Movie: Yamudu (2010)
Rating:3/5
Cast : Surya & Anushka
Music : Devi Sri Prasad (DSP)
Director : HariProducer : K E Gnanavel

Story:

A typical masala treat, the story is set on the backdrop of Rajolu town in the East Godavari district. Here lives the family of Narasimha (suriya). He wants to run his family business of provision store and make it a big supermarket. However, Simha's father (radha ravi) has other plans and he dreams of seeing his son as a cop. Narasimha fulfills his dad's wishes and becomes an SI. He is tough, honest and straightforward. Story takes a turn with the arrival of Purushottam (prakashraj) and his brother Vaikuntam (aadhi) from Vizag. A sequence of events makes Purushottam to sign at Rajolu PS everyday. This gets him to Narasimha and the rift begins. There is also Kavya (anushka) the love of Narasimha. What happens from there forms the rest of the story.

Presentation:

The director has come up with a typical formula tale and both the presentation and narrative are effective. The dialogues were punch filled, the script was well written and the screenplay was excellent. Background score added to the moods and two songs were good. Cinematography captured the speed well and editing was crisp. Costumes were apt and the art department was natural. Suriya was the complete show stealer again with his looks and body language, he is unbeatable. Anushka was awesome hot and she made her presence felt strongly despite Suriya's invasion. Radha Ravi was apt, Prakashraj was fabulous, Aadhi was okay, Vivek delivered the required humor, Nasser was natural, Vijaykumar was standard, the others did their bit as required.

Conclusion:

The film doesn't offer any variety or experiment but then it manages to engage the audience despite following a beaten track. This is due to the combination of very good technical values along with power packed performances. While the first half is about the elements of romance, comedy and sentiment, the second half is filled with action and the racy climax. Overall, this would appeal to the masses in a very big way and it will be a commercial success at the box office.

Verdict: Pure masala treat, racy and entertaining for commercial audience

Rating : 2.5/5
Punchline: I appreciate you
Genre: Romance/Music
Type: Straight
Banner: Sri Lakshmi Prasanna Pictures

Cast: Manoj Manchu, Tapsee, Mohan Babu, Suman, Brahmanandam, MS Narayana, Ali, Dharmavarapu, Ahuti Prasad, Tanikella Bharani, Sudha, Aishwarya, Pragati etc

Music: MM Keeravani
Cinematography: S Gopal Reddy
Editing: Marthand K Venkatesh
Art: Raghu Kulkarni
Base Story: Bhupati Raja
Story - screenplay: Gopi Mohan - BVS Ravi
Dialogues: Rajasimha
Direction: K Raghavendra Rao
Producer: Lakshmi Manchu
Release date: 1 July 2010
Theater watched: Screen 1, Prasads

Review

Story

Jhummandi Balu (Manoj Manchu) has only one mission in his life - to become a great playback singer like SP Balu. He challenges a landlord in his village and comes to Hyderabad to become a singer. Captain Rao (Mohan Babu) stays in the opposite house. He is an old-fashioned man who hates the lifestyle of new generation. Sravya (Tapsee) is an NRI girl who stays in her father’s friend Captain Rao’s house. She is in India to do documentary on traditional Telugu music. Balu acts as a local guide to her and in the process, they fall in love. Captain Rao doesn’t like them fall in love. The rest of the story is all about Captain Rao’s restrictions and how the lovers emerge unscathed.

Artists Performance

jhummandi naadam Manoj Manchu: Manoj Manchu comes up with another rocking performance in this movie. His styling and dialogue delivery is more like of those characters we see in comic books and video games that are developing using comic books. His performance in the confrontation scene leading to interval is good. He matched the screen presense and comedy timing of Mohan Babu in the scenes involving both of them.

Tapsee: K Raghavendra Rao gives Telugu film industry another commercial heroine in the form of Tapsee. She has good camera friendly looks and reminded me of Rambha in many ways. She is effervescent and bubbly. She is good at acting too. It is no wonder that she grabbed many projects before the release of her first movie. She is going to be a good glamorous heroine in Telugu. It is up to her to choose right projects to make herself a performing actress too.

Other: Mohan Babu plays the third most important character in the film. It is nice of Mohan Babu to allow others (including comedians) to have satires on him (especially ‘I appreciate you’ dialogue). He is comical most of the time and performed with extreme passion in intense scenes. Brahmanandam entertains though his comedy is of old-fashioned type. Ali is humorous as ‘naa name ranjith. Naa game encounter’. MS Narayana is extremely funny as the sidekick of Mohan Babu. Suman, Dharmavarapu, Apoorva, Sudha, Ahuti Prasad and Aishwarya are adequate. Tanikella Bharani is powerful in a small role.

Technical departments

Story - screenplay - direction: The basic story given by Bhupati Raja is simple. K Raghavendra Rao handled this simple story in a simplistic way by including adequate commercial elements so that it reaches everybody. Screenplay of the movie is adequate. K Raghavendra Rao proves that there is no retirement for creativity and age never becomes a disadvantage while dealing with romantic subjects. He has shown the heroine Tapsee in the most glamorous way. He also made sure that there is something in the film for A/B/C center audiences. There are a few old-fashioned scenes for the sake of commercial elements. But they are minimal and they don’t disturb the flow of the narration. There is trademark of K Raghavendra Rao in songs picturization of the movie.

Other departments: Music by MM Keeravani is good and background music is also handled well. I rate the 3rd song (shot in Kerala) as the best song in the movie. The last song (desamante Mattikadoi) is the life of the movie. All songs are picturized colourfully. Cinematography by S Gopal Reddy is very good. However, he should have shot stunt sequences in a better way. Dialogues by Rajasimha are good. Editing by Marthand K Venkatesh is smooth. Art direction by Raghu is neat. Production values by debutant producer Lakshmi Manchu are very good with rich visuals.

Analysis: First half of the movie is nice. Tempo goes down in the second half a bit. The climax song makes it up for all. Plus points of the film are main leads (Manoj’s comedy and Tapsee’s glamour) and K Raghavendra Rao’s commercial elements coupled with attractive music/visuals. On the flip side, old-fashioned story might not be liked by urbane crowds. On a whole, Jhummandi Naadam is a film that has something for every kind of audience (A, B or C). It is a K Raghavendra Rao's masala entertainer that has all ingredients do well at box office.

Verdict : Below Average not up to the mark

Movie: Villian
My Rating: 2.5/5
Banner: Madras Talkies, Reliance Big Pictures.
Music: AR Rahman
Cinematography: Santosh Sivan, V. Manikandan
Choreography: Ganesh Acharya, Brinda, Shobana, Astad Deboo
Audiography: Tapas
Editing: Sreekar Prasad
Producers: Mani Ratnam, Sharada
Screenplay & Direction : Kodi Rama Krishna
Cast: Vikram, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Prithviraj, Karthik, Priyamani etc
Release Date: 18th Jun 2010

Review

Story

Mani Rathnam’s romanticism becomes villain for this movie. The only soothing effect is that Mani Rathnam released the audience in right duration but didn’t rubbed the heads with his narration for 3 long hours. The movie publicized with huge hype and it’s even said that it got 3-4 times of investment much before its release. Big star cast right from Aishwarya Rai, Vikram, Prithviraj, Karteek and Prabhu increased expectations. And even the news about the presence of Ranjitha (Nityananda sex scandal fame) also made many heads turn towards this film.

