SPYder Movie Review
Release of Superstar Mahesh Babu’s film is always an event in Tollywood. Like always there are sky high expectations on Mahesh’s latest film Spyder. Directed by Murugadoss, the film is made Telugu and Tamil simultaneously. Murugadoss who has an impeccable track record as a director couldn’t live up to expectations this time.
Story:
Siva (Mahesh) is a small employee in the intelligence bureau. He develops special software that will alert him when people are in need. He uses IB’s access to all phones and with his software he tracks down the criminals and stops them from committing crime. But he couldn’t save two women from a psycho killer in spite of knowing that they are in danger. Now Siva is determined to find the killer and comes to know that he is Bhairavudu (Surya) a psychotic personality. The remaining film is about their face off and Siva putting an end to Bhairavudu.
Performances:
Mahesh: Mahesh is fit and perfect as the leading man. His styling as the intelligence bureau officer is very impressive. There are a couple of scenes that shows the best actor in him. However, we have to admit that Mahesh is not used to the full potential by Murugadoss. He is a very good actor that can pull off any role, but directors are not utilizing the powerhouse of talent.
Surya and Others: Rakul Preeth Singh got another typical Telugu heroine role. Her characterization is weird and doesn’t give any scope to perform. SJ Surya as the villain is one of the major highlights. He sparks off the proceedings right from the introduction and does a splendid job overall. Priyadarshi and others didn’t really have any scope.
Technicalities:
Direction:Murugadoss tries to blend action and social message into the story. His signature style is present but the authority with which he deals such subjects is missing. There are a few standout scenes that show his mark, but the film suffers a lot due to weak plot. Director relies upon lengthy episodes to engage the audience. It is a lackluster attempt from Murugadoss, who is a good storyteller.
Music and Others:Harris Jayaraj scored brownie points with his signature background score. But the soundtrack is pretty ordinary. Santosh Sivan’s cinematography is impressive. Visual effects are very poor. The film is made on a very high budget, but it doesn’t look like one because of the poorly done special effects.
Thumbs Up:
- Mahesh
- SJ Surya
- Pre interval sequences
Thumbs Down:
- Logic-less
- Poor climax
- Weak script
Analysis:
Murugadoss’s goal is to make a stylish action thriller with a different setup. The protagonist using the information of Intelligence bureau to save people from their problems is unique despite sounding illogical. This aspect would have been intriguing if the initial scenes are taken care of. Hero’s motive is explained through dialogue and his execution seems very much hurried that doesn’t leave any impact.
Soon after the initial setup the film turns into a mystery where the protagonist goes in search of a serial killer. Murugadoss breaks the norms and takes a longtime to establish the villain’s character. Flashback scenes of the villain are shot impressively and this is easily the best sequence of the movie. Pre interval scenes are gripping and set mood for a perfect interval bang. One would expect that the fight between hero and villain will be very exciting because of their characterizations.
However, Murugadoss turned it into regular hero-villain affair without much excitement. A lengthy scene where the hero tracks down villain in the hiding is good, but dragged a bit too much. There is one absolutely unnecessary scene with a rolling stone followed by a clumsy climax. All the action episodes looked disastrous on screen due to pathetic graphics work. Second half is filled with many action episodes due to the lack of story.
There are a few other problems with the film like the romance track between Mahesh and Rakul that is completely out of place and sounds absurd. Songs are not so impressive and come as speed breakers to the flow. Most of the supporting actors are from Tamil cinema, which makes it look like a dubbed film at times.
Spyder has some bright moments here and there besides good performances of Mahesh and Surya. But the magic of Murugadoss has been missing with the logic going for a toss. Spyder is different from regular stuff, but misses the mark by a fair distance. It will go down as another disappointment from superstar whose last film was a huge misfire.
Verdict: No Spyce!
