Jamba Lakidi Pamba Movie Review
If you are expecting a laugh riot like EVV’s classic comedy with the same title, then Srinivasa Reddy starrer Jamba Lakidi Pamba will let you down big time. The film turns out to be an endless bore in spite of many talented actors at the forefront.
What is it about?
Varun and Pallavi’s (Srinivasa Reddy, Siddi) marriage is on the rocks. The couple decides to part ways and approaches a lawyer named Harischandra Prasad (Posani) for divorce. The lawyer dies in an accident and turns into a ghost. He wants to clear the differences between the couple so that he could be with his wife who also died in the accident. Varun and Pallavi refuse to be together and therefore the ghost swaps their bodies.
Performances:
Srinivasa Reddy entertains in parts. His performance in the second half is good. His antics and body language as feminine character are fun to watch. Siddi Idnani also impresses in the second half only. She did well in getting her ‘male act’ right. Posani Krishna Murali is loud as usual. He offers some comedy here and there. Vennela Kishore tries to lift the spirits but is let down by a bad script. Tanikella Bharani, Rajesh, Raghu Babu and a bunch of other comedians are present, but none could make this lackluster film work.
Technicalities:
Director Murali Krishna’s script is clearly inspired from Guy Pearce’s comedy Dating the Enemy. There is potential in the script, but the director totally failed in making the comedy scenes work. He simply couldn’t make use of the talented actors like Srinivasa Reddy and Vennela Kishore. Murali also couldn’t make an impression with basic directorial skills. Even the framing and most of the shots look like an amateur’s work.
Gopi Sunder’s music is mediocre. Songs don’t add any value to the proceedings. Cinematography is strictly okay. Editor should have kept the runtime short as there are far too many lags in between. Production values are adequate.
Thumbs Up:
- Srinivasa Reddy’s feminine act
Thumbs Down:
- Boring screenplay
- Poor comedy
- Pathetic climax
Analysis:
Body swapping of husband and wife concept has ample chance to create so many funny incidents. But director Murali Krishna utterly fails in this aspect. First half of the film totally concentrates upon the differences between the couple. This part is a complete bore with neither comedic scenes nor engaging drama. Intermission episode raises hopes as the ‘Jamba Lakidi Pamba’ starts. We expect the film to be a laugh riot post interval, but the director’s bad sense of humor doesn’t give scope for at least one genuine comedy scene to cherish.
Srinivasa Reddy’s act as woman seems funny for a moment, but it gets repetitive after some time. In a desperate attempt to generate humor, the set up is shifted to a village, but the poor writing keeps haunting the film as ghost Posani haunts the lead pair in the film. One would expect the film to have oodles of fun with a promising title like Jamba Lakidi Pamba. Unfortunately, there isn’t a single scene where you could laugh out loud. The direction is so weak that even fantasy part involving a ghost hardly evokes any interest.
Surely the idea would have seemed promising on paper, but such concepts should be backed by good scenes and screenplay to work as a film. Differences between the couple are not established well. Every scene in the first half seems like an excuse to reach the intermission point so that they could jump into the ‘jamba Lakidi pamba’ mode. Post interval they seem to have taken it for granted that audience would anyway enjoy a male and female acting like opposite gender.
Besides poor comedy, the film suffers due to bad music and lack of technical finesse. Sad part is Jamba Lakidi Pamba surely has potential, but the idea landed in wrong hands. There is scope for making it work with the masses by inserting vulgar humor, but the director doesn’t even do that and Jamba Lakidi Pamba ends up as a film that offers nothing to any section of audience. The director should have simply remade EVV Satyanarayana’s film rather making this one.
Verdict: Pamba Lakidi Jamba