But as the movie starts and goes, audience kept on distracting from the narrative. There is no lighter moment, no gripping sequence, no in-depth characterization and above all a wrongly made modern Ramayan. Lord Rama is depicted in police officer Prithviraj who even kills Vibheeshana’s replica.

Lord Rama in this film is more work oriented than showing love towards his wife. He never sheds tears after listening to the news that his wife got kidnapped. And on the other hand Raavan’s replica (Vikram) is shown as hero. He is good at heart and respects woman!! What a Raavan is he? Soorpanaka (Priyamani) gets raped by police officers those come along with main protagonist Prithvi Raj. So who is villain in Mani Rathnam’s perspective? Lord Ram or Raavan?? This blasphemy makes the audience take deep breathe and forget about the flick.

No audience can watch it for second time even though an announcement of dinner with Aishwarya Rai is made. It’s a boring journey. Entire movie runs in deep valleys, misty hills, verdant greenery and wet lands. Cinematography scores great. It’s worth spent on this faculty. Music is pretty bad.

Police Cop (Prithivi Raj) makes a futile attempt to arrest the criminal (Vikram). But in the process the police catches hold of his sister (Priyamani) and rapes her. She commits suicide with the insult. Then her brother kidnaps the Cop’s wife (Aishwarya Rai) to take revenge. The Cop goes in search of her and on the way he meets a suspended forest office employee (Karteek) who helps in quest for Cop’s wife. Finally they trace out the place and the Cop gets his wife back. But there is a surprise climax that cannot be revealed here.

Prithvi Raj is ok and Vikram steals the show. Aishwarya Rai is marvelous in her chudis, lecherous in sleeveless and angelic on a whole. Karteek is ok as Hanuman. Prabhu is ok as Kumbhkarna. Ranjitha has a brief presence.

To sum up, it’s the movie for patient audience but not for regular audience those tend to become patients watching this. It’s all much ado about nothing.

VERDICT : Not Upto Mark

Movie: Panchakshari
My Rating: 2.25/5
Banner: Sri Sai Ratna Creations
Music: Chinna
Cinematography: Vasu
Story: Madhu Vipparthi
Editing: Marthand K Venkatesh
Producer: Bommadevara Ramachandra Rao
Screenplay & Direction: Samudra
Cast: Anushka, Pradeep Rawat, Samrat, Brahmanandam, Ali, Nasser, Raghubabu, Ravi, Sudharani, M S, Jeeva, Chandramohan, Subbaraya Sharma, Telangana Sakuntala etc
Release Date: 11th Jun 2010

Review

Story

The hot star Anushka who has swept the audience off their feet with ‘Arundhati’ has now arrived with another strong role.

The movie starts with 1985 backdrop where a girl is born at temple on a stormy night for a couple (Chandramohan and Rajitha). The temple priest who witnesses this, names the girl as Panchakshari. He also says that the girl gets goddess in her once in a year and for rest of 364 days she will be like normal girl.

Panchakshari (Anushka) is regarded as godwoman in the village and the pious devotees regularly do poojas in the temple and they also carry on a grand bonalu festival once in every year and sees goddess coming inside Panchakshari. They ask her some questions and clear their doubts and woes.

There is a cruel villain (Pradeep Rawat) in Janagam wants to pilfer the treasure underneath the temple, as reported by a secret Archeologist. Panchakshari and the devoted people in village become hurdles for him. So he wants to eliminate Panchakshari. Did he get succeeded in that?

On the other hand Honey (Anushka) is a fashion designer in city and has big dreams. She has a loving family and they want her to get married. Telugu Movie Reviews

Sequence of events lead Honey to the Village and she makes few shocking discoveries. Who is Honey? What does Honey do to get out the problems? All this forms the rest of the story.

Artists Performance:

Anushka has done her bit well and she has fitted herself aptly in the form of a city girl and also as a dedicated devotee. However, her character was not etched with intensity which led to hiccups.

Pradeep Rawat as usual flexed his muscles and used the dubbed baritone voice to look heavy. As such, his character could not deliver that evil shade though his screen presence was good.

Samrat was alright, the ‘Magadheera’ track of Brahmi failed to impress, Ali was alright, Nasser was natural, the artist doing Pradeep Rawat’s wife fitted the role well, Chandramohan was usual, Subbaraya Sharma was standard, Telangana Sakuntala, Raghu Babu, Sudha Rani were routine. Others were there to fill the screen.

Fianl Analysis:

The film runs on an age old track and we have seen that from the times of K R Vijaya so the content part was very weak.

The narrative was poor and the poor writing skills were seen. Few important scenes lacked conviction and what was meant to be an emotional scene ended up becoming a comedy scene for the audience. There are many inconsistencies in the script and not one track fails to take off for a continuous time to engage the audience. It is like bits and pieces put together. One can clearly see traces of ‘Ammoru’ ‘Arundhati’ etc but there is no comparison between them and this same old story.

Samudra has got a very silly way of having comedy and the same silliness is seen even in some crucial scenes. He sure has to update himself with the taste of the audience and the ability to involve them in the film.

Anushka’s introduction song must have been canned in the backdrop of some mall instead of temple. Wearing western outfits and shaking her ‘back’ in front of camera is disgusting and proves to be a wrong blend.

Anushka failed to show ‘roudram’ in her eyes in climax shot. She kept the tongue out like a patient before a doctor but not as Mahakali.

Screenplay is not intact and failed to pull audiences interest

Chandramohan revealing his connection with Nazar sounded like a comedy. People are laughing at this amateur scene in theater.

‘Magadheera’ comedy of Brahmanandam is not presented well.

Ali’s comedy started with great expectations but ended up weak.

Aghora’s character couldn’t pump in fear factor but boosted up sense of humor among audiences those were seen cracking jokes looking at that character

The villain factor is poor and the protagonist Panchakshari’s character is not presented with elevation. The initial scene says that Panchakshari is going to be powerful divine girl. But that’s not shown in required tempo afterwards.

Songs are good, cinematography is excellent and the art direction is also impressive. On a whole, this movie is ruled out for A centers and it’s a doubt if B, C center audience patronage this as their taste is also changing from decade to decade. This movie recalls the goddess movies of 80s and early 90s.

VERDICT : Below Average

Movie: Vedam
My Rating: 3/5
Banner: Arca Media
Music: M M Keeravani
Cinematography: Gnanakumar
Editing: Shravan
Producers: Devineni Prasad, Yarlagadda Shobu
Story,Screenplay & Direction: Krish
Cast: Allu Arjun, Manchu Manoj, Anushka, Manoj Bajpai, Ramulu, Lekha Washington, Deeksha Seth, Seiya, Raghu Babu, Satyam Rajesh, Brahmanandam etc
Release Date: 04th June 2010

Review

Story

The talented and intellectual director Krish who gave us ‘Gamyam’ has arrived with yet another venture and this time on a larger scale.

Cable Raju (Allu Arjun) is in love with a rich girl (Deeksha) and he pretends to be a rich guy though he is from a slum and is a cable operator, Vivek (Manoj) wants to become a rockstar while his mother wants him to get into army, Saroja (Anushka) is a prostitute who decides to escape to Hyderabad for better business, Raheem (Manoj Bajpai) is a victim of misunderstanding as a terrorist, Nagaiah (Ramulu) is a victim of poverty and decides to donate his daughter in law’s kidney for the grandson’s education. What fate has in store for each form the rest of the story.

