Badshah –   An overstretched formula

Any regular consumer of Telugu cinema, knows exactly what to expect from a Sreenu Vaitla film irrespective of who the star of the film is, his films right from Dhee, Ready, Dubai seenu to Dookudu all have followed the same formula of a harebrained story with a heavy dose of comedy, so there was no surprise to see the same formula repeat even in Badshah unfortunately i felt this time this was stretched bit too far.

So you have the routine hero introduction fight followed by few comedy scenes followed by some more fights  and comedy again around which a harebrained story is woven which is so stupid that iam incapable of articulating it. As in every Sreenu vaitla film in this film too the hero (Jr NTR) plays a gag on Bramhanandam and this time too scenes involving this is enjoyable part of the film.

The film starts off on a positive note with a very enjoyable first 40 mins or so where the comedy really clicks between Jr NTR, Kajal and Vennela Kishore but then the film is pulled down when director decides to devote some time to action sequences which involves a typical telugu hero bashing villains left right and center and some punch dialogues are poured  in, which don’t hold any gravity what’s so ever, but much to one’s relief the director again returns to his trademark comedy sequences involving Bramhanandam, post interval where there are some Laugh out Loud moments, but then the film gets dragged into some very silly twists and turns which look stupid even after coming prepared to suspend one’s intelligence, worsened by the overdose of fights and speed breaking songs.

On the whole even after having some very enjoyable portions of comedy, I came out of the hall feeling bored and clearly this film is an over stretch of a time tested formula, time has come for Sreenu Vaitla to  try something new.

Mirchi is yet another run of the mill stuff that telugu movies these days are made of. you have a hero who can bash up hundreds of men, he has a back story in which there are two warring families and yes you  guessed it right our hero brings them together. Its all been there seen that stuff.

Jai played by Prabhas plays this super cool dude who lives life for the day kind of philosophy meets Richa in Italy and from here this harebrained story moves to her home in  a small village in Andhra Pradesh, where Jai tries to change these blood ridden retarded goons to civilized people. The film gets really tiring here on as the Hench men of the two rival families try to kill each other and a doze of high decibel fight sequences packed in, only relief coming from the most reliable Bramhanandam and music by devi sri prasad.

Prabhas is not fully convincing in his role and seems to lack ideas to portray the part.  Among the other cast; only Anushka and Bramhanandam stand out who deliver some laugh out loud moments. On the whole Mirchi is regressive cinema and has nothing new to offer , avoid it, is my recommendation.

-vidyuth.

SVSC – Simple, beautiful but not soulful.

SVSC is  one of those kind of films where after u come out of the film u feel frustrated not because u saw a bad film but because u feel how good the film could have been but isn’t in spite of everything going for it. Star cast, dialogues, performances but it lacks a strong point to drive home.

As everyone knows the film is about two brothers peddodu (venkatesh) nd chinnodu (Mahesh) who cant live without each other; While peddodu is a straightforward non diplomatic guy who quits his job just because his boss tells him to be practical in life where as chinnodu is a charming and street smart guy and girls fall for him with a blink of an eye. These two brothers belong to a middleclass family from coastal Andhra and their father played by Prakash Raj plays a clichéd character of the one who did not earn them a fortune to rely upon but taught them values about being kind to other people.

Second time director srikanth addala intends to tell the story of the ups and downs in the relation ship of these  two brothers but there is not really any major conflict to speak of due to which there lacks any drama taking the story no where. Although the first half of the film sails through smoothly with some predictable but well executed scenes between the two brothers and their family members and thanks to a effortless performance by Mahesh with a east Godavari lingo who manages to generate quite a few laughs with every other dialogue. Credit should be given for venkatesh for strictly sticking to his character and playing his part well its clearly Mahesh who steals the show. Speaking of other actors, both the female leads are just dolls and there is not much to speak about them.

Although the makers should be lauded for making an honest attempt for going ahead and making a clean family film without getting tempted to add the so called commercial props like comedy track’s, introduction fights or item numbers, they lack a strong story to back this nice looking feel good film hence ends up being a drag especially the second half after having a smooth first half.

On the whole SVSC is not a bad film but its disappointing that it could have been a much better film, it’s a one time watch.

– vidyuth.

Rock star Review: A film with soul but not without flaws

Rock star showcases the journey of Janardhan Jakhard a jat delhi boy who strums his guitar in campus hangot spots , bus tops etc to how he becomes  Jordan a Rockstar who gets everything he dreamt of but yet is frustrated, unhappy and often resorts to violent

Bursts as he is missing his love heer (Nargis Fakhri) separated by Traditions, society and norms and one day dream to go and live in a world which has no good and no bad.

The first 30 mins or so of the film has its Laugh of Loud moments as Janardhan is advised by his friend that one can’t create great music until one’s heart is broken and until one goes through Pain in life, heeding this advice Janardhan sets up to break his heart

By trying for the most sought  after girl Heer in the campus but in the process of doing this both janardhan and heer  become best buddies and this portion of the film once again shows Imtiaz’s core strength to create a crackling chemistry between his leads which is evident in

all his films.

Infact it is Love and Pain which brings out the best music out from Jordan as he  realizes how much he loves heer only after they get separated as heer is married and goes to Prauge. Rock star is essentially a complex love story with music as the backdrop.

What makes this love story interesting however is Imtiaz ali’s screenplay as the story unfolds in a non linear manner moving back and forth multiple times narrated with some Heart thumping music from AR Rahman which reflects the mood of Jordan.

However the film is not without flaws especially in the second hour where it slows down and some scenes looks repetitive and script looks haphazard as some antics of Jordan look little silly and un reasonable. Imtiaz ali is  able but he is not in full command as was the case with

Jab we met, and ultimately the film belongs to Ranbir Kapoor one can’t help but has to become a fan of him after this effortless performance of a complex transformation from Janardhan to Jordan.  Look at the scene where he mocks as if his heart is broken entering the canteen and argues over the chutney for samosa’s, or the way he operates on the stage for the song SADDA HAQ he completely owns the song and makes you believe he is singing the song himself.

One the whole Rockstar is a film with Soul but not without flaws. I will give 3 stars one for IMTIAZ ali, one for Ranbir and one for AR Rahman. It’s kind of film which stays with you even after you leave the hall.

–         Vidyuth.

Viswaroopam is a brave film but falls short to be called a great film. the film is a spy thriller with a simple premise of a spy played by Kamal hassan who is on a mission to destroy the  terrorists who plan to explode NY with a kind of a nuclear radiation explosive called “the dirty bomb”.

The film takes off on a very interesting note with a thrilling action episode and dives right into the story without any delay and what works the most in the film is the way the hero’s characterization packed with some surprise elements and well sketched supporting characters around him. The film can boast about its world-class technical appeal and Kamal hasan should be  lauded for executing a 95 crore movie with utmost seriousness and focus on the story line and not compromising it with any commercial trappings.

Having said that this film falls short on two accounts ,first its the pace at which it moves, especially in the portions shot in Afghanistan and secondly a rather dull climax which fails to build any tension or urgency, where it should have been a nail biting, race against time kind of a thriller.

As expected it is Kamal hassan who steals the show and the female lead Pooja kumar who is pitch perfect as a confused and surprised wife who has no clue about her husband’s job and manages to create quite a few laughs.

Viswaroopam is a entertaining enough for once but a tighter script would have made it a great one.

– vidyuth.