathak has very less screen time, her screen presence is immense. Naveen Chandra blew me away with his performance, so good. Eeshwari has the smallest role of all but created as much impact as any other character in the film, what an actress! Jaggu bhai was all over the place, commendable commitment and conviction from a man of his age! Of course, NTR did give a great performance, what did you expect? Just kidding! There is this one sequence where he sits calmly on a chair and warns his opponents on phone who are somewhere far off. That. That is how dialogue diction will affect a scene. I bet all the so called Dubsmash kings/queens to beat that scene! That one scene is a testimony to why many people wanted guruji and NTR to team up.
Final Take:
This is probably the most meaningful movie in NTRs career. It is like that type of movie which borne out of the idea where two factionists sit down and resolve issues instead of swinging swords down each other's throats. Guruji is back in form. A highly recommended film.
Rating: 8.5/10
Andhadhun (2018)
An exhilarating watch!
Story:
A visually challenged piano artist finds himself in a mess when he is invited by an ex-popular film star of Bollywood over to his apartment for a private concert. What follows next is anyone's guess.
Screenplay:
Probably the most tightly kit screenplays in the recent times that Indian film has witnessed. Just so you know, Sriram reveals his pivotal plot point even before the first frame. Not with sound or dialogue or something else, just by simple text on the screen. That my friend is the definition of guts. The only complain I have is with the 'filmy' way in which the ending was conceived. Had it been a little better, the ending would have been a bang on! Of course, even now, it's no less from being a brilliant piece.
Direction:
Fabulous! The way Sriram plays with the way we think about what's gonna happen next, he always, each and every time, he catches you off guard by being a step ahead! "You think you are an intelligent patron, then I'm sorry to inform you, you 'll definitely miss out on many guesses" is how I heard Sriram scream through the canvas.
Cinematography:
Subtle colour palettes and decent take by KU Mohanan. Few shots are impressive. Some are frightening as hell! We'll witness more of him in Mahesh Babu's Maharshi.
Editing:
Fantastic and on point! One of the best parts of the film is this satisfyingly fast and crisp cuts! There is this sharp transition from a very cheerful moment to a very intense moment and that was... Voila! Pooja Surti, the woman behind the editing desk, seems to be a very talented person and sad that she has done only a handful of films.
Music:
The soul of the film is this Amit Trivedi's far beyond the excellent score. He is one of the most underrated music composers in India, a sad truth. Nevertheless, he gave an absolute blast of music here. The piano was on fire!
Performances:
Ayushman and Tabu gave really legit performances. And yes, of course, you have the Netflix girl Radhika doing her bit. The supporting cast was really good too, no complaints at all.
Final Take:
Though it is a one-time-watcher for most of the people, the amount of cinema study that one can do in this film is of great magnitude. An excellent outing from Sriram and team. Do not miss this exhilarating watch.
Rangasthalam (2018)
Sukumar plays safe this time; packs a solid commercial entertainer.
Story:
This story is something that has recurred in many movies in the past 3 decades and has been recurring still. Without spoiling anything, I would tell this: Chitti Babu is Rangasthalams' farmers' go-to man for irrigation purpose. Rama Lakshmi is his love interest. Kumar Babu, played by Aadi, is his well learned brother. The evil President of Rangasthalam, played by Jagapathi Babu, is challenged by this bro-duo for some issues that arise in their beloved village. What follows is full-on emotional drama!
Direction:
Sukumar took 3 hours to show this story which is not very uncommon. Not missing any chance of commercialising stuff, every mass element was highlighted. The best part of the film is that he managed to carry the emotion to the end, almost. The pre-climax 30 minutes were adrenaline rushing emotions fuelled with an excellent score from DSP with a heart-wrenching lament for an important character. That probably gives most of the audience a feeling that the movie is really very good, which it is but not as much. I'd cite the quote "All's well, that ends well" in my defence.
Screenplay:
Sukumar, along with 4 more relatively unknown individuals, have written for the film. But, they never missed in giving the movie a touch-up with Sukumar's stereotypic commercial templates. The lead characters were well written and the supporting cast also had really good characteristics. The second half was stretched. At times it felt as if Sukumar himself was confused as to which scene to cut down and which scene to not, that is evident from the abrupt cuts that occur here and there.