Allu Arjun has come up with a decent act and his role was a mix of comedy and seriousness. The character was etched very well and it is a message oriented one.

Manchu Manoj does hit bit with ease and though he plays a subdued character, he makes his presence felt. One fails to understand why his title credit has been given as ‘Guest appearance’ while he has done a full length role.

Anushka looks seductive and sensuous. However, it doesn’t live up to the hype that has been created. It is a different role for her and she did justice to it.

Manoj Bajpai is a powerhouse of talent but it must be said that his skills were hardly utilized. Telugu Movie Reviews

Ramulu was at ease in front of the camera and he made it look real.

Deeksha was luscious and appealing, Lekha was brief, Saranya was standard, Raghu Babu was regular, Satyam Rajesh gave few smiles. The actor doing the cop’s role was effective while the actor who did the role of ‘Karpuram’ made his presence felt.

Guest appearances of Brahmanandam, Posani and Krish are meaningful.

Good things about ‘Vedam’:

There is a message for ambitious youth if they wish to take..

* 'Never aim at something very far and do mischief to attain that. Listen to your conscience if you are doing wrong that time' (Allu Arjun- Nagayya episode)
* ‘Never assume that there are many people to help those are in needy, and you are not one among them. You too may need help and you may find a true helper from the man who you troubled’ (Sardarjee-Manoj episode)
* ‘Never brand anyone with religion’ (Manoj Bajpai-inspector episode)
* ‘Look at sex workers with different perspective. After all, prostitution is the oldest profession which is still continuing in every part of the world’ (Anushka-Karpooram episode)
* ‘Look at the poorest of the poor in the society those are getting their basic needs by selling their body parts’ (Nagayya episode)

Final Analysis:

The film arrives with a lot of expectations given the names associated with it. But, this is not a formula movie that entertains everyone. This movie is for sensible audiences who can melt their hearts for sensitive aspects of society.

It is basically a narration of various characters with different backdrops and challenges in life. While the depiction of that aspect is good, it is always essential to develop content on that. The makers have come up with a good attempt to portray the elements of good and evil.

Dialogues were impressive at few places, background score was impact creating and songs are also good both for eyes and ears. The real show stealer was the cinematography. Script was okay.

The storyline is routine but the difference is there are multiple characters and how they are brought together is the variety. While the first half and second half are engaging and different tracks are handled well, the climax loses momentum and gets a bit dragging. Someone with a caliber of Krish could have portrayed a different backdrop for it. On a whole, Krish proved to be a director with material in him.

The key is for the audience to connect to any one of the characters and that didn’t happen here. Overall, the film can be credited for the attempt to give a realistic outlook on life and the choices individuals make at a particular moment. Still, it could have been much impact creating if content was deep.

On a whole, the movie brings tears in a couple of scenes and Allu Arjun excelled in them. Manchu Manoj was stated to be in guest appearance, but he has a full length role. The message is ulterior but it is a sincere movie with idealistic idea portraying darker side of 5 lives.

Bottom Line: Except climax rest is heart touching

VERDICT : Good

Movie: Golimaar
My Rating: 2.5/5
Banner: Sri Sai Ganesh Productions
Music: Chakri
Cinematography: Shyam K Naidu
Editing: Marthand K Venkatesh
Producer: Bellamkonda Suresh
Story, Dialogues, Screenplay, Direction: Puri Jagannadh
Cast: Gopichand, Priyamani, Kelly Dorjee, Nasser, Roja, Ali, Mukhtar Khan, MS Narayana, Shawar Ali, Jeeva etc
Release Date: 27th May 2010

Review

Story

Gangaram (Gopi) fulfills his childhood ambition of becoming a police officer and in no time, DIG Bharath (Nasser) promotes him to an encounter specialist. He tells Gangaram to wipe away the gangs of Khaleel (Kelly Dorjee) and Saleem (Shavar Khan). Gangaram begins his clean up task and in this process; he also gets to meet Pavitra (Priyamani). However, there is a twist which awaits him and what happens from there forms the rest of the story.

Gopichand has done his bit as required and he is only saving grace in the movie. He looks rather mild this time. But then, he has done a decent job.

Priyamani is not good and she looked with over dosed layers of make up that made her unattractive.

Kelly Dorjee has sharp looks but as usual, the characterization of the villain is not that strong. Being a powerful don, he ends up behaving like a small time ring leader in a slum. Telugu Movie Reviews

Nasser was natural, Roja was disgusting, Ali was not required, Mukhtar Khan was just around, M S Narayana was average, Jeeva, Shawar Khan and others filled the screen space.

Here are a few vital points that the director should understand:

* Comedy should be dosed well for this genre of films
* Care should be taken at the placement of songs
* How may times the story of Dayanayak will be recycled? People have watched Ab Tak Chappan and Sidhdham
* Heroine should be glamorous and lovable but not irritable

Final Analysis:

The film is said to have been inspired by the life of Daya Naik, the famous encounter specialist. However, one can see traces of top cops like Walter Devaram (Tamil nadu), Pradeep Sharma (Mumbai), Aftab Ahmed Khan etc. But then, this is a serious domain that deals with hardcore criminals and life threatening situations.

And Puri ended up treating it like a filmy affair. Movies like ‘Ab Tak Chappan’ always stand as benchmarks for such genre of movies. The intensity was missing here, dialogues were regular and were good at very few places, the script was not engaging. Above all, Puri is known for his master stroke and unfortunately, there is no flash of brilliance seen in the film that makes you think that yes, it is indeed a film by him. He tried to bring in some twists but they weren’t presented with required depth.

The technical values were okay and there is absolutely no comedy track. This is not to compare the film with ‘Pokiri’ but for a man who has given us a marvel like that, ‘Golimaar’ is definitely not a flick of his caliber.

VERDICT : Average

Movie: Awara
My Rating: 2.5/5
Banner: Thirupathi Brothers
Music: Yuan Shankar Raja
Cinematography: Mathi
Editing: Anthony
Producer: Subhash Chandra Bose
Story,Screenplay & Direction: Linguswamy
Cast: Karthi, Tamanna, Milind Soman etc
Release Date: 21st May 2010

Review

Story

Shiva (Karthi) is a carefree guy who no goal in life. He falls in love with a girl called Charu Latha (Tamanna) at first sight. He acts as a cab driver in order to get to know her. She is in trouble and he needs to save her from the goons sent by her bad father who wants to forcibly marry her off. Shiva likes the idea of spending some time with her in cab while saving her from goons. She asks him to take her to Mumbai and his past in that city catches up with him as he reaches Mumbai. The rest of the story is all about how Shiva attracts the attention of Charu and wins her love in the middle of chases and fights.

