'Dhada' Review: Spineless And Spiceless

Rating: 1.75/5Banner: Sri Kamakshi Enterprises
Cast: Naga Chaitanya, Kajal Agarwal, Sri Ram, Sameeksha, Rahul Dev, Kelly, Brahmanandam, Mukesh Rishi, Ali, Venu Madhav and others
Music: Devi Sri Prasad
Cinematographer: Gnana Sekhar
Editor: Dharmendra Kakarala
Story, screenplay, direction: Ajay Bhuyan
Producer: D Sivaprasad Reddy
Release date: 11/08/2011

Having scored two back to back hits, Naga Chaitanya is aiming for a hat trick and this time he has paired up with Kajal Agarwal in the lead. Let us see how good the film is

Story
Set on the backdrop of US, Vishwas (Naga Chaitanya) is a fearless guy who just passes out of college. He has an elder brother Rajeev (Sri Ram) and sister-in-law Preethi (Sameeksha).

Vishwas’s life takes a turn when he chances upon Priya (Kajal) and it is love at first sight for him. Meanwhile, two dons (Rahul Dev, Kelly Dorjee) run international prostitution rings and keep selling girls. A chance incident gets Vishwas to tangle with the bad guys.

From then on, they are out to kill him. On the other hand, Priya’s marriage gets settled with another person. How does Vishwas handle both the problems? Is he successful? What has Rajeev got to do with the incidents? All this forms the rest of the story.

Performances
Naga Chaitanya looked classy in few scenes. But then, he should have thought twice before choosing a storyline like this. The roughness required for this role is not emerged from him. He might have got training for modulation.

Kajal Agarwal was not upto the mark. Basically, it was her styling, look and the weak etching of her character which makes her look very stale. Though she did try to infuse life into the character, it was useless.

Sriram is a talented performer. He is handsome, looks elegant and is expressive with his emotions in right proportions. But his character is confusing. His chemistry with Sameeksha is nice and both look good onscreen.

Rahul Dev was regular. Though his histrionics were not extreme, he makes his presence felt.

Kelly Dorjee had the routine- one helicopter scene, one killing, one fight. He did his bit mechanically.

Brahmanandam’s comedy was dumb. Ali was not required. Sameeksha still has that seductive appeal, she can get more opportunities. Mukesh Rishi was not at all used properly. Satya Krishna was standard. Tanikella was brief. Venu Madhav, M S Narayana, Uttej came and went.

Highlights

• Two songs
• Cinematography
• Production and technical values

Disappointments

• Botched up screenplay
• Empty storyline
• Zero emotional quotient
• Spineless dialogues
• Director’s inability to use Kajal’s glamour

Analysis
Rahul Dev keeps saying in the film ‘Neekoka Kadha Cheptaanu..’. That way, he comes up with 3-4 aimless stories. That’s exactly the feeling one gets while watching the film as well.

Director Ajay should realize that style alone doesn’t work, it should have substance to give the real result at the box office. He must also work on doing some study while creating characters.

Sending a big don’s own brother into the streets to search for someone is silly. International girls racket runs in highly organized structures. If Ajay is looking for a Hollywood feel then he should give depth for characterization as well.

In this film, the whole villain thing looks hollow in the film. There is no conviction in any of the scenes and it looks like a torn jeans trouser with dozens of patches in it. If it was not for the presentation, the film would have been intolerable to watch.

At the box office, the film will have decent openings due to the pre-release publicity, star-power and songs but chances of success are remote.

Bottomline: Poor execution

'180' Review: Thumbs Down

Movie: 180
Rating: 2.5/5
Banners: Satyam Movies, Aghal Films
Cast: Siddarth, Nithya Menon, Priya Anand
Music: Sharreth Vasudevan
Cinematographer: Balasubramaniem
Editor: T E Kishore
Director: Jayendra
Producers: Kiran Reddy, Swarup Reddy, C Srikanth
Release date: 25/06/2011

Siddarth is back and this time he has teamed up with his mentor Jayendra for a bilingual. The presence of Priya Anand and Nithya Menon is the other attraction. Let us see what the numbered title is all about

Story
An unusual tale, the story begins with Ajay (Siddarth) who looks rather lost in life and finds new hope after visiting Kasi. He lands in Hyderabad and takes up a portion for six months.

Here, he comes across helping all right from his house owners to the paper boys and on the street grandmas. All this is noticed by Vidya (Nithya) who gets curious about Ajay’s mystery. In no time, she also falls in love with him.

However, Ajay has a past. A past that is associated with Renuka (Priya) in the USA. He also has a harsh fact of life that he is dealing with and that gets him to India. What is that fact? What is 180? Is Vidya successful in her love? All this forms the rest of the story.

Performances
Sidz is back as the smart, suave gentleman who always tends to magnetize girls around. He carried the role well and though there were few jerks in the emotional sequences, he did a fine job.

Nithya Menon is a stunning looker onscreen. Her eyes, her smile and her natural ease in front of the camera make her adorable. She delivers her bit as required and scores points.

Priya Anand was chirpy as usual and there is a lot of energy and fun in her. She has balanced the cheerful part and the tragic part in the right scale. The glint in her eyes is appealing.

Mouli was witty and brought few smiles, it was good to see Geetha after a long time, Tanikella was brief, M S Narayana came and went, Lakshmi Ramakrishnan was matured, Janaki was natural. The actor doing Siddarth’s friend’s role was alright.