Music:
Really very good score from DSP. Used multiple themes for different characters. Even this film has a concealed song or rather a lament at the very end, and as mentioned earlier, it was really raw and heart-crushingly honest. Songs have a really good repeat value
Production Values:
Super high. Simple. The sets, the artwork, the costumes and the locations, all of them matched the 1980's feel.
Cinematography:
Rathnavelu, the man behind marvellous visuals of 1-Nenokkadine, has collaborated again with Sukumar on this venture and as always, he delivered. Retro styled colour templates with orange and brown shades all through. Some shots were a feast to eyes because Rathnavelu shines in 'establishment' shots.
Performances:
Ram Charan as Chitti Babu will probably go down in his career history as one of the finest or more so, his best performance till date. What a roller-coaster of emotions as he showcased through this one. Excellent. Samantha as Rama Lakshmi was also a surprise package. She went full on "oora mass", literally, with her character. The chemistry between the duo fared really well. Jagapathi Babu was cruel and raw in his performance. His best after what he did in 'Legend', IMO. Aadi Pinishetty was really very good as Kumar Babu. An asset to the film. Anasuya as Rangamattha did well too. The rest of the supporting cast did their part well and almost all of them had some part to play in the story.
Class Appeal:
The movie is very clean except for few instances of violence or profanity. The drama and comedy will definitely fare well with the families.
Mass Appeal:
No point in talking about this. This movie is tailormade for suiting the tastes of mass audiences. And it did well in connecting to them. Though the content is not new or something overwhelming, they'd love it.
Final Say:
After the masses gave a facepalm to Sukumar for his two not-so-hit movies '1-Nenokkadine' and 'Nannaku Prematho', Sukku plays a safe game with this one. Took his sweet time and made a full-on mass movie in which RCT shines brighter than the sun.
Pad Man (2018)
Educating and Entertaining at the same time.
R. Balki cooked this dish with his own recipe alongside Swanand Kirkire, adding multiple flavors handpicked from Balki's arsenal of trademark templates. PC Sreeram's cinematography is god level for it does not have any kind of cutting edge CGI in it but has simple and subtle colours and excellent frames. The costumes, the art-work, and editing are definitely added assets to the film. Amit Trivedi's score is lively and suits Balki's taste perfectly. Of course, Akshay Kumar and Radhika Apte performed really well but the best surprise for me was Sonam's character in this film. Really had a touching moment at the very end. On a whole, its educating and entertaining.
Hello (2017)
Peculiar storytelling and excellent visuals make this film an interesting watch.
Story: Destiny somehow brings Seenu (Akhil) and Junnu (Priya) closer in their childhood who grow a lot closer in a very short time. After 14 years, Seenu gets an opportunity which could potentially take him to his soulmate. So, did he utilise that bink and a miss opportunity? How do they finally meet is what Vikram crafts for us on the screen.
Screenplay: I always credit him for being the most creative storyteller and even this time, he mesmerises with his writing, but he ain't so flawless either. There is one big plot hole or a blunder, I'd say, which can potentially take away most of the action from the film and cut short the story to around 1 and half hour run time, but that plot hole can't be disclosed without going into the spoiler arena, so I'll refrain from doing that. Another issue I had with the writing was the lack of depth in character. I know that it is difficult to establish character depth with children, but it's not impossible too because it was done many time previously in TFI, be it 'Little Soldiers' or 'Anjali' or many many more. This flaw with 'Hello!' is a major setback because finally when they both meet at the end, obviously, you don't feel for them. You don't feel the gravity of their agonising 14 years of separation.
Direction: In this film, Vikram tries to convey the story in a single day of the film reality. A really good attempt I must say. Despite the flaws, the direction was really good and nothing felt like it was dragged. At times, the way few things go remind you of 'Manam' and that is something not expected of Vikram. He should've either avoided them or could've come up with better ideas to convey them.
Cinematography: Excellent visuals from Vinod. There's always this kind of freshness in his takes. Always great to see. Action sequences were shot really well, though they could've been made better, as per TFI standards, this was way better anyway. One or two long shots and POV shots were the best of them. The lighting in 'Merise Merise' was very much inspired from the way 'Deewani Mastani' was set up in 'Bajirao Mastani', a very good attempt actually. Few shots looked even more beautiful because of good editing from Prawin Pudi.