Artists Performance:

Karthi shed some weight compared to his debut film Yuganiki Okkadu. He has unique sweetness and innocence his face though he looks rough. He should be appreciated more because he has taken pains to learn Telugu and dub his own voice. For a first timer he has done reasonably good job with dubbing and he will improve his diction and flow as he do more movies. He is a decent actor. Tamanna is endearing as a girl in trouble. Sonia (Happy Days fame) did the role of one of friends of hero and she is good (she didn’t dub her voice). Milind Soman is alright as the villain. All other actors are of non-Telugu origin. Telugu Movie Reviews

Technical Departments:

Basically it is a road movie where hero who is in love with heroine goes to any extent to be in presence of her. He does everything to protect her from all evil forces and there by winning her love. Films of this nature are extremely difficult to narrate because they have single thread and they don’t afford the luxuries of typical Telugu/Tamil commercial paddings. Director Linguswamy comes up with an engaging first half, but runs out of ideas in second half where he had to fill it up with continuous fights. Screenplay of the movie is very good except for the latter portion of the movie.

Other Departments: Music by Yuan Shankar Raja is nice. Most of the songs in this film are situational with montage shots. Cinematography by Mathi is good. Dialogues are laced with humor. Editing by Anthony is adequate. Fights are well choreographed.

Fianl Analysis:

First half of the movie is entertaining. Second half is little heavy with continuous fights. The plus points of the movie are engaging storytelling and the lead pair. On the flip side, the story line might prove to be too thin for a film of 2 and half hours of runtime. On a whole, Awara is a decent road movie with adequate entertainment.

VERDICT : Average

Movie: Andari Bandhuvaya
My Rating: 3.75/5
Banner: Utopia Entertainers
Music: Anup Rubens
Cinematography: Gummadi Jayakrishna
Written By: Balabhadrapatruni Ramani
Producer: RK, Chandra Siddartha
Direction: Chandra Siddartha
Cast: Sharwanand, Padmapriya, Naresh, RK, M S Narayana, Krishna Bhagawan, Vijay Sai, Pragathi, Jeeva etc
Release Date: 14th May 2010

Review

Story

Nandu (Sharwanand) hails from a village and he comes to the city. He has a helpful nature and doesn’t hesitate to go out of his way to help others. His colleague Paddu (Padmapriya) is stingy to the core and believes in money saving. A situation leads Nandu to take a portion for rent in the home of Paddu and on another instance, he rushes to see his father (Naresh) in the village. Paddu accompanies him and it is here she experiences the human values and touch. New issues crop up and how Nandu and Paddu face them forms the rest of the story.

Artists Performance:

Sharwanand has been evolving as an actor with each passing movie. After his commendable performance in ‘Prasthanam’ this is yet another valuable performance in his career. He is getting better and better. He performed with great élan in many scenes and portrayed emotions wonderfully.

Padmapriya is a vision of beauty and though her low economic character makes her poor, the natural beauty still glows at all possible sequences. She has proved her mettle in the acting department as well. She appeared like senior Suhasini in some scenes. Telugu Movie News

Naresh has come up with one of his best performances in the recent past. He fits the bill well and there are few touching moments he gives.

Krishna Bhagawan was outright hilarious. His timing and his style of dialogue delivery gives splits of laughter. He is proving to be one of the most reliable comedians for the Telugu audience and is simply ‘unbeatable’.

The others were quite impressive. Especially RK, the TV artiste who plays the role of Padmapriya’s sister wearing sari, the NRI groom, they have given an impressive performance. Pragathi was natural and others were okay.

Final Analysis:

It’s a joy to watch a good movie 48 hours before the world watches it, in a premiere show. It’s a movie made by the director of ‘Aa Naluguru’. I starting watching the movie with closed mind-set at the outset. For my eyes those have watched grandeur of artificial settings on screen in many films, initially, it sounded dull and low. I looked at the hero in this film as ‘perfectionist material’ who may bring boredom through out the movie. But slowly, something captivated me and I was drowned in the bliss of humanity. I could see a Utopian Village, Utopian hero and Utopian thought…! It went on as a pleasant journey on the waters of humanity.

Any audience watches a movie connecting himself to the hero on screen. He enjoys the bliss of watching something that hero does, which he cannot do in real life. That has been the success of any cinema since 77 years in India. That has been the connection between the screen hero and common audience. If that were the case, in stead of getting connected to the violent and vulgar elements in a hero, it sounds certainly better to connect with the humanity, sacrifice and service motive in him that can be practiced in daily life.

‘Andari Bandhuvaya’ is one such movie which happens very seldom on Telugu screen. Such films should reach every eye and then surely it reaches its heart. Indeed, it’s a movie that culminates the essence of humanity with eyes and heart. One needs to look at the world with the eyes of this protagonist and need to speak with the heart of the same.

It’s a practical Vedanta, the movie showcases. ‘Live for others to enjoy the true nectar of life’ is the epitome of this film. Many dialogues and scenes in this film cut the heart deep and groove-in a pure form of thought. Writer Balabhadrapaatruni Ramani deserves right mention here.

“Pakshulaki konchem dhanyam, pasuvulaki konchem ghraasam, manishiki konchem saayam- ade jeevitam”- What a quotable dialogue?!

“Bathakadame kaadu, chaavadam kooda costly ye”- What a reality if we look at the present expensive last days on Corporate Hospital beds?!

“Nee Daggara koorchuni kaasepu edavochchaa?!”- What a human angle?! The scene between Padmapriya and Sharwanand is indeed moving.

The film is a feel good treat and it gives a strong message of how a positive outlook in life is required in today’s commercial and materialistic world. It might be too unrealistic to expect the viewers to transform once they see the film but even if one implements or demonstrates atleast 5% of the kindness then the world will be a much better place to live in. This is a clean family entertainer with its own element of humor, sentiment, drama and attachment. The dialogues are the major highlight of the movie while the script is very strong and intense. Screenplay was effective and it was supported well with the background score. Though two songs were non situational, they were well taken and quite melodious. Lyrics by Chaitanya Prasad are sensible and filled with good poetry. Editing was smooth. Costumes were suitable to the backdrop and the art department was realistic. The film has enough substance to make it big in film festival or bag few awards. All it takes is some gentle effort by the makers to promote it in the right manner. This is suitable for all genre of audience and everyone will have a point or two to take back home and use it in their life. Credit must be given to Chandra Siddartha for coming up with a thoughtful venture.

Youngsters should watch it and parents should make their children watch it to cultivate human values.

VERDICT : Good Movie Watchable

Movie: Rama Rama Krishna Krishna
My Rating: 2.5/5
Banner: Sri Venkateswara Creations
Music: M M Keeravani
Cinematography: Sekhar V Joseph
Editing: Gautham Raju
Dialogues: M Ratnam
Art: AS Prakash
Producer: Dil Raju
Story,Screenplay & Direction: Srivass
Cast: Arjun, Ram, Priya Anand, Bindu Madhavi, Nasser, Banerjee, Sayaji Shinde, Brahmanandam, Srinivas Reddy, Pragathi, Bharath, Gracy Singh etc
Release Date: 12th May 2010

Review

Story

Rama Krishna (Ram) is the son of a Gandhipuram village president (Nassar). His father is a strict disciplinarian and wants Rama Krishna to be perfect. Rama Krishna is a funny youngster who pretends to be good in the presence of his father but does a lot of mischief on his back. Ashok (Arjun) is a mafia don in Mumbai and he goes into a sabbatical after the death of his his wife. Ashok along with his two sisters settles in Gandhipuram. Rama Krishna unfortunately gets in to the bad books of Ashok. Meanwhile,. Ashok’s past catches up. The rest of the story is all about how Rama Krishna uses his intelligence and muscle power to achieve the good will of both his father and Ashok. Telugu Movie Reviews

Artists Performance:

Ram comes up with yet another energetic performance. His dialogue delivery in Godavari dialect is nice. NTR gave the voiceover to the introducing of hero character.