Highlights

• Visual grandeur
• Ee Vayasika Radhu song picturization
• Last twenty minutes
• Nithya, Priya’s performances
• Technical aspects

Drawbacks

• Slow pace
• Weak emotional quotient
• Complicated twists
• Directorial flaws

Analysis
6 months..that is 180 days. That forms the theme of the story. You have to see what those 180 days are!!! But at the end, you may catch up 180 degrees fever for not zeroing the film convincingly.

The film gathered some curiosity when it came with an unusual title and it was not until the first stills came in that folks got an idea. Anyways, it must be said that the debutante director has proved his mettle as a technician but as a story teller, there are few hiccups. Firstly, adding multiple tracks at different emotional levels tends to disturb the consistency.

It also fails to get the audience into the film and connect with the story. There is a vintage appeal in the first half and one would expect a rather conventional and emotional ending but then, the director changes the plan to a practical level. Yes, what the protagonist has done may be right in the practical sense, but is it humanly possible? Also, not to reveal the plot, Siddarth’s approach towards dealing a problem is rather surprising given the fact that he is a doctor.

The American Yamadharmaraju (Grim Weaper) symbolism confudes the audience. Priya Anand's mimicry also went over dose.

As such, the film has been dealt with in a psychological and philosophical aspect but given the mindset of the Indian audience, it remains to be seen how much they will accept the ending. Mixed reactions are bound to come from the viewers for this.

At the box office, the film has a good chance of an average grosser but getting into profits would require aggressive publicity and positive word of mouth.

Bottomline: Full length film with an ad feel

'Nagaram Nidra Potunna Vela' Review: Better Sleep Than Watch

Rating: 0.75/5
Banner: Gurudeva Creations Pvt Ltd
Cast: Jagapathi Babu, Charmee, Chandramohan, Ahuti Prasad, Babu Mohan, Siva Reddy and others
Music: Yasho Krishna
Editing: Marthand K Venkatesh
Cinematographer: Lakshmi Narasimhan
Screenplay, direction: Premraj
Producer: Nandi Srihari
Release date: 24/06/2011

Jagapathi Babu and Charmee are currently going through a weak patch in their career and they have teamed up for this new venture. Whether their choice was right or not let us see.

Story: Niharika (Charmee) is a journalist who believes in true idealism and bringing truth to the people. However, her boss (Ahuti Prasad) believes in TRP increasing sensational news than truths.

She decides to venture out one night and gather some interesting bits for the channel. However, due to a freak coincidence, her pen camera captures a conversation between a crooked politician (Pilla Prasad) and his dangerous plan to oust the CM and take his chair.

The politician’s goons set out to kill Niharika and in this process, she comes across Babu (Jagapathi Babu). What are the challenges Niharika faces in her quest for truth? Is she able to stop the mayhem? All this forms the rest of the story.

Performances: It is a pity to see Charmee doing such meaningless roles. She should introspect her talent and increase her self confidence. She has a lot better acting material and sex appeal than such roles. 

Jagapathi Babu comes up with another blinder. One really wonders if he is the same Durga we saw in ‘Ghayam’. He did his bit mechanically but honestly this is another black mark to his career.

Pilla Prasad was apt in his performance. The menacing looks, the dialogue delivery suit his evil shades. He must be given more opportunities.

Uttej was effective, Parachuri Gopalakrishna was okay, Ahuti Prasad was average, Babu Mohan made his presence felt, Siva Reddy was wasted. The others didn’t have anything to offer.

Highlights:

• None!!       

Drawbacks:

• Outdated storyline
• Poor screenplay
• Zero comedy
• Weak songs
• No conviction in scenes
• Lacklustre plot
• Over preaching

Analysis: For some reason, few directors tend to think that if they put two and two together with some noted faces, the film becomes a hit.

Well, these are few fundamental errors which have not been rectified. Here, the makers try to come up with a message oriented flick but such themes require a strong conviction and a good grip over the script.

Also, it must have the ability to draw the audience into the story. Nothing of that was followed. With a stale narrative and poor technical values, the film tries to talk about bringing about a change in the system. One can see shades of films like ‘Rann’ ‘Corporate’ and other social movies. Projecting Maoist philosophy as the right solution is another disaster. Instigating youth to take arms is unforgivable.

Overall, this is a film which is weak in production values, content and execution. At the box office, it will sleep just like the title within one week.  

Bottomline: Horrible!!

'Vaadu Veedu' Review: Disgusting Torture

Rating: 1/5
Banner: G K Film Corporation
Cast: Vishal, Arya, Madhu Shalini, Janani Iyer, G M Kumar, Suriya (guest role), Ambica, Prabha and others
Music: Yuvan Shankar Raja
Cinematographer: Arthur Wilson
Editor: Sreekar Prasad
Story, screenplay, direction: Bala
Producer: Vikram Krishna
Release date: 17/06/2011

The hard hitting movie maker Bala is back and this time he has softened his flavour to provide some entertainment. Was it really entertaining? Let us see..

Story
Set on the backdrop of a village, the story is about two step brothers Walter (Vishal) and Dhandalsamy (Arya) born to two different mothers. Both of them are thieves but Walter has a special affinity for acting. Both brothers keep fighting tooth and nail for every small thing.

However, they have immense respect for one highness (G M Kumar). On the other hand, Walter falls in love with constable Baby (Janani) while Dhandalasamy falls in love with Nagu (Madhu Shalini). While life looks smooth for them, an incident happens bringing a grave impact to their lives.

What is that incident? What happens in the process forms the rest of the story.

Performances
Vishal has undoubtedly come up with an award winning performance. His body language, his squint eyed expression and his versatility in displaying various emotions is exceptional. This is perhaps the first time he has given such a committed performance.