Music: Probably after 'Manam', this is the best Anup has ever been. A really great background score, an engaging one and that violin theme tho!
Performances: Akhil has done a really good job here. An impressive one, especially after a horrendous debut. The stunts he performed were excellent to watch. Great stunt choreography by Bob Brown was seamless. Kalyani also performed equally well. Her expressions in few scenes were simply spot on. Impressive debut. The girl who played childhood Junnu was fabulous with her expressions. Ramya Krishnan and Jagapati did their part well.
Production Values: Top notch. No issues at all. The sets, locations, props, everything was top class.
Mass Appeal: This is not that kind of a massy film where the hero slaps his thigh and few cars blow up in the background. Vikram tries to keep his films classy and stylish. I don't think the mass audience would appreciate such a love story. But the action sequences could possible please them though.
Class Appeal: Pure class. The taking. The feel. Everything is class and stylish. I found no flaws here. Only that the childhood portion might look a bit over the top for the audiences.
Dhruva (2016)
A Solid Hit
Directed by Surender Reddy (Suri), 'Dhruva' stars Ram Charan, Arvind Swamy and Rakul Preet in the lead roles. A guy named Dhruva, highly motivated since childhood to know what's the actual reason behind various crimes happening in his country eventually develops a knack to read between lines and becomes vigorous investigator and also a focused IPS officer. Soon after his posting, he faces a worthy challenge in the form of Arvind Swamy who is the epitome of criminals in India. How Dhruva deals with Arvind is for us to see. To put it even simpler, Dhruva is an official remake of 2015 cult hit 'Thani Oruvan'. And frankly speaking, this one is at par with the original with some note worthy improvisations. The first half feels a very little dragged in the start and races away to the interval once the villain is introduced. The drag comes due to the "Now let's drool over RCT's body" kinda intro song which wasn't actually necessary, but you know, it's TFI! Anyways, the post interval gets yet another commercial break with Rakul sizzling away in 'Pareshaanura' and how! An eye feast you see. Later the pace builds up and the game between Ram and Arvind gets more and more intriguing and ends up on a beautiful note. Kudos to Suri for his excellent improvisation in the climax with his '8' concept and also a few tweaks here and there. Rest of the story and screenplay he kept intact with the original, which seemed to serve the purpose. The dialogues were pretty good written by Mohan Raja. One of the greatest assets to the film is the cinematography by P S Vinod. The OST by Hip-hop Tamizha is also real good, no wonder they'd make real good ringtones. Coming to the performances, Rakul was really good with her dialogue delivery and was really gorgeous too. Arvind Swamy was the best of the lot. He was so good as the evil charactered Siddharth Abhimanyu, impeccable. But RCT was competitive too. There is this moment of catharsis in the second half for Dhruva where RCT excelled in his skills and that particular sequence can be considered one of the best in his career. And that's more than enough to say how well he performed. Probably the only flaw with the film would be the editing by Naveen Nooli which wasn't upto the mark, choppy in the pre climax scenes. There is this saying which goes like "A movie is as good as it's villain" and that when applied to this flick, you dare doubt the capacity of Siddharth Abhimanyu, one of the best characterized villains of all time. This is a solid hit, just go for it.
Pelli Choopulu (2016)
Tharun Bhascker Scores and how!