Arjun suited the role well and he dubbed his own voice. Priya Anand is alright as female lead.
Bindu Madhavi’s role is pretty much limited. Naseer is extremely good. Brahmanandam’s character doesn’t offer required level of comedy.

Pruthvi and Bharat are entertaining. Srinivas Reddy is one of the most promising comedians who can generate laughter with his dialogues like Ali and Krishna Bhagawan. He is good in this movie. Gracy Singh did a small role as Arjun’s wife. Sekhar’s (Chatrapati fame) performance is odd in the first half.

Technical Departments:

Story of the movie is little formulaic with inspirations from films like Basha (Arjun’s character) and Bangaru Bullodu (villains searching for hero in villages). Unlike earlier movies, the director preferred straight narration where the mafia don’s role is revealed in the first scene of the movie. Srivas penned a commercially viable screenplay by mixing sentiment and action. The aspect of interval where the thread of hero converges with the thread of Arjun is the best point of the movie. Direction of the movie is okay in parts.

Title song and Sankranthi song (2nd song) in this movie are nice. Tugo Jilla comes at the right time. All other songs are not effective. The song bits (mostly rap style) are interesting. Cinematography by Sekhar V Joseph is just okay. But the producer didn’t seem to have taken proper care in post-production of the movie. There is no DI (color grading). Most of the CG work is okay (chase sequences and blasting of vehicles), but it’s hazy in some of the vital parts (especially hero’s intro scene). Dialogues by M Ratnam are good in parts. Production values are good by Dil Raju.

Final Analysis:

First half of the movie is alright. Interval episode is good. Second half becomes predictable. Climax should have been better. The plus points of this movie are Ram, Arjun and commercial elements. This movie suffers from predictability and lack of freshness in second half. On a whole, RRKK is a commercial film that is intended to cater to families and masses. We have to wait and see if this movie clicks with the target audiences or not.

VERDICT : Average

Movie: Super Cowboy
My Rating: 1/5
Banner: SGS Entertainments
Music: G V Prakash Kumar
Cinematography: Azhagappan
Editing: Raja Mohammad
Producers: Kalpathi Agoram, Kalpathi Ganesh
Story,Screenplay & Direction: Simbu Devan
Cast: Lawrence, Padmapriya, Lakshmi Rai, Sandhya, Sai Kumar, Nasser, Manorama, Delhi Ganesh, Ilavarasu, Vaiyapuri, Ramesh Khanna, M S Bhaskar etc
Release Date: 7th May 2010

Review

Story

An ordinary watchman, Simhachalam (lawrence) faces accusation of stealing Texas Mullangi, a diamond and before he is hanged, he is saved by few cowboys (ramesh khanna, ilavarasu etc). They want him to come to their town as Simham (lawrence) who is a renegade sharp shooter but kind hearted person. They want to put an end to Nalla Thraachu (nasser) and his Inumu Kota. Is Simhachalam successful in this and whether he gets his Texas Mullangi or not forms the rest of the story.

Artists Performance:

Lawrence Raghava is usual and he has done his antics. He has shouldered the film alright and perhaps few more steps in the songs would have added that extra punch to the masses.

Padmapriya is a stunner, though her role is brief, her naturally beautiful looks give a tender feeling. Lakshmi Rai looks lusty and she made her presence felt, Sandhya was there for a song and was left in between.

Sai Kumar was good and his make up was nice, Nasser did his bit as required and he infuses life into his character though it was looking silly.

Manorama, Delhi Ganesh, Ramesh Khanna, Ilavarasu did their bit as required and added value. The highlight among the comedy gang is the duo of M S Bhaskar and his translator Vaiyapuri who have provided very good laughs. Telugu Movie Reviews

Highlights: There were few interesting highlights such as

* the statue of Raja Nala with one liner on that as ‘bhayankara villain la aasajyoti’,
* the area name against Tamil cowboy-star Jai Shankar,
* the sponsor ad at the treasure trove
* the toll gate in the rocky terrains and
* the interpreter comedy between tribals and Telugu speaking protagonists huge art work

Set-Backs:

* Predictable old story line
* No depth of emotions
* Weak music
* Weak Choreography
* Unfinished ending (what happened to the character of Sandhya)
* Boring first half

Final Analysis:

The film is a dubbed version of the Tamil film ‘Irambu Kottai Murattu Singham’ and it must be said that it is a collation of the Hollywood and Tollywood western flicks.

Few scenes were got from ‘Kodhama Simham’ and ‘Mackennas Gold’. Though the presentation was top notch, it is the narrative and the content which was weak. The dialogues were witty and humorous, the script was weak and the screenplay was mediocre.

Background score was not up to the mark and songs were a let down. Cinematography was the real savior of the film along with the locations and exceptionally done settings by the art department.

While the first half was mild and dragging, things pick up during the second half before the climax drags a bit.

Overall, the film will appeal in bits and pieces and it is more of a visual appeal than a good adventurous story. Perhaps a focus on the utilization of the sex appeal of Lakshmi and Padmapriya along with good dose of humor would have done the trick at the box office.

VERDICT : Very Poor

Movie: Simha
My Rating: 3.75/5
Banner: United Movies
Music: Chakri
Cinematography: Arthur Wilson
Editing: Kotagiri Venkateswara Rao
Producer: Paruchuri Kireeti
Story,Screenplay,Dialogues & Direction: Boyapati Sreenu
Cast: Nandamuri Balakrishna, Nayantara, Sneha Ullal, Namitha, K R Vijaya, Saikumar (Malayalam), Hemanth, Rehman, Kota, Brahmi, Ali, Venu Madhav, Dharmavarapu, L B Sriram, Krishna Bhagawan etc
Release Date: 30th April 2010

Review

Story

Sriman Narayana (NBK) is a lecturer at a college and he is known for his strict way, he doesn’t stand injustice and bashes the bulbs out of anyone. In this process, he meets Janaki (Sneha) and she falls for him in due course. But Janaki has got a flashback which has to do with Sriman Narayana as well. What is that flashback? Who is Sriman Narayana? All this forms the rest of the story.

Artists Performance:

Balakrishna has come back to his original form with his punch dialogues, typical body language and mass appeal. However, age is showing on him and voice has stuttered a bit, overall he carried his bit well with his blissful smile.

Sneha Ullal is sweet but her blank expressions still continue. She must learn to open her mouth and speak while saying the dialogues. Looks wise she rocks. telugu-film-reviews.blogspot.com

Nayantara looks elegant and is all decked up like a bride at all times. Her role was brief but she did justice to it.

Namitha covers half of the screen and seems to be building up pounds with each passing film. It is about time she does something about her flab.

K R Vijaya has come back after a hiatus of sorts but she still has that composure and grace, she was the apt choice for her role.

Sai Kumar (Malayalam) was okay, Aditya Menon was apt, he has strong screen presence, Brahmi was wasted, Ali was not used, Krishna Bhagawan was barely there, Venu brought few forced smiles, Rehman was standard, LB was regular, Kota was nice, Jeevi, Kinnera, Shravan, Anand Bharathi, Sana and others did their bit to add value.