Arya underplays his role this time and takes the backseat. But there are those occasional scenes where flashes of his brilliance can be seen.

GM Kumar gives a dedicated performance without inhibition. Given his age, it is truly remarkable for an individual to shed his ego and do certain scenes. Hats off to him!!

Janani conveys a lot through her expressions and though her role is limited, she makes her presence felt.

Madhu Shalini scores with her innocent looks and a natural sex appeal. She has justified her role with effective performance.

Suriya in a guest role scores few brownie points, Ambica was apt, Prabha was different and rustic, Vignesh was alright. The others did their bit as required.

Highlights

• Vishal’s performance
• Screenplay
• Technical aspects
• The Navarasa scene in the presence of Suriya
• Background score

Disappointments

• Lewd dialogues
• Poor storyline
• Extremities in few sequences
• Overdose of realism

Analysis:The film was made with only one objective- to bring out the performer in Vishal and the actor has utilized this opportunity to the fullest.

While a fair share of credit can be given to him, an equally good share must be given to Bala for squeezing out the performance from Vishal. But in this process, there are few crucial things which have missed the mark.

For starters, Bala has proved again that he is a master technician and an impressive storyteller but that alone will not suffice to engage the audience. There must be a reasonable storyline and enough quotient of connect to involve the viewer. That was missing as the whole film relied on screenplay, visual appeal than content. While it is appreciated that a film must be close to reality, it is time Bala reduces his barbarism when it comes to dialogues. Here are few instances

• Vishal speaking to his own mother about wearing bra, that was disgusting
• Few dialogues related to shit
• G M Kumar’s naked scene that sounded extreme and lacked conviction
• Police inspector being treated like a scum bag by ordinary thieves

Overall, this is a film which will appeal to those who like out of the box films with the technicalities of film making. Those who follow the Bala style of films, they will like it to a large extent. In a way, it is better than his earlier venture ‘Nenu Devudni’. To those who look for fun, entertainment or some dramatism, they will get restless in no time. At the box office, this has a hard chance to score success but then it has enough ingredients to shine at international film festivals and offbeat cine circuits.

If any audience comes out of the theatre without nauseate feel or mild headache and if he is really says that it’s ‘superb’ it can be concluded that they are possessed with some sadism in themselves.

Bottomline: Only for art-house audience, not for entertainment or mainstream audience.

'Badrinath' Review: Just Better Than Shakti!

Rating: 2.5/5
Banner: Geetha Arts
Cast: Allu Arjun, Tamannah, Prakash Raj, Kelly Dorjee and others
Music: M M Keeravani
Cinematographer: S Ravi Varman
Story: Chinni Krishna
Editor: Gautham Raju
Screenplay, direction: V V Vinayak
Producer: Allu Aravind
Release date: 10/06/2011

Allu Arjun is back and this time he has teamed up with the mass masala movie maker V V Vinayak with a different concept. Let us see how this is.

Story:
The age old ritual of ‘Kshetra Palakudu’ is revived among the Hindu saints and gurus. They approach the veteran Bheeshma Narayana (Prakash Raj) and he decides to mould one child to be the protector of Badrinath.

This is Badri (Allu Arjun) and as fate would have it, he is chosen to be the protector of the Badrinath shrine. The story takes a turn with the arrival of Alakananda (Tamannah) an atheist due to her reasons. Few sequences revive her faith in the god and also trigger love in her for Badri.

However, Bheeshma wants Badri to take over as his successor and the condition is that he must remain a ‘Brahmachari’ for the rest of his life. On the other hand, there is the evil Sarkar (Kelly Dorjee) along with his wife (Ashwini) who want to get Alakananda married to their son so that they can grab her property. What happens after that forms the rest of the story.

Performances:
Allu Arjun looks perfect in physique, riveting in dance performance, apt in emotional scenes. He did his best to do justice but then his character should have been etched with more conviction.

Tamannah is a visual feast and she has given a literal Abhishekam with her milky white oomph factor. Her screen presence is significant and she delivered well during emotional sequences.

Prakash Raj did his bit as required. However, his role was not as powerful as it was hyped. His face was hidden in white beard and hair. Only eyes and nose are visible. Worst make up.

Kelly Dorjee was spineless as a villain, all that hungama about his profile looks hollow. Ashwini (the police cop in Rakta Charitra who gets her revolver licked by Bukka Reddy) is a talented actress but she got stiff in few scenes. Brahmanandam was okay, Krishna Bhagawan gave his regular satires, Dharmavarapu was regular, the lad doing Ashwini’s son’s role was dull. Venu Madhav came and went.

Highlights:

• Visual grandeur
• Tamannah’s glamour feast
• Bunny’s sincere efforts in action and dance
• Pace of the film

Drawbacks:

• Significant directorial flaws
• Weak climax
• Non-situational songs
• Weak comedy
• Average cinematography
• Abrupt censoring

Analysis: The film came in with various publicity stints such as

• The costliest film ever made in Tollywood
• Allu Arjun’s Indian Samurai role and his training in Vietnam
• Chinni Krishna’s statement that this screenplay has never been seen before

Well, coming to the point. There is hardly any impact to say that the film was made at a budget of Rs 40 crores. If that is true then it must be said that the director didn’t utilize it in the right way. Given the buzz about Bunny’s training, the action and fight sequences should have been mind blowing but they were regular Peter Heinz product which we have seen before. As far as screenplay goes, guess Chinni Krishna meant it literally, nothing great about the screenplay. When subjects like Hindu shrines and customs are spoken, basic fundamentals must be followed.
Here is something for Vinayak-