Tharun Bhascker Daassyam, almost a year and half ago, this name was trending in the film fraternity, especially in TFI and do you know why? That's because, one of the most acclaimed short films of recent times 'Sainma' debuted online at that time and later got released on YouTube after making enough fortune. And that film is this man Bhascker's brain child. Well, you might wonder why I'm stressing so much on his short 'Sainma' rather than talking about 'Pellichupulu', that's because the 20 odd minutes you spend watching 'Sainma' speaks volumes about this mans talent and believe me, you will never regret watching it. Coming to the current topic, the flick's based or precisely developed from Bhascker's previously directed, another well acclaimed short 'Anukokunda'. The film is a coming of age comedy-drama and the story is about Chitra and Prashanth who meet for the first time in a pellichupulu and eventually how they travel along with each other is what that follows. That's it, simple right? No, hold on. There are a lot of twists and turns in this simple story line, thanks to the well written screenplay. The way in which the first half runs is too damn good. It just flows and you won't even realise its almost time for a break. Though the story gets a lil predictable in the second half, it still manages to keep audience intact with the flow. The characters and the characterizations in the film are so near to reality that one can easily relate to them. And the dialogues are one of the biggest assets to the film, simple and real. The actors Vijay Devarakonda and Ritu Varma were competent to show there skills and make their presence felt. They did a 100% justice to their characters, commendable performances. And there is this character named 'Kaushik' played by Priyadarshi, man o man, what a gem of dialogue delivery he has! Made the whole theatre erupt in laughter for more than 10 times I guess, brilliant acting. Rest of the cast did their part well. Coming to the technical side, editing was neat. Cinematography was good. Music, scored by Vivek Sagar was too good and apt at many situations. Very hardly does one see The Hindu review a movie and call it 'A Gem'. What more do you want? Just go and grab a ticket, this one's a sure shot hit.
A Aa (2016)
Vintage Trivikram is back, a bit differently though.
"Once a person reaches the heights of success, there is an ample of chance that one might forget what they truly were before they started walking on a path that brought them to that position, so I made this film searching my true self as a director, tracking back my initial self." These were the words spoken by the Magician Trivikram at the audio launch event of this flick. And he never lied. One can see that vintage Trivikram style of dialogues which don't necessarily have 'punches' in them but often carry a deeper meaning were present in tonnes in this film, which were hard to find since 'Khaleja', barring 'SOS' to an extent. Similar to his first film ever as a director, 'Nuvve Nuvve' this flick has that slow story narration but never bores you. The first half was at a good pace with a lot of entertainment, good songs and soothing BGM. The second half lacked the speed and was dragged towards the end. Coming to the story, its complete family drama with ample of comedy. I somewhat felt it was like 'Attarintiki Daredi' in reverse. The art direction by A S Prakash was commendable, thanks to the high production values. Cinematography was really good too. Mickey's compositions for both soundtrack and BGM were a big asset, and probably this movie might give him the correct breakthrough that he deserves. All actors did their part well, special mention to Anupama Parameshwaran and Rao Ramesh. Unlike Trivikram's previous films as a writer, this time the female lead played by Samantha, is more sophisticated in terms of characterization. And the male lead was relatively not. That came to me as a surprise. None the less, its a perfect watch for family audience. Why wait then, go grab a seat in your nearest theaters.
Neerja (2016)
Do Your Duty, Come What May.
It's a film about a fateful day in a random girl's life, who is from Mumbai and is a model turned air hostess. Then why should I watch this film, might ask they. For it portrays a live example of a simple saying "Do your duty, come what may." in a manner that's highly motivational and inspirational at the same time. The director Ram Madhvani did an impeccable job in keeping the audiences intact with his story telling skills about a true incident that took place 30 years back. For the last 15 minutes of the run time, the whole cinema was silent and I suspect most of them have had moist eyes, at least I did! And for the emotion to be carried that far, Shabana Azmi , Sonam Kapoor and the director need to be given the whole credits. The OST was so apt, it just adds to the emotion flowing through the celluloid. Cinematography was fine. The best shots for me were to the extreme end of the film, which were shot at Varanasi. Special mention for Sonam's performance in two specific scenes, which I won't spoil it for you but just watch out for them in the second half.
Bãhubali: The Beginning (2015)
This one is a Visual Wonder!