Technical Departments:

Story of the movie is not new, but follows a time-tested formula. Boyapati Seenu who mastered mass treatment to his movies like Bhadra and Tulasi made sure that there are ample commercial elements that satisfy the thrust of masses and fans. He projected Bala Krishna in the right way and extracted powerful mass performance. Screenplay of the movie is predictable. Direction is good in parts. Though masses might like it, the violence in the movie is very excessive. He should have softened blood-shed and tamed the commercial elements to make this movie a universally appealing one.

Music by Chakri is okay. Bangaru Konda is nice and it is picturized well. Cinematography is nice. Dialogues by Boyapati Seenu deserve a special mention. He wrote powerful dialogues to Bala Krishna and made sure that Bala Krishna delivers them to the maximum effect. Editing is alright. Producer has spent a lot of money on the movie and it is shown on screen.

Final Analysis:

Songs scored good marks on a whole.

‘Simha Simha…’ was shot on Namita and Balakrishna and it’s visually just ok.
‘Orabba..’ is the number shot in a pub with Balayya, Namitha and Sneha Ullal. When Sneha Ullal was seen in a frame with Namitha, she looked like a scooty beside lorry.
‘Bangaru Konda..’ has captivated with rich costumes on Nayantara and Balayya.
‘Kanulara..’ is on Nayan, Balayya and family members in temple background which is good to watch
‘Janaki Janaki..’ is with Balayya and Sneha Ullal and that’s good to watch.
The song ‘Achcha hai acha hai…’ is missing totally. Telugu Movie Reviews

First half is average with no exciting moments and the second half is packed with high dose action-, although predictable. On a whole, it’s a treat for fans, headache for family audiences and a disappointment for those who wish to watch something new and fresh.

After a long gap, it’s a relief for Balakrishna’s fans. The movie scores good this time. But there is no freshness in story line or narration part. It’s the same old cutting heads with axe and there is some change in the design of weapon. The climax sequence is lifted from Magadheera with the fight scene in the same old place where the protagonist’s father fights and dies.

The dialogues of Balayya brought good response in theatres:

Nenu maatladetappudu nee chevule pani cheyyali. Adi tappa vere edainaa pani cheste neeku next birth day undadhu.

Charitra srushtinchalanna, tiraga raayalanna maa vamsame cheyyaali

Although they aren’t great dialogues to underline, the fans those awaited an action packed movie from many years are taking them as holy sentences.

In a fight scene Balayya’s punch of the fist lands on the face of a patient who lies in coma for 28 years. The patient gets up instantly. Doctors get stunned and exclaim, “Wow! What a wonder. Science andani power itani punch lo undi”. Thank god! The director limited the exaggeration with one scene. Otherwise, it would have become another omnibus of exaggerations.

VERDICT : Good Treat For Balayya Fans

Movie: Darling
My Rating: 2.75/5
Banner: Sri Venkateshwara Cine Chitra
Music: GV Prakash
Fights: Peter Heins
Editing: K Venkateswara Rao
Producer: BVSN Prasad
Direction: Karunakar
Cast: Prabhas, Kajal, Shradhdha Das, Mukesh Rishi, Prabhu, Chandra Mhan, Ahuti Prasad, MS Narayana, Sivannarayana, Tulasi, Kota, Srinivas Reddy etc
Release Date: 23rd Apr 2010

Review

Story

The movie starts with enthusiastic 1980 backdrop in black and white. The college mates disperse after farewell and they keep themselves in contact even after decades.

Prabha (Prabhas) is the son of one of those old friends (Prabhu) and Nandini (Kajal) is the daughter of another (Ahuti Prasad). They live in various places. Telugu Movie Reviews

A lady (Shradhdha Das) loves Prabha and proposes him. But he negates. The father of that lady is a goon (Mukesh Rishi) who surrounds Prabha and his friends’ gang for negating his daughter. To escape from that goon Prabha narrates his flash back stating that he has love interest by name Nandini and he met her in Switzerland. The goon leaves him knowing that.

After a while, the old friends wish to have old friends’ reunion with families. They all meet in a village and how Prabha and Nandini meet again (?) and end up with love-union forms rest of the story. Many twists, turns and secrets will be unleashed in narration for the entertainment of audience.

Artists Performance:

Prabhas is at his best. His gait, his glow, his performance and confidence carried the movie happily.

Kajal enticed audiences with her magnetism. Shradhdha Das, although had small role, she made her presence felt.

Mukesh Rishi is ok as goon but he has lighter vein characterization.

Chandramohan, Ahuti Prasad, Prabhu, Tulasi, MS Narayana are all ok.

Sivannarayana performs comedy up to the perfection with his single dialogue ‘tinnaaaraa..!!??”. Kota has no dialogue at all in the film.

Music is bad. Background score is poor. If those were good, the movie would have scored well among audience. It is single line story but narrated in three layers. It’s all screenplay technique that which may be liked by many.

Final Analysis:

Watching this movie is not like eating an apple or banana but like chewing an orange. You need to spit the seeds and enjoy the rest. It surely entertains but lacks in consistency. It’s good in bits and pieces but cannot be declared ‘wholesome wonder’. The major asset for this movie is Prabhas who handled the audience with his great looks and confident performance. Female audiences definitely feel ectopic tintinnabulations in their heart. Action part, generally finds it difficult to get encomiums. But Peter Heins stood as top entertainer in this movie with his wonderful composition of fights. Telugu-Film-Reviews.blogspot.com

The best parts of the movie are:
Prabhas
Peter Hein’s fight compositions
‘Kadupu Manta’ scene between Prabhas and Srinivas Reddy
Inka Edo song picturization
Watching Hyderabad with Switzerland snowfall

The director has rightly used the technical elements to make the movie a pleasant feel to watch. The entire movie has got elevated in picture quality due to DI and other effects. Technically on a whole, with editing, cinematography and CG stands great. But the main factor of the movie, the music, is unpleasant. RR is also very weak and failed to bring in right elevation for narration.

First half is entertaining but declares to be a fiction by interval (watch it to get clarity). Second half is on beaten track with predictable screenplay. Climax is crisp and closed on lighter note without any extraaaas.

The film has got the muscle to run in theatres for some time with summer factor and bits and pieces of entertainment.

VERDICT : Average

Movie: Prasthaanam
My Rating: 3/5
Banner: V R C Media and Entertainments
Music: Mahesh Shankar
Cinematography: Shyam Dutt
Editing: Dharmendra Kakarala
Producer: Vallabhaneni Ravi
Direction, Story & Screenplay: Deva Katta
Cast: Sharwanand, Sandeep, Sai Kumar, Ruby Parihar, Jeeva, Jayaprakash Reddy, Vennela Kishore, Surekha Vani, Reshma, Ghosh, master Atulith etc
Release Date: 16th Apr 2010

Review

Story

Lokanath (Saikumar) is very active in politics and is a key person to a party. A sequence of events gets his leader killed and he ends up marrying the leader’s wife and looks after their family.

Deceased leader’s son Mitra (Sharwanand) follows Loki’s footsteps and grows as a leader. However, Loki has his own son Chinna (Sandeep) who is keen on entering politics but is disregarded.