• If Allu Arjun is the protector of a holy temple, he should at least have a thilakam on his forehead
• Tamannah lights the oil lamps with match sticks. That is unacceptable and grave mistake as per Hindu tradition. The custom requires it to be lit with incense sticks and not match sticks.
• In the ‘Vasudhara’ scene, there is a temple deity and everyone is walking coolly with slippers, shoes, long boots etc
• Allu Arjun gets upanayanam performed by Prakash Raj and he also drops a ‘jandhyam’ on his body. But that ‘jandhyam’ is never seen again in the film. Is that the value Allu Arjun’s character gives for religion and piousness?!
• In the last fight, Allu Arjun jumps out from temple barefoot but by the time he lands at villains he has shoes.
• If Brad Pitt kills the opponent by piercing a sword on the shoulder in ‘Troy’, our Allu Arjun pierces and kills merely with two fingers. Why is this silly copying?
• If Ram Charan killed 100 soldiers in ‘Magadheera’, our Bunny killed 100+ here with no emotion packed. What’s this comparison?

That way, Vinayak has missed attention to detail and conviction in many scenes. The first half goes about in a mild manner and he shows his mettle before the interval bang with the idol fight. However, things gets a little quirky during the second half and it gets very predictable. Overall, the film will work strongly in the opening day due to Allu Arjun and Tamannah following along with the publicity hype but to be frank, the film has nothing extraordinary to be spoken about.

• It is a weak story line with Computer Graphics hungama. No grip in emotions
• Hero never connects with heroine’s love till the end. Then how the circle can be completed?
• The stubborn sage Prakash Raj gets convinced with three lines from Tamannah.
• Hero saves heroine by the word from his guru but not out of love.
• Is villain Kelly Dorjee good or bad? The confusion is glued to that character.
• Why the hero chops hundreds of heads and bodies? No emotion or sentiment packed in that as hero has no love towards heroine.

On a whole Badrinath ends up as much ado about nothing.

Bottomline: Nothing exciting

Ready: Movie review

Cast: Salman Khan, Asin, Arya Babbar, Paresh Rawal, Puneet Issar, Mahesh Manjrekar

Directed by Anees Bazmee

Rating:*1/2

Whistle-blowers rejoice! Salman is back and this time he's ditched his belt to fiddle inside his pant pockets (read: Dhinka Chika, in case you don't have a television set at home). The thing with Salman's films is that they're in a genre of their own. A genre that cannot be graded for the story, screenplay, performances or any other metric used to evaluate other films. They can just be enjoyed or suffered, depending upon the elasticity of your tolerance. I hope you would consider this vague disclaimer before reading this review and before going to watch this monsoon musical.

But you're on this page hoping to get an idea about this film, so let's get down to business. The film is about a spoilt brat called Prem (the 14th time Salman has used this as a screen name) and his annoyingly happy family. Prem's daddy, Rajveer Kapoor (Mahesh Manjrekar) has the memory of a goldfish and he constantly portrays his disability by making vulgar physical and oral gestures to describe anything he can't re-collect. Prem also has two uncles and aunts who live together with them in their sprawling mansion spanning across Thailand, Sri Lanka and Filmcity, Goregaon. There's also a random elderly neighbour who is invariable lurking about at the Kapoor household (the only way to get into the frame?).

Anyway, the film becomes a pickled mess when a girl on the run, Sanjana (Asin) lands up at the Kapoor residence, in the guise of Prem's prospective bride. Predictably, she wins everyone's hearts with her clichéd tactics (morning bhajans, respect for elders, disrespect for Prem etc). Now, Sanjana has a dark past and even darker relations, comprising a bevy of assorted villains from the past and present who flaunt every wig in the costume box. Some of them include, Bade Mama (Sharad Saxena), Chote Mama (Akhilendra Mishra), Bade Dada (Puneet Issar) and few other non-descript Bollywood henchmen.

In Hindi films, if the good doesn't reign over evil, it can atleast trick evil into switching sides. So, the Kapoors devise the most ridiculous plan (not even worth mentioning here) to get the Chaudharys (Sanjana's uncles) to indulge in some soul cleansing, beginning with chopping off their 'chotis' (the root of all evil?).

After several songs, excessive hamming and dialogues like "Iska koi resort nahin. Isse acha hain ki aap resort book karlo" and "In that case, mere paas aaja mere suitcase", you just want to dhinka chika yourself out of the movie hall. But the movie refuses to end, as unnecessary confusions and complications pile up and you wonder if there's enough reel left to clear it all up. Luckily, your prayers are answered as this movie ends like a school play, with the dim-witted criminals realizing they've wronged and swearing to mend their ways. Sigh.

'Dhinka Chika' will surely win enough whistles and 'Character Dheela' will leave many gasping. But if you're expecting a laugh-a-thon, then you're in the wrong movie. Salman gives in his 10 percent and packages it off with 200 percent confidence and style. Asin could surely get a chance to dub for the next Chip 'n' Dale film, in case her acting career doesn't fall in place.

When you exit this film, there will be little you will take away from it, apart from Salman's pocket-fiddling and bum rubbing dance moves. But then if Anees Bazmee was interested in making meaningful cinema, he would've demonstrated the same in "No Entry", "Welcome" or "Thank You". How about, "No, Thank You" for his next multi-starrer-no-brainer?

Courtesy: Yahoo

Jokes On 'Dussasana' Censor

It is an open secret in the cine circuit that anything that comes from the camp of Posani Krishnamurali is bound to give a tough time to the censor board members. Given the dose of vulgarity in his directorial ventures and the ugly scene composition he chooses, this doesn’t come across as a surprise.

However, it is now heard that jokes are making rounds on the censor board connecting them to the latest release ‘Dussasana’, Posani’s brainchild. Apparently, those who watched the film could not digest the climax. There were gruesome scenes in the fight sequence and this has given way to few jokes.

Most of them said “It looks like after the harassment and mental agony Posani caused to the censor board members, they must have collapsed with fatigue in the middle itself and he must have silently brought the film outside.” The cine folks are having a hearty laugh over this and add that Posani is capable of doing that. They are empathising with the plight of the censor board members though.

'Vykuntapali' Review: Spoilsport

Rating: 1.5/5
Banner: Hare Rama Hare Krishna
Cast: Krishnudu, Ajay, Tashu Kaushik, Tanikella, Subbaraju, Harshavardhan, Posani, Rajeev Kanakala and others
Music: Anil Gopireddy
Editor: Marthand K Venkatesh
Cinematographer: Jawahar Reddy
Director: Anil Gopireddy
Producers: P Swathi, P Satyadeep
Release date: 27/05/2011

A multi-starrer of sorts has arrived and this has the team of Krishnudu, Ajay and Ranadheer in the lead. Slated to be a mystery flick, let us see how curious it makes us.

Story:
A flashback tale, the story begins with the robbing of an ATM and drifts into the lives of three friends. Chandu (Krishnudu) whose only goal in life is to take care of his mom and give her the best, Kranthi (Ajay) who believes in reforming the society by becoming a journalist, Michael (Ranadheer) who believes in luxury lifestyle and doesn’t mind doing crooked things.

Years pass by and each of them get into jobs with their own problems. While Chandu gets a decent job, he is still worried since his mom’s condition deteriorates. Michael is busy duping people for money and his goal is to go to Singapore. Kranthi runs a charity home along with a software job, on the other hand, his team leader Snigdha (Tashu) is in love with him but he doesn’t reciprocate despite having feelings.

The story takes a turn with the clash of ideologies setting in and above that, a need for money. What happens after that forms the rest of the story.

Performances: Krishnudu comes up with a decent act. However, the milder he behaves the appealing he becomes. It is better he avoids dancing and other physical acts.

Ajay has a strong screen presence and intensity in his performance. He will shine if given proper roles with ample screen time.

Ranadheer was spontaneous and does his bit as required.

Tashu Kaushik is the sole visual delight. She struck a balance with glamour and performance to add value to the film. 

Tanikella was elegant, Subbaraju was brief, Posani was little quiet, Rajeev Kanakala was neat, it was good to see Sathya Krishna back on screen, Harshavardhan was not used to the fullest. The others didn’t have much to offer.

Highlights

• Theme of the film
• Background score
• Spicy song of Tashu- Ajay

Drawbacks

• Confused narrative
• Too many elements in the story
• Directorial flaws
• Nil comedy
• Zero entertainment quotient
• Ghost episode

Analysis: In order to become a director, it is essential that he must have command over the 60 scenes.

Also, it is important that he must be aware of the pulse of the audience and the ability to structure the scenes in such a way that they get connected. However, all that was missing here and it left a fluctuating effect.

While it is felt that the director had a noble intention to convey a good message, the lack of proper grip on the screenplay and weak conviction in critical scenes exposes the poor side of the film.

So, by merely thinking that what he has conceived will work onscreen without awareness of the external factors will result in a wonderful flop. Something like that is expected to happen in this case as well.

Bottomline: Broken ladders and disgusting snakes 

Posani's thousand degree torture!

Posani Krishna Murali, who is also known as Mental Krishna strikes back with 'Dussasana'. He strikes back with vengeance on critics who have written off his previous flicks. His latest film 'Dussasana' is a thousand degree torture to the viewers who have knowingly landed in Posani's movie theatre even after experiencing his previous torturous flicks. Apparently, Posani has outdone himself in making a bulls**t movie which has nothing in it to call it a feature film. People say that there should be a special genre to be invented to put all Posani's films in it. Posani's films can neither be rated nor criticized. Most of the times critics end up explaining their torturous experience rather analyzing Posani movies. Dussasana audience said in an agonizing tone that this film should be shown to terrorists as it would be the best possible torture they could be given. Srikanth's friendship with Posani has almost cost his career as people who watched 'Dussasana' would never watch any of Srikanth's film in the future.        PS: 'Dussasana' didn’t release in time in most of the theatres this morning due to the delay in dispatch of prints. People who missed out on the morning show are feeling happy for luck gods showering their blessings on them. And the people who got to watch this movie says that all their sins must have been cleared for going through this hell!

'Dussasana' Review: Third Degree Torture

Film: Dussasana
Rating: 0/5
Banner: Laughing Lords Entertainment
Cast: Srikanth, Tashu Kaushik, Sanjjanaa, Kota, Brahmanandam and others
Music:Srilekha
Camera: A Raja
Director: Posani Krishnamurali
Producer: Murali Krishna
Release date: 27/05/2011

Mental Krishna is back!! Yes, we are talking about Posani Krishna Murali and this time he has come up with yet another creative thought of his. Whether it was creative or crap let us see.

Story:
A man dressed like Che Guevara keeps walking in the streets and does few weird things in the name of justice. He calls himself common man (Srikanth) and despite his weird antics, the police can’t do much. In no time, the media gets their coverage on him and so does the public with their problems.

The common man becomes the messiah and he goes around slippering the ministers (Kota, Tanikella, Chalapathi Rao). Not stopping at that, he also kidnaps the Chief Minister’s daughter (Sanjjanaa) along with a news correspondent Sunitha (Tashu Kaushik).

The matter goes to the CM and enquiry about common man begins. Who is this common man? Why is he going around like a madman and why is the law not stopping him? All this forms the rest of the story.

Performances:
Srikanth has only two expressions – blank and crying. He keeps walking like a robot and when he will get mood no one knows. Given his image, it is time he realises that these are not the roles for him.

Tashu Kaushik was expressive and despite her brief screen time, she makes her presence felt. She has shown potential.

Sanjjanaa was glamorous but she is yet to improve on her acting skills. 

Kota was predictable, Tanikella was not used to his fullest, Brahmanandam was impish, Chalapathi Rao was regular, the actress doing Srikanth’s wife role was pretty. Krishna Bhagawan was okay, Kondavalasa was brief, Balayya was matured. The others didn’t have much to offer.

Highlights

• None!!!

Drawbacks

• Illogical storyline
• Disgusting and intolerable emotional scenes
• Crazy characterisation of protagonist
• Mindless logic for sending a message

Analysis
It is an open fact that Posani is crazy and with each passing day his insanity is reaching its peak. That is once again seen in his latest flick. Picking half knowledge of law and adding his own theories to it, Posani comes up with some constipating theme much to the torture of the audience.

Some of the classic examples for his madness are - CM’s daughter giving interview to TV news channel in swim costume, Hero walking with the dead body of his wife on streets, Minister and family taking mugs and going to the roads for toilet, Minister forced to drink drainage water from tap and many more. Shameless portrayal of scenes and crass logic are Posani’s specialties. Usually if few members rape one person it is gangrape but what do you call a single person raping the entire set of audience.

There will not be a single audience who will come out of the theatre without feelings of disgust, frustration, embarrassment and torture. While the first half freaks the viewer out of his wits thanks to the portrayal of the protagonist, the second half adds more to the madness by some ‘mind blowing’ sequences. Overall, this is one film which will take tons of guts and nerves of iron to watch and come out in one piece.

Bottomline: Shocking than mental asylum, painful than third degree torture

'Veera' Review: Outdated Action -Weak Comedy

Rating: 2/5
Banner: Sanvi Productions
Cast: Ravi Teja, Kajal, Taapsee, Shyam, Roja, Nasser, Brahmanandam, Ali, Venu Madhav, Divya Vani, Krishnudu
Music: S S Thaman
Cinematography: Chota K Naidu
Dialogues: Paruchuri Brothers
Story, screenplay, direction: Ramesh Varma
Producer: Ganesh Indukuri
Release date: 20/05/2011

Mass Maharaja Ravi Teja is back after his successful ‘Mirapakaya’ and this time, he has teamed up with Ramesh Varma of ‘Ride’ fame. Let us see how this is

Story:
ACP Shyamsunder (Shyam) is a tough and honest cop who gets into a tussle with the local don (Rahul Dev).

The don threatens Shyam’s family and the police department arranges for the family’s security. In comes Veera (Ravi Teja) as the protector and he mixes with the family but Shyam’s wife (Sridevi) doesn’t like him.

Meanwhile, there is Aikey (Taapsee) who falls for Veera and tries to woo him with Tiger (Brahmi) trying to cause trouble. The story takes a turn when Shyam discovers that Veera is not the real security officer. Who is Veera? Why does he come to help Shyam and his family? What happens to Aikey’s love story? All this forms the rest of the story.

Performances: 
Ravi Teja has given an energetic and intense performance. He has done justice in all scenes and infused life into his character.

Kajal Agarwal looks alright. Unlike her previous films which give her a sensuous and classy look, she looks rather rustic in this one. She has increased the glamour dose.

Taapsee is a visual feast as usual and scores with her oomph factor. She must try and control her facial expressions as she ends up overdoing at times.

Shyam looks handsome and though his role is limited, he made his presence felt. He fits the bill like a cop and his body language is assertive.

Sridevi looks naturally sweet but she was unable to give contained expressions during emotional scenes, it looked superficial.

Pradeep Rawath was loud, Divya Vani was irritating, Brahmi’s comedy was childish, Venu Madhav was okay, Roja came and went, Nasser was natural. The others did their bit as required.

Highlights:

• Cinematography
• Glamour quotient of Kajal, Taapsee
• Chitti Chitti song choreography
• Chinnari Chinni Navvu, a bit song

Drawbacks

• Outdated storyline
• Heavy overdose of weak sentiment
• Crass comedy
• Pale Dialogues
• Spineless narrative
• Dragged second half

Analysis:
A film has to make people hysterical with the narration- be it comedy or tragedy or action. Only then the audiences connect to film forgetting the surroundings. When the audiences start looking into each others’ faces to share pain with dullness, that itself proves to be a debacle.

There is always a fine line between coming up with a good script and getting it the right way on the screen. As such, the theme of the film was appealing but the director failed to get it onscreen in a convincing manner. While the emotional situations lacked strength, the serious scenes reminded of few other movies.

Technically and production wise, the standard is not compromised but content and the way it was executed plays the spoilsport. Though the pace was maintained, there was not enough grip on the script to get the audience into the film.

Calling husband with the word ‘penimiti’ sounds odd and disgusting with its old flavor. Paruchuri Brothers lost power in their pen for sure. Ravi Teja appears weak with his pale love track with Kajal. On the other hand he comes as a elderly village men and fights with antagonists. The main crux of the movie should be dealt in second half but the director over loaded the theme with number of emotions and characters. Hence he failed to make it gripping. The scenes those were kept as suspense weren’t revealed interestingly and the suspense hold itself is not gripping. The comedy scenes between Ravi Teja and Brahmanandam also fail to bring adequate laughs.

Nothing is gripping in this movie except the 5 minutes before interval. And again the bumpy journey starts till the end.

Overall, this is a film which gives a stale taste of boredom even to the masses. At the box office, chances of success are highly unlikely.

Bottomline: Gives boredom and tiresomeness  

'100% Love' Review: Just Pass With Meager Marks

Film: 100% Love
Rating: 3/5
Banner: Geetha Arts
Cast: Naga Chaitanya, Tamannah, K R Vijaya, Naresh and others
Music: Devisri Prasad
Cinematographer: Venkat Prasad
Story, Direction: Sukumar
Producer: Bunny Vasu
Release date: 06/05/2011

Naga Chaitanya is back after his super hit movie ‘Ye Maya Chesave’ and he has teamed up with Sukumar who is keen on scoring 100% success. Let us see how good this gets.

Story
Balu (Chaitu) is a topper throughout his academic life and he believes in nothing but success and successful people.

In comes his ‘Maradalu’ Mahalakshmi (Tamannah) from the village to study. At the start, Balu dominates Mahalakshmi and gives her instructions. In no time, she picks up and overtakes him. In between this, she develops feelings for Balu but it is his ego and self-pride which brings problems in their lives.

What happens to Mahalakshmi’s love? Does Balu change his attitude? All this forms the rest of the story.

Performances
Naga Chaitanya gave a spirited performance and he is yet to come out of his blank facial expressions in few scenes. Overall, his confidence and positive body language covers up.

Tamannah has shrunk in her figure and looks a bit skinny. However, she has scored with a significant performance and justified her presence to the fullest. Of course, there are few places where she shines with her glamour as well.

Nandu comes up with a decent act and though his role is limited, he made his presence felt. He has the potential to deliver more if given meaty roles.

Naresh was natural, Dharmavarapu brought few smiles, K R Vijaya was matured, Vijay Kumar was alright. The others did their bit as required and added value to the film.

Highlights

• Cinematography
• First half
• Tamannah’s glamour and performance
• Opening titles

Drawbacks

• Second half
• Weak emotional quotient in scenes
• Strong urban flavour
• Rendering of songs not that effective

Analysis
The film gives a very interesting punch with titles. It’s first of kind titles and one needs to watch how it went on humorously and intelligently. At the same time it gives an appeal that we are getting into a stuff that appeals for the educated crowds.

Sukumar’s school of thought has always been unusual and his focus has been on intense emotions and relationships. Holding the experience of working as lecturer of Mathematics earlier, he could convincingly chalk out this script with convincing college atmosphere in first half. On the other hand, he showed the flashes of brilliance by creating peppy scenes and logical comedy.

First half is good with full dose of energy along with kids, the second half fails to grip the audience at many moments due to predictable emotions and ending. The humor dose was also not up to the requirement in second half since the first half was on top. The director has kept all his energies in first half and got confused to carry on with second half. He might have taken better care as it’s just a single line story.

Coming to the music part, the pity is the lyrics are very beautiful but the singers killed them. Care must have been taken to make the lyrics audible and clear.

While the director was able to strike a chord instantly with the college going audience, he was unable to give the required maturity in the sentimental and melodramatic scenes. This may not go well with B, C center audiences for sure and may appeal to a small section of A audience.

Bottomline: Wait till it appears on TV

'Shor' Review: Likeable And Laudable

Film: Shor
Rating: 3/5Banners: ALT Entertainment, Balaji Motion Pictures
Cast: Tusshar Kapoor, Sundeep Kishan, Preeti Desai
Music: Sachin, Jigar, Harpreet
Cinematography: Tushar Kanti Ray
Directors: Raj Nidimoru, Krishna Dk
Producers:  Ekta Kapoor, Shobha Kapoor
Release Date: April 28, 2011

The TV baroness Ekta Kapoor has teamed up with the Telugu duo Raj and DK for a new movie. This also has Sundeep Kishan of ‘Snehageetham’ ‘Prasthanam’ fame making his foray into Bollywood. Let us see how it is

Story:Set on the backdrop of Mumbai, the story is about three different individuals with different lifestyles.

Tilak (Tusshar) is a bootlegger and he has his aides in the form of Ramesh (Nikhil) and Mandook (Pitobash).

Their life takes a turn when they discover a loot in a local train. Then there is Saawan (Sundeep) whose aim in life is to enter into the Mumbai juniors cricket team. However, he realizes that fulfilling his dream comes at a cost, he must get the kind of money. Then there is Abhay (Sendhil) who considers Mumbai to be his home only to realize that he is all alone in this big bad city.

What happens to their lives? What does destiny have in store for them? All this forms the rest of the story.

Performances:
Tusshar Kapoor has come up with a delectable performance and it is a sharp contrast to the roles that he did recently. He fits the bill properly but then he should develop some more expressions on his face.

Sundeep Kishan has given an energetic and confident performance. He has ease, style, screen presence, so potential of getting future offers in Bollywood exist. He dubbed voice by himself perfectly fitting to the Mumbai nativity.

Sendhil Ramamurthy gives an impressive act. His natural abeyance with the character involves the viewer in a good way.

Nikhil Dwivedi was natural, Pitobash was good, Radhika Apte was ravishing, Preeti Desai hot, Girija Oak was sensuous, Amit Mistry was apt, Zakir Hussain was fabulous. The others did their bit as required. 

Highlights:

• Screenplay
• Second half, especially the climax
• Performances by Sundeep and Pitobash
• Content

Drawbacks:

• No star power
• Songs
• Offbeat flavor

Analysis
At the outset, the film will come across as an offbeat flick that might appeal to the film festival and thinking audience. However, the makers were balanced enough to fill it with the right dose of humor and sensible storyline. There is a good mix of technical values and production quality while writing takes a front seat. With efficient performances, the film has some strength.

On the flip side, given its serious tone there are times when the viewer tends to expect things to go easy. The climax might get some mixed reactions.

At the box office, the film has strong chance of scoring a hit with some decent promotion, for now, landing in profit zone looks very likely.

Bottom-line: Will make enough noise at box office

Nenu Naa Rakshasi Movie Review

Behind the Movie Nenu Naa Rakshasi: Director Puri Jagannath known for commercial blockbusters brings us this new venture with still to prove Rana and gorgeous Ileana in the lead. As all three are standing at crucial stage of their careers respectively, the long delay in release of this flick has almost killed the enthusiasm of audience. Let us see, what Puri actually wants to say about ‘Suicides’? 

In the Movie Nenu Naa Rakshasi: Abhimanyu aka Abhi (Rana) is a professional shooter who takes suparis from a mediator and kills local gangsters for the sake of money. He falls instantly in love with Meenakshi (Ileana), working in a cafeteria. In the same flow Vikram (Subba Raju), is local Circle Inspector on a special duty to track down the Youtube account of ‘It is My Life Boss.’ This account deals with shooting and uploading of suicides happening in the society but with a purpose behind.

Time comes when Abhimanyu decides to go for a suicide and calls up that particular Youtube account creator. After narrating a small flashback as why Abhi wants to commit suicide, he finds that the girl shooting his suicide episode is none other than Meenakshi. Now, Abhi decides to live for the sake of his love.  

Some how Abhi saves his life and starts to impress Meenakshi to find the reason behind operation of such Youtube account. Mean while Vikram succeeds in tracing the identity of Meenakshi and tries to arrest her for spreading the criminal suicidal thoughts in mankind. Obviously hero Abhi escapes her from police. In the same stoke, gangster Ratna (Abhimanyu Singh of ‘Raktha Charitra 1’fame) on a revenge with Abhi starts chasing him.  

Abhi and Meenakshi fly Venice to save their lives. Here is where Meenkashi decides to commit suicide narrating the depressing flashback of her sister Shravya (Ileana). What are the flashbacks of Abhi and Meenkashi? Why Abhi killed Ratna? How and when Meenakshi understood the love of Abhi? forms the climax.

Values of the Movie Nenu Naa Rakshasi: Puri Jagannath known for mass storylines touched a message oriented line this time based on suicides. Unfortunately Puri missed all the basics in narration including the characterizations of leads. Direction went on pathetic lines no where keeping the audience connected to story. Screenplay had numeric loop holes which isn’t the actual style of perfectionist Puri. Dialogues from this man were helpful in providing statistics for those preparing a thesis on suicides. Jagan tried to annex punches of his natural style which worked out in two scenes on Rana. Cinematography of Amol Rathod was faultless while editing by SR Sekhar demoted the actual concept. Music from Vishwa and Rahman isn’t that effective including the background. Production values of Bhavya Creations are appreciable for showing confidence on this half cooked subject.

Performance wise Rana again didn’t get enough scope to establish himself as a full fledged actor. He looked manly in stylish costumes but stiff body language and expressionless face did the harm. Many a times Rana effortlessly tried to follow mannerisms of Venkatesh. Ileana is gorgeous even without any makeup. She got a role of performance orientation and goods are delivered. Subba Raju as Vikram is an apt match. Abhimanyu Singh excelled with his cruelty and terrifying yet cool facial exposition. Comedy between Ali and Mumaith Khan is most vulgar and disjointed. Among others, Ahuti Prasad, Kota, Nagineedu are mere guest appearances.          

      

Out of the Movie Nenu Naa Rakshasi: Puri Jagannatha is a man known for heroic punches and effective narration. What went through his mind in selecting this story line is not at all understood. Basic purpose of the movie to give a preaching on suicides is sidelined. “Suicide is not a permanent solution for a temporary problem.” Message is fine and helpful for youth to find some bravery. Lacking of pace, lengthy boring scenes, ineffectiveness in delivering the message affected the final output. 

Strictly speaking, ‘Nenu Naa Rakshasi’ is like a documentary message oriented film with commercial masala padding. Climax is unjustified making Puri to take the total blame. Characterization of Ileana went absolutely worthless with a weak climax. Necessity of going for filthy comedy in this kind of flick is truly questionable. Influence of Ramgopal Varma on Puri Jagannath is distinctly felt in many scenes. Nenu Naa Rakshasi can never become a commercially viable film. None of the audience would like dilution of serious subjects based on ‘Suicide.’  Once again Puri continued his weak form while Rana and Ileana may not find any respite.

Verdict of the Movie Nenu Naa Rakshasi: A ‘Suicidal’ attempt by Puri on ‘Suicides’!

Coutesy:Cinejosh

'Mr Perfect' Review: Perfect With Slight Imperfection

Rating: 3/5Banner: Sri Venkateshwara Creations
Cast: Prabhas, Kajal, Taapsee, K Vishwanath, Prakashraj, Sayaji Shