Rating: 3.25/5
Film: Race Gurram
Banner: Lakshmi Narasimha Productions
Cast: Allu Arjun, Shruthi Haasan, Shyam
Music: Thaman
Story: Vakkantham Vamsi
Screenplay,Direction: Surender Reddy
Producer: Nallamalapu Srinivas (Bujji), K Venkateswar Rao
Release Date: April 11th, 2014

Allu Arjun and director Surender Reddy have teamed up for the first time for Race Gurram. Surender Reddy is known for his stylish execution and Allu Arjun has got Stylish Star Tag. Were they able to come up with a stylish entertainer? Let us see.

Story

Ram (Shyam) and Lakshman aka Lucky (Allu Arjun) are brothers where the former is a tough cop who follows rules and regulations unlike the latter who achieves anything by hook or crook. Lucky who is in plans to fly US falls in love with Spandana (Shruti Haasan) at first sight and in parallel a string rivalry goes between Ram and Shiva Reddy (Ravi Kishan), an aspiring evil politician. As Ram collects evidences against Shiva Reddy, he plans to kill the strict cop. How Lucky does get involved in this and saves his brother and family is the rest of the story.

Performances

Allu Arjun does career best performance and his styling is good. He is outstanding in comedy timing and dialogue delivery modulation. He pulled off the movie with an ease and he tried his best in dancing.

Shruti Haasan looked gorgeous and she sizzled with her massy dance moves in cinema chupistha song.

Ravi Kishan goes over the board at times, Saloni has limited scenes, Brahmanandam as Kill Bill Pandey excels in hilarious role, Prakash Raj is apt, Shyaam is perfect, Ali, Posani does good job, Mukesh Rishi, Tanikella Bharani, Pragathi are apt for their respective roles.

Technical Analysis

Cinematography by Manoj Paramahamsa is lavish, Thaman’s musical scores are ear-pleasing but a couple of songs ‘Gala Gala’, ‘Down Down’ looked misplaced. Background score is impressive. Dialogues are hilarious, editing could have been better; Surender Reddy scores in screenplay and direction, though it is not his best. Production values are rich.

Analysis

Race Gurram guarantees loads of entertainment with high energy performances and ample stylishness. The film has its ups and downs but the good dose of comedy doesn’t bore you. Allu Arjun delivers career best performance with his style of dialogue modulation while Brahmanandam, Posani, Prakash Raj, Ali joins him in comedy scenes.

First half of the film is passable with interesting characterizations and comedy here and there but Surender Reddy has stored full dose of entertainment for the second half with the entry of Brahmanandam role. Ali, Brahmanandam scenes tickles your funny bones while Allu Arjun-Mukesh Rishi scenes are a good watch. The conflict scenes between the brothers are well-shown.

Despite the story being routine, Surender Reddy packed it with entertaining screenplay. The run length, misplaced songs and few action episodes are the negatives for the film while Allu Arjun, Brahmanandam, entertaining scenes are the positives.

Final Verdict

Race Gurram- Entertainment Guaranteed!!!

Rating:2.75/5
Film: Hrudaya Kaleyam
Starring: Sampoornesh Babu, Kavya Singh, Ishika Kapoor
Director: Steven Shankar
Producer: Sai Rajesh Neelam
Banner: Amrutha Productions banner
Music: RK

Story

Sampoornesh Babu is a thief and the entire police department is in search of him who is involved in the robberies. A special team gets formed to find him and they finally manage to catch Sampoornesh, who then reveals his past and what lead him to do the robberies. What is his part and why did he become a thief unfolds in the rest of the story.

Performances

The film is all about Sampoornesh and he manages to bring some laughs with his antics. His crazy dialogue delivery and body language, dances and fights evoke laughter. He manages to entertain the audience.

Kavya Kumar is an okay performer, Mahesh Kathi goes over the top at few scenes. Others go unnoticed.

Technical Analysis

Cinematography is neat, Music is below par. Editing could have been better especially in the initial second half. Dialogues are hilarious, Steven Shankar’s direction is okay and he focused much on Sampoornesh Babu. Despite the low budget movie, the film has standard production values.

Analysis

Hrudaya Kaleyam is packed with Sampoornesh Babu hilarious scenes. The film is all about the actor who makes you laugh with his serious comedy. He entertains with his hilarious dialogue delivery, body language, dances and fights. The film is a take on mass entertainers in comic style. The over the top dialogues and stunts by Sampoornesh Babu are amusing.

While the first half runs on a rapid pace, the second half is a bit dragging and the climax is illogical. The love story in the second half is a bit boring while the comedy also doesn’t work much in the latter half. However, the film makes a one-time watch for people who enjoy Sampoornesh Babu’s dialogues and antics while it may no entertain other sections.

Final Verdict

Watch it for Sampoornesh Babu’s insane comedy…

Rowdy Movie Review

Rating : 3/5
Cast: Mohan Babu , Jayasudha , Manchu Vishnu , Shanvi
Directed by : Ram Gopal Varma
Produced by : Vijay, Gajendra & Pa
Banner :24 Frames Factory Ltd., AV Pictures
Music by : Sai Karthik
Release Date : 2014-04-04

Story: To put it simply, Rowdy is a classic tale of a faction family set in Rayalaseema backdrop. Anna (Mohan Babu), the family’s chieftain, is a powerful and popular public figure in the region who defies law for what he believe in. The film revolves around Nandavaram project to which Anna is opposed for the well-being of local people. Whereas a group of antagonists who have vested interests in the project are desperate to kill Anna to get their project done. What forms rest is feud between two parties.

Performances:

Mohan Babu: Mohan Babu as Anna carried off the film on his shoulders. His persona, mannerisms catch your eye. One could watch Mohan Babu’s finest performance in Rowdy and it recalls you the performance of World’s greatest actor Marlon Brando (Vito Corleone) of The God Father. It is not exaggerated to say his acting is on par with national-award winning performance. Ram Gopal Varma brilliantly extracted acting prowess of Mohan Babu.

Manchu Vishnu: Vishnu (Krishna) is a In the latter half of the film, one could see Krishna taking over reigns from his father Anna that immediately takes you back to crowning of prince Michael Corleone as successor to Vito Corleone. Varma again showcased Vishnu Manchu in a powerful, never-before-seen role. Vishnu’s performance in Rowdy is a befitting answer to his critics. No doubt, Vishnu excelled as an actor and gone to next-level with Rowdy.

Jayasudha: Jayasudha, who earned the sobriquet of Sahaja Nati, again lived up to her tag. Her role as Lakshmi, wife of Anna, is flawless. Sentiment and romantic scenes between Lakshmi and Anna work in favour of the film.

Shanvi: Shanvi plays Sirisha, romantic interest of Krishna (Vishnu). She does have substantial role in the film. Shanvi is appealing, easy on eyes. Yes, she looks sexy in Nee Meeda Othu romantic song with Vishnu. Looks like, Shanvi has struck Gold with Rowdy.

Technical Aspects:

Music: Sai Karthik has rightly used RGV’s opportunity. Music is soothing and comes in handy for film. Especially, the background score needs special mention. BG work perfectly blends with scenes and it elevates the film at many places.

Cinematography: Satish Muthyala’s Cinematography is passable.

Editing: Editing is okay and could have been better. The film is slick and sharp due to tight editing work.

Thumbs Up:

1. Terrific performances of lead cast
2. Strong storyline
3. Direction
4. Slick narration

Thumbs Down:

1. Tanikella Bharani’s dialogues
2. Cinematography at portions

Analysis: Ram Gopal Varma’s Rowdy is perfect adaptation of Mario Puzo’s greatest classic The Godfather. Varma, who is going through lean phase of late, don’t want to take any chances with Rowdy. He strictly goes by The Godfather. Yet he told in interesting, convincing way. Terrific performances of stellar cast (Mohan Babu, Vishnu and Jayasudha) and the perfect brooding atmosphere make Rowdy an outstanding work of RGV in recent times. RGV’s gripping narration takes the film to top level.

The idea to showcase Mohan Babu sans makeup, wig appears real and natural. Perhaps, this is what compels audience to instantly connect with the role Anna. There are no forced songs, dialogues unlike typical Telugu films. Music composer Sai Karthik is a dark horse and surprising element in the film. He has done his best job.

Had the makers taken enough care on technical front, Rowdy would have been classic. Cinematography at times put you off. Film is slick and sharp. Editing is okay but could have been better. Dialogues are fine. Few extra dialogues of Tanikella Bharani (Vedam) may not go well. On whole, Rowdy is far better than recent RGV’s films. Rowdy is a breathe of fresh air to Tollywood which is stuck with stereotypical potboilers.

Verdict: RGV is back again !

Legend Movie Review

Rating :3.5/5
Cast: Balakrishna , Jagapathi Babu , Sonal Chauhan , Radhika Apte and others
Directed by : Boyapati Srinu
Produced by : Ram, Gopi, Anil
Banner :Varahi Chalana Chitram, 14 Reels Entertainment
Music by : Devi Sri Prasad
Release Date : 2014-03-28

Legend is riding on high expectations as Balakrishna, Boyapati Srinu’s last film Simha was a blockbuster. Known for making high voltage mass masala movies, Boyapati Srinu has once again presented Balakrishna in one of his career best powerful roles in Legend.

Story :

Krishna (Balakrishna) lives far away from his family in Dubai. His grandmother wants him to stay away from violence and lead a peaceful life. Krishna falls in love with Sneha (Sonal Chauhan) and on his return to India he confronts with Jitender’s (Jagapathi Babu) son and beats him to death. Jitender is the reason for the death of Krishna’s parents. What follows next is an adrenaline pumping action drama with loads of powerful dialogues and heroism elevation scenes.

Performances:

Balakrishna: It is cakewalk for Balakrishna all through the film. One cannot imagine any other actor in the role of Jayadev. Balakrishna roars like a Lion making this film a feast for his diehard fans. There are many scenes where fans would go berserk. Boyapati Srinu is the only director to present Balakrishna in such a powerful way after B. Gopal. He repeated the magic of Simha in few scenes, especially in the second half.

Jagapathi Babu: Jagapathi Babu took up the challenge of playing the antagonist in a film where Balakrishna owns the show. He came out in flying colors with one of his career best performances. He looked menacing as the villain with that white beard and superbly designed costumes. His rugged voice added extra spice to the character. Jagapathi Babu is one of the main assets of this film without an iota of doubt. Balakrishna’s heroism has been elevated to another level due to Jagapathi’s wonderful portrayal of the villain character.

Radhika Apte is apt and Sonal Chauhan sizzles in her brief role. Brahmanandam irritates a bit. Jayaprakash Reddy, Brahmaji, LB Sri Ram and others have shined in the roles assigned to them.

Technical :

Music: Devi Sri Prasad is not used to give music to such high voltage mass films. His background score for this film is in sync with the proceedings and took it to next level. On the downside Songs are not up to DSP standards barring Legend title song.

Direction: Boyapati Srinu is a master in working the emotions that connects instantly with the masses. He studied and understood the image of Balakrishna better than any of the current directors. He has done a wonderful job in the second half. Should have taken care on the first half which was pale and dull compared to high octane second half.

Camera work is good and so is the art department’s output. Editing is good in second half and average in first hour. Producers have spent lavishly on the film.

Thumbs Up:

1) Balakrishna’s Roaring performance
2) Jagapathi Babu’s act as the antagonist
3) Dialogues
4) Background music
5) Political related dialogues

Thumbs Down:

1) Brahmanandam’s comedy track
2) Few unwanted sentiment scenes
3) Excessive violence

Analysis:

Legend is a complete commercial package with all the ingredients neatly packed in. The film starts off with a bang with Jagapathi Babu setting right expectations on the film. The graph dips a bit after Balakrishna’s character was introduced. Director tried to add comedy flavor to the film by giving maximum footage to Brahmanandam for a while.

They have made desperate attempt to make it work, but the theme of this film doesn’t accommodate comedy. Interval gives the real punch and from there on there is no stopping Legend. The film goes from strength to strength with each scene. Balakrishna just carried the film on his able shoulders without letting the graph go down.

Balakrishna fans will watch this film numerous times as it is undoubtedly the best from Nata Simha post ‘Simha’. Boyapati Srinu lived up to the expectations and delivered a full on masala film that will work wonders at the box office especially in mass dominated areas. There is good sentimental touch to the film which will appeal to classes and families. Excessive violence is the weak point of this film and it may restrict the reach. Saying that all the biggest hits from Balakrishna had excessive violence and therefore it shouldn’t be a big problem for Legend.

Verdict: The Lion Roars Again!