He turns against everyone and that creates a major chaos in the family. What happens after that forms the rest of the story. telugu-film-reviews.blogspot.com

Artists Performance:

Sharwanand has got a key role to play but then the first half sees him rather subdued, it is during the second half one gets to see his potential. Given the powerful character, Sharwanand should have worked on his dialogue delivery at few places. Overall, he did a good job.

Sandeep is a revelation. Despite his fresh attempt, he has shown phenomenal confidence in front of the camera and has scored the brownie points. His performance leaves an impact and he has got a bright future.

Sai Kumar is apt for the role and shows the required maturity and composure. Few of his dialogues were intense and deep but only the dialogue king can give that punch to it. He should start focusing on bagging more roles on the silver screen and utilize his potential to the fullest.

Jeeva was the best bet as contractor Basireddy and he shows enough venom, Jayaprakash Reddy was hilarious, Vennela Kishore failed to impress, Ghosh as inspector made his presence felt, he is one to look out for in the future, Ruby was there for songs, Surekha Vani was standard, Reshma looks ravishingly beautiful, more focus should be kept on her. The other artistes who hail from the ‘Chakravaakam’ serial have done a fabulous job.

Final Analysis:

The film is ideally a political thriller but it is merely a backdrop that depicts the various shades of human emotions and how man can resort to extremities in life purely out of greed. The dialogues were mind blowing but a few could go above the head for the mass audience, the script was strong and the screenplay was effective. Background score was awesome and all the songs were good. Full marks to cinematography and art department, editing was crisp. The real strength of the film is the dialogues and the storyline.

On the flip side, two songs during the second half were unnecessary and they have dragged the film to an extent. The film is quite serious and there is a strong dose of philosophy despite the scenarios.

Content wise the movie has got it all but in a layman sense, there are places when the mass audience will find it hard to connect. The first half goes of breezily but the second half gets dragged to an extent.

Not much of a thing for family audience. Overall, this is a hard hitting treat and deals with complex human emotions so those who like such stuff will relish it.

VERDICT : First Half is Execellent and Second Half OK

Movie: Betting Bangarraju
My Rating: 3/5
Banner: Usha Kiron Movies
Music: Sekhar Chandra
Cinematography: Karuna Murthy
Editing: Gautham Raju
Dialogues: Gandham Nagaraju
Producer: Ramoji Rao
Direction & Screenplay: E Satti Babu
Cast: Allari Naresh, Nidhi, Kota, Raghu Babu, Amit, Samrat, Sri Akshay, Pilla Prasad, Vijay Sai, Krishna Bhagawan, L B Sriram, Chalapathi Rao, Surekha Vani, Sana, Kalyani etc
Release Date: 9th Apr 2010

Review

Story

Bangarraju (Naresh) is known for his betting activities and he is destined with a golden spoon of luck, what we call ‘Sudi’. His life takes a turn when he decides to marry a city girl and chances upon Divya (Nidhi) when he reaches the city. He proposes to her and is surprised to know there are three others (Amit, Samrat, Sri Akshay) in the race. Divya invites all of them for a test. Who wins the test forms the rest of the story. Telugu Movie Reviews

Artists Performance:

Allari Naresh, as usual was at his best but this time, there was not much punch or satire in his dialogues, otherwise he shouldered the film well.

Nidhi has beautiful eyes and very sweet expressions but then she may not be the heroine material so it could be that she might have a small innings, otherwise her performance is good.

Amit looks handsome and his dialogue delivery is also strong. He fits the role very well and he can take up few meatier roles and for a change anything with positive traits will do him good.

Samrat is tall and handsome but has a strained body language. If he can pump some confidence in his body language then it could work well

Sri Akshay have good looks and also performed satisfactorily well with his dialogue delivery and other aspects of acting.

Raghu Babu has a busy day and he entertains to a great extent, Krishna Bhagawan was witty, Kota was standard, the ladies did their bit as required. Pilla Prasad, Vijay Sai were okay. The character of ‘Savam’ was hilarious. Chalapathi Rao, L B, Venu, Duvvasi did their bit as required and added value.

Final Analysis:

The film is basically a comedy treat and enough attempts have been made to keep the smile intact on the faces of the audience. The dialogues were witty at few places, but the script was lengthy and the screenplay was above average.

Cinematography was neat, background score was okay and one song is worth taking home. Editing was required at key points. The film suffers mainly due to three different backdrops (Gribabu episode, Krishna Bhagawan episode and village episode) so connecting to the scenes takes time.

Also, the pace of the film was mild and if there was speed in it, the impact would have been much stronger. But still, with some interesting sequences and involved performances, Bangarraju has it all score profits in the box office. Perhaps the producer should have opened his purse and spend a little of his money on bringing in more branded artists to give that crowd pulling factor.
VERDICT : Entertainer

Movie: Mouna Raagam
My Rating: 2/5
Banner: Sri Saideva Productions
Music: S A Rajkumar
Cinematography: Shaman Mitru
Editing: Goutham Raju
Producers: N V Prasad, S. Naga Ashok Kumar
Story,Screenplay & Direction: Vijay Balaji
Cast: Tanish, Madhurima, Suhasini, Venu, Chandramohan, M S, Ali, Jeeva, AVS, Dharmavarapu, Hema, Madhavi etc
Release Date: 8th Apr 2010

Review

Story

Chandu (Tanish) is in deep love with his maradalu Kaveri (Suhasini) and does many sacrifices for her since childhood. She grows up, gets a job but dumps Chandu because of his poor status. In between this comes Sandhya (Madhurima) who has got a flashback of her own and she stays with Chandu due to unavoidable circumstances. When Chandu is shattered due to Kaveri’s words, Sandhya gives him strength and together they decide to beat the odds in life. Whether they are successful or not forms the rest of the story.

Artists Performance:

Tanish has emoted well at many places and fits the role to gain sympathy but then he has to improvise on his dubbing. The voice still sounds childish; Tanish must modulate it and make it sound like a man’s voice.

Madhurima looks absolutely stunning and has a lot of oomph and appeal. Her comfort in front of the camera is also high. All she needs is a break with a big banner and she has bright future. Telugu Movie Reviews

Suhasini has a very high dose of homely sex appeal and has made good use of her presence.

Venu tried his best to bring few laughs, Ali was brief, Dharmavarapu had a serious role, M S Narayana was regular, Hema, Ramaprabha, Madhavi and others did their bit as required. The youngster doing the role of Gautam has good personality but not the right kind of looks. Jeeva was effective. Kasi Viswanath came and went.

Final Analysis:

There was a bike sentient in the movie ‘Ride’ that brought success for Tanish. Now there is bike concept in this movie’s script as well (with heroine Madurima’s character) and that might have inspired Tanish to some extent to sign on this film.

The film is more of a ‘pulisina perugu’ theme. The director realizes the importance of sentiment and heart feeling and refers it as Curd rice. Undoubtedly, he was right in that and he gets that on the screen through one of his character but then he must realize that the curd has to be fresh and not 3-4 days old.

Looking at the film, one gets a feeling of the late 90s. We have seen that in movies like ‘Raja’ and the other one with Srikanth and Soundarya. Secondly, the film was dragged at unwanted places due to which the feel at the right scene got missed.

For instance, the climax scene where the bike is launched, it looks like a sentimental skit of entertainment before the real program begins. It doesn’t fit the climax part and loses momentum.

Overall, the film was good at few places and had a message to convey but the depth was missing in it. Lyrics were good, cinematography was ok, dialogues were plain, screenplay was average. Commercially, the presence of Madhurima will pull some crowds and few sequences will touch few young hearts but overall, it will require a great deal of publicity to take it to the success mark.

VERDICT : Below Average

Movie: Varudu
My Rating: 2.5/5
Banner: Universal Media
Music: Mani Sharma
Cinematography: R D Rajasekhar
Editing: Anthony
Dialogues: Thota Prasad
Producer: D V V Danayya
Direction, Story & Screenplay: Gunasekhar
Cast: Allu Arjun, Bhanusree Mehra, Arya, Ashish Vidyarthi, Suhasini, Naresh, Vinaya, Nasser, Rao Ramesh, Sayaji Shinde, Ahuti Prasad, Brahmanandam, Singeetam Srinivasa Rao etc
Release Date: 31st Mar 2010

Review

Story

Sandeep (Allu Arjun) is a happy go lucky guy who is fun loving but very traditional at heart. He decides to get married in the traditional fashion of five-day events and 16 day celebrations. So much so that he decides not to see the face of the bride until the ‘Jeelakarra Bellam’ time. True to his idealism, even the bride Deepthi (Bhanusri Mehra) sticks to it. Just when they are about to get married, Deepthi gets kidnapped by Diwakar (Arya). Why does Diwakar do that? Does the marriage happen? What happens from there forms the rest of the story. Telugu Movie Reviews

Artists Performance:

Allu Arjun, given his highly energetic image, this comes across as a mild character which was etched out poorly so the flair of Allu Arjun is missing. He needs to work on his dialogue delivery as a lot of accent is surfacing.

Bhanu Mehra is not worth the mystery. Barring the beauty spot on her chin and expressive eyes, there is not much from her in terms of glamour or performance.

Arya has a strong screen presence and powerful eyes but then his role was not drawn properly and he was not used to the fullest potential. However, he brought some life to the movie at few places.

Brahmi was waste, so was Ahuti Prasad, the others like Ashish Vidyarthi, Suhasini, Naresh, Vinaya were just for brand value and they didn’t have much to offer. Singeetam Sreenivasa Rao, the senior director did his bit as required. Lavakusha Nagaraju appears in a single frame. Nasser was natural, Sayaji Shinde was brief, Rao Ramesh came and went. The other bunch of real time families and supporting artistes were there to fill the screen, that’s all.

Highlights:

* CG Work in couple of songs

Meaningless Aspects:

* Fight on twin towers (I visualized them so..somebody said they looked like Nuclear Reactors/ Gas Chambers)
* Truck carrying away the hero along with bike rubbing against the road with sparks…and hero safe and steady
* Hero running away with heroine along with Saline bottle in an action episode

Final Analysis:

It is a laudable thought to come up with a presentation of an authentic Telugu wedding but the difference between a thought and getting it onto the screen is like chalk and cheese which is evident here. Gunasekhar has missed the way to do ‘Varudu’ impressively.

The entire episode of 5-day marriage is covered in just one song out of which, the first Charanam appeared no less like an ‘Ammavari Jaathara’ on screen, the second charanam got covered up with computer graphics. Why the hero wants to go in for a pre historic style of marriage? Is it his idealism? Is it just a fantasy? The questions aren’t answered logically. There is forcible preaching with less convincing dialogues.

Ultimately, what matters is the purpose the film is made at such exorbitant costs and what is the message it is trying to convey. Gunasekhar failed not just in the narration but also in conveying anything to the audience. His focus to bring about visual appeal looked more but he neglected the fundamentals like a strong script, deep content, and attention towards details. Cinematic liberties were used to the fullest and there were some absolutely ridiculous scenes which perplexed the audience at many points. Gunasekhar has always been revered as a brand and not just a director but it is with regret that he has lost it…and that too big time. The film might have a decent opening due to the hype created but given the budget involved; only ‘no-competition factor’ and the presence of Allu Arjun should save it.

VERDICT : Average Tale

Movie: Maro Charitra
My Rating: 2.75/5
Banner: Sri Venkateshwara Creations
Music: Mickey J Meyer
Story : K Balachander
Editing: Marthand K Venkatesh
Producers: Dil Raju, Sirish
Screenplay, Cinematography & Direction: Kodi Rama Krishna
Cast: Varun Sandesh, Anita, Shraddha Das, Adarsh, Prathap Pothan, Urvashi, Naresh, Kota, Venu etc
Release Date: 25th Mar 2010

Review

Story

Set on the backdrop of US, Balu (Varun) comes home discontinuing his course at college and chances upon his neighbor girl Swapna (Anita).

It is love at first sight for both but trouble is with Balu’s father (Prathap) and Swapna’s mother, America Durga (Urvasi). Anyhow, both of them come to a formal agreement in front of their parents that they will not see, talk, meet each other for one full year to prove their love.

What happens in that year, whether they are successful in their love test or not forms the rest of the story. Telugu Movie Reviews

Artists Performance:

Varun Sandesh is energetic as usual and fits the bill of a desi US lad. However, he must put on some flesh to get that manly look and that will help him for the future. He must also control his body language during emotional scenes to show maturity.

Anita is sweet looking and has a natural sex appeal in her. She has the potential to grow but she has to change her dubbing artist. Performance and glamour is proportionate to her in this movie but her character was not etched out strongly.

Shraddha Das has a meaty role and she has shown the actress inside her unlike the regular sex doll image. She looked elegant and level headed.

Adarsh is an apt choice for a negative role, he has the right kind of attitude for such roles. One can see more of him in the coming days.

Prathap Pothan was standard, Urvashi did her bit as required but something is not right about her dubbing artist, Thalaivasal Vijay was not used to the fullest, Kota was as usual, Venu was brief, the lady doing Varun’s mother’s role was neat and timing was good.

Highlights:
Cinematography
Music (although ‘ye teega poovuno..’ and ‘bhale bhale magaadivoy..’ are inferior to original tracks)
Heroine (credit goes to make up, costume and camera departments)

Disappointments:
Mishandling second half
Screenplay hiccups in maintaining emotion graph
Dubbing given to heroine and Urvasi

Final Analysis:

The movie fails to bring in the emotional depth that is required. The audiences get connected to the scenic beauty on screen and the quality presentation but not to the spirit of content.

Certainly, this movie is not for masses. The youth audiences try to connect to some extent but the last few minutes make them laugh at the emotion that is depicted instead of shedding tears. Here are a few scenes those make audience crack jokes and get digressed from the narration.

Hero and heroine recognize each other with heart beat. The scene can be used for perfume Ad but not so fitting here.

Heroine’s father starts giving a speech when he sees her daughter jumping into Niagara along with her boy friend. After his speech, he starts weeping….(audiences laughed at this scene conception).

Shradhdha Das’ character got elevated when she sacrifices her love. Audiences got connected to her grief. But immediately when Babu (Kota Sreenivasa Rao) expresses his feeling with a dramatic liner, the graph has fallen down.

On a whole, the first half of the movie sounds normal and second half suffers with many ups and downs in graph.

The movie can be watched just for witnessing some quality presentation and well canned songs but not for an emotional ride. Locations in USA are rightly exploited by camera.

VERDICT : Disappointment