3 years of sheer hard-work of many people who have worked their hearts out for this Visual Wonder has paid off well? Not exactly though, since the answer is simple and straight, you just have to wait for the 'Conclusion' till 2016 and that would decide the fate of this franchise on a whole. The story is paced slowly in the first half giving way and screen space to our Mother Nature's beauty and CGI's magic and one might find it a little too draggy if one considers 'Baahubali' to solely be a hero and since that's not possible, Shivudu has a love life and heroic nature and scenes of his own.Abrupt cuts and unconvincing CGI at certain places in first half are the only flaws with the whole film. Coming to the second half, one is told what he'd expect to be told, as the trailer tells the same. War sequences are really well shot and makes it hard to believe that they were actually made by Indians! One has to just bow down to Srinivas Mohan and his team for excellent CGI and Senthil Kumar for superb visuals. Our captain gives us a bang, as his trademark style known as 'Interval Bang' only at the end this time because technically this movies' end is the interval for the 2 parts taken as a whole. Art work in this Epic is just out of the world, kudos to Sabu Cyril sir and thousands of technicians who worked on this aspect.BGM is soothing for the first half which is apt for what we get on screen and the second half war episodes get the best of the lot BGMs to elevate the scenes. Songs are places really well except for 'Manohari' song.Dolby Atmos effect is an added attraction and I highly recommend people to watch this flick in theatres with this specific sound system, it will surely remain as a great experience for you. The sound effects are haunting, pleasing and give you goosebumps at the same time. Anushka had an extended cameo but did perform commendably well, special applause to her expressions. Special mention to Ramya Krishna madame, she was at her best! Katappa will blow your mind with his characteristics and Sathya Raj Sir does 100% justice to it. Though Prabhas and Rana Daggubati did well only their attitude in their respective roles stands out as the best because more of them is yet to come in the sequel. All you need to do is to watch the movie as it comes because expectations lead to disappointment. If you miss this movie, you've just lost a once in life-time 'Indian' movie experience on a big screen.
Massu Engira Masilamani (2015)
It's Their F**king Game!
This Venkat Prabhu's sixer is a complete one man show both behind as well as on the canvas.While on screen, it's Suriyas' all the way where as the captain, Mr.Prabhu, carried it on his shoulders being behind the camera. Screenplay is very good with a lot of twists all through but was not very gripping in the first half, giving way to unnecessary comic and song sequences. But still, one doesn't get bored of anything as the director incorporated a lot of references in very clever manner with which one is kept busy thinking about it, the best one being in the second half. Production values are really good, the cinematography is just enough to say so. Editing was just okay, could have been better. All the supporting cast did their part. Nayanathara had a very small role though. The film has ample of comedy, frightening situations, action scenes, awesome BGM, setiment and supernatural spirits. It's a complete entertainer which one can watch with their family. That sums it up, this 'Masss' is Suriya & Prabhu's F**king game!
I (2015)
Shankar Sir is back with a BANG!
I don't want to reveal anything about the story, but the genre of this flick is most important for you to know before you enter the theatre. It's a Romantic Thriller with fantasy elements. Vikram is the show stealer. He's just out of the world. His action in each and every frame, will keep you all spellbound, especially the hunch-back characters' sequence. And the film, from the first frame till the last, runs on a very very clever screenplay, which I haven't seen in any of Shankar's previous flicks. The Cinematography is outstanding. And P C sir once again proved that he is the King of Cinematographers in India. No wonder why the film production cost so much,the art- work and the sets they solely put up for Songs would give you the answer! Splendid art direction. This films' OST will remain as career best for A R Rahman. Upen Patel was good. Santhanam was hilarious. Amy Jackson was good with her acting skills. She was literally an 'I' candy all through the film. The amount of 'A' rated content should have been controlled by Shanker sir. The length of the film and few scenes might seem lagging, but the crews' 3 years of hard work overpowers it. The best parts being the whole China sequences, Upen-Vikrams fight sequence and Hunchbacks' emotional scenes. This 'I' will remain as a unique film in Shankar's career, not many are made in such a way. Before you get in the theatre, do not have any expectations and watch the film with a lot of patience and I would assure you that you'd leave the theatre with a smile on your face and most likely, a bit teary-eyed as well. And for people with less patience, I would suggest them to avoid this flick.
Kochadaiiyaan (2014)
A True Epic!
Me having at least minimum knowledge about how tough & challenging it is to make a film like this one, I can surely call it an 'EPIC', proudly! As I borrow the words of Amitabh Bachchan , "100 years of Indain cinema will now be called as 'After Kochadaiyaan' and 'Before Kochadaiyaan'" are so really true. Yes, this movie really deserves a great applause, ignore about how or what the story is but the attempt and hard work that went into the making of this film deserves an applause. People who do not have any knowledge about 'Motion Capture' should watch this film in the way it is shown and shouldn't call it a cartoon or something. The only flaw about the film is that there are some disconnected scenes in both the halves and maybe that is due to editing errors. Apart form that, the Cinematography , Sound , VFX and the other tech departments did their best.Super Star Rajnikanth was at his best and his hard core fans will enjoy the 'Shiva Thandav' part. The other actors did justice to their characters. The biggest asset is the Music and BGM by A.R. Rahman which doesn't bore you at any point in the film. The narrative was at good pace.There weren't many 3D shots, just few here and there in action sequences. Go and watch the film with your family, you'll surely enjoy it.
Race Gurram (2014)
They are back with a Bang!
After getting flops from their previous works, both the director Surender Reddy and Allu Arjun are actually back with a bang! The narration is very good and though the story line looks very ordinary, the direction took it into another level. Cinematography is a class apart, especially in songs like 'Down down dappa' , 'Cinema Sopistha' and few fight scenes as well, were shot greatly. As the story progresses, it picks up pace and with the entry of Brahmanandam, it goes to a new high. Highlights for the film are Shruthi Hassan's intro and characterization , Arjun's 'Deevuda' expression , Pre-Interval and Climax episodes. Thaman was only good at the catchy BGM which takes off in the Interval and continues till the end. A complete Emotional Family entertainer all the way! Go and grab a ticket, 3 hrs of racy entertainment is assured.
Yevadu (2014)
A Routine Revenge Drama.
Well as speculated and rumored previously that this film is a copy of 1999 Hollywood blockbuster 'Face/Off' have been proved as partial truths as the movie is not a copy but rather an inspiration from that flick. When it comes to the plot , the film has two different stories , one for first half and the other for the rest and connected through an incident. It's like watching two movies for a single ticket. One story is the same old revenge flick while the other one is society and evil based. Ram Charan as usual , rocked with his dance moves. Kajal , Amy and Shruti did okay with whatever they had to. Jaya Sudha gaaru just made the mother's character even more powerful with her performance. Sai Kumar gaaru were just an added attraction. Without Allu Arjun this movie isn't possible , hence a special mention. Screenplay was routine and cinematography was just good. DSP rocked it all the way. Director sticked to the basic mass masala formula that is running in TFI presently and didn't at all try any new things , precisely routine direction.
1 - Nenokkadine (2014)
No one would expect such a film from Sukumar..
Talking about "1" , It's simply a one man show and the man who dared to make such a film with such a big star of TFI really needs to be applauded.Firstly talking about Mahesh Babu , who as usual , did a really good job in his new kinda character which he never ever essayed before in his career. Gautam Krishna , was cute and made his presence felt. When it come to the story line of the film which is so fragile that Sukumar moulded it into a solid massive 'ONE' with his talent of writing a highly gripping screenplay. Yes , I do admit that the screenplay and story is an inspiration from a 2002 Hollywood blockbuster "The Bourne Identity" , but don't label it to be a copy , no. In the first half , the director did miss a lot of logics and left many lose ends which remain untied , but the pacy and even more gripping second half makes you overlook all those small tweaks and flaws in the screenplay. The length of the second half was a little too long since the director had to incorporate the unwanted commercial elements , simply to attract masses , which should have been taken care about. The best scene of the whole film is the Interval scene. And when it comes to the tech department , the first man to get an applause is the DOP , 'Rathnavelu'. The best visuals were in "Sayonara" and "Your My Love" songs. The fight scenes were taken greatly , the DOP used different colours for different situations. The editor 'Karthika Srinivas' , 'Swamy Ra Ra' fame , did a really good job. Needs to be appreciated. Kriti Sanon was very glamorous and gorgeous and pulled off her character well, Dancing was good and was a nice pick against Mahesh. Overall , this "ONE" does have those so called "Hollywood Standards" and even has an ample dose of family sentiment. Bored of routine family drama or senseless mass flick , grab a ticket for "ONE" which leaves you with a good feeling when you leave the theatre. Really a 150 buck worth flick.
Goliyon Ki Raasleela Ram-leela (2013)
Beautiful yet Boring..!
Those who know about 'Sanjay Leela Bhansali' (SLB) and the way he makes his works.. They would surely be knowing how intense the emotions would be.! And Ramleela is no exception from them , but the notable point is SLB has , moved a way behind the 'Too-Much' line as far as the 'Romance' is concerned , which he never ever did it in past. The reason why he surpassed the line , is just to raise the audience for the film , precisely to raise the commercial values of the film.It was inevitable for SLB that he had to make the lead pair get into their love track right from their first meet , highly pointless despite the movie being lengthy enough.! But nevertheless , he did his part well with the Music and Direction. The story highly dominated all the Technical department of the film , except for the Cinematography by 'Ravi Varman' , classic and colourful . The dialogue writers Siddharth-Garima , they should have been in a better place than this , because they have a great potential but this time chose the wrong project. Highly adulterated dialogues. Performances of the lead pair was good , but the fans of 'Deepika Padukone' and 'Ranveer Singh' will really feel annoyed by seeing the characters they played , ridiculous. The well appreciated part is Supriya Pathak's performance , great actress.! Except for Supriya Pathak , there were no other great acting skills in the list. Best moments while watching was only the 'Nagada Song' ,eye feast. Right after the movie's name is projected , they'll show this : 'Inspired from Romeo and Juliet' , but I actually feel that , it would be a disgrace for the great Shakespeare's work. Pacy first half , sloggy second half. And finally to say , this is obviously not a movie which you can see with family , never ever do. And the censor board should have been little sensible , as they give an 'A ' movie a 'U/A' certificate. Crazy..!
Ramayya Vastavayya (2013)
Not an up-to the mark entertainer..!
After tasting a disastrous flop of 'Shock' , the director Harish Shankar never stepped back , came with a nice movie titled 'Mirapakay' and got a hit.! Then again , he was even more lucky to make a movie with Pawan Kalyan and got a hit too.! But now , apart from 'Gabbar Singh' , his previous works were all screenplay based gripping thrillers. But this flick is not of that genre. Harish tried his level best to showcase Jr NTR in the youngster look and was successful in doing so. But showing some one like that isn't enough for a movie to be a hit. It needs a story and a nice screenplay too. But , I think Harish just missed that small logic and started to concentrate too much on Tiger's look and style than the movie itself , leading to a very dry and unfinished product. The major flaw I found is with the "PROPER" introduction of characters , where Samantha's name is not known till some time in First- Half before the Intermission. And nobody even knows what NTR character's name is , except for his nickname being 'Ram'.! The dances were not of NTR's Trademark style. The music was not at all an asset. And when it comes to BGM , I'd say better forget about it.! NTR maintained his energy and sense of humor all through the First-Half whereas his dark side unfolds in the next half. Samantha was as usual , gorgeous and attractive as a show-piece is. When it comes to Shruti Hassan , It was a blunder by Harish to select her for this role , not at all apt. And upon that , Shruthi giving her own voice for her character , unbearable.! Apart from the strong One-Liners and a nice First-Half , the movie turns out a not up-to-mark entertainer. And once again our Young Tiger fails to prove himself to be a 'Multiplex Hero' as well as 'A Woman's Man'. Too much of blood-shed , not at all recommended for children. Only hard- core NTR fans will like the movie.
Attarintiki Daredi (2013)
A Flawless Family Entertainer.
This shaved 'Simham' has taken a great leap for his previous movies and now came back with a bang.! Apart from PowerStar's previous works.. This movie stands apart because of its unique way of storytelling. Trivikram Sir did the magic dialogues and story , yet again.! I just salute to the way he writes those #Powerful one-liners which really has a lot of meaning in it , and let me tell you , you need to be very good in Telugu to interpret his dialogues. Just fabulous..! Pawan Kalyan did complete justification to his character. Praneetha is very luck to get a role in this PowerHouse's film and she did well too. #Samantha was nice and bubbly in her innocent and yet not so innocent character , she proved herself in second half. Nadia was really well in getting the emotions right. Boman Irani is really an asset for the film , great actor. Devi Sri Prasad's music and his cameo in 'NinnuChoodagane' was nice and enjoyable. And as usual , Trivikram Sir in his TM way narrated the story to the audiences in a very entertaining way. Flawless.! First half has a heavy dose of emotions and Second half takes a turn in the story and is hilarious with Brahmanandam's entry. MS Narayana was very supportive with his pranks and suggestions as a adviser for PSPK. A highly recommended film for those who value 'Relationships'. A complete and neat Family Entertainer. Rating - 4.5/5
"Ekkada Neggalo Kaadura.. Ekkada Thaggalo Thelisinavaade Goppodu..!"
Pizza (2012)
Title Waters Your Mouth but Yet You Sweat a Lot..!!
Really have never seen such a movie which goes throughout in a nail-biting screenplay except for the first 25 mins. An excellent direction and a great screenplay with a great-picture perfect-awesome cinematography.
The performances of the main leads was great and well maintained too.
Special effects were at peaks along with the background score.
The climax was great revealing all the twists and turns in the story.
But the movie ends on a freaky note , which may be disappointing.
Go watch it in a cinema or buy a DVD and watch it .
Rating - 3.5/5
Shadow (2013)
Watch it..only in the WORST Case..!!!
Victory Venkatesh was actually in a need of a disparate HIT . But he ended up selecting a Cocktail of stories titled 'Shadow'. In this movie one can see many films starting from a same old revenge story with a Mafia backdrop same as 'Kantri' , then you find 'Gabbar Singh' songs and dialogues , then you find some cinematography shots seen in the opening scenes of 'Don 2' , then you find the same locations on screen which you have already seen in 'Billa' , 'Don' and 'Don 2' , sometimes you feel that 'Tulasi' is been watched by you. Tapsee was like always , over- acting. The director lost grip on the story and the screenplay as well after the first 35 minutes of the film , and even the audiences get bored with unwanted songs and very weak dialogues and unpleasant comedy. You will only smile or at least give a smirk for exactly THREE minutes when Thagubothu Ramesh comes on the screen. And please don't think that why I haven't given any positives till now , because i found none. So it is not at all recommended for any group of audiences , do not watch it even if it is aired on any channel after a few months.I'm giving this rating because the cinematography of the title song was nice and other songs were okay , hence this rating. Rating - 2/5
Gunde Jaari Gallanthayyinde (2013)
I'm Sure it will NOT DISAPPOINT you..!
A good entertainer. Nice Comedy by all the actors and the movie picks up at the Pre-Interval 30 minutes scene. Second half is the highlight of the movie.
Ali was nice all through the movie.Though it was a debut for Isha Talwar , she did a descent job. Nithya Menon was obviously great with all the scenes. Nithin was nice with his dances and Costumes too.
A nice story and beautiful and descent direction which is worth a 100 bucks or so. Has a good pacy screenplay. I'm sure it will not disappoint you. Don't at all think it to be like 'Ishq'. Worth watch.
Rating - 3.5/5
Swamy Ra Ra (2013)
A Massive Small Budget Film.
The movie starts off with a cool & composed parallel story tracks and later these two parallel tracks meet at a point in the second half. In film history there are very rare chances for "Parallel Track" movies to get a positive note at the Box Office , but this film being a low budget has bagged a very great positive response. The whole cast were at their best and were maintained a nice gripping story with enjoyable comedy. When it comes to the crew , Mr. Sudheer Varma the new debut director has done a great job by wielding his pen for dialogs and the Mega-Phone as the Director.
The main element that has become hot topic is Mr. Richard Prasad's cinematography which was simply superb from the beginning and few scenes like "The chase scene along with song" and "The transaction scene in the rain" were like a treat to your eyes.
Ultimately its a small budget massive film with a fragile story line developed in an awesome way. Must Watch.!
Baadshah (2013)
'Baadshah' a complete two and half hour entertainer.
The movie starts off in a pace way directly focusing on the story and the love track between Kajal Aggarwal And NTR Jr. Kajal was really awesome , glamorous and descent in her "Janaki" character .
As usual all expect Brahmanandam to be right from the first frame to last frame of the film when the director is Srinu Vytla , but here it's not in that way. And actually to say there are two heroes in the film , NTR in the first half and Mr.Brahmanandam in the second. NTR's and Brahmanandam's acting was at peaks . M.S. Narayana was good . K.V.Guhan was really awesome while capturing fights and songs . Thaman proved himself by giving great background score and original scores too. There is no chance for you to have a doubt about the dance performances in the movie , which were out class. Hat's off to Gopi Mohan and Kona Venkat for there great story and outstanding-hilarious-awesome-funny dialogs.
Hope it to be one of the biggest blockbusters in NTR'a as well as Srinu Vytla's career . You will surely have two and a half hours of full entertainment. This film is Rs. 150 worth and surely go watch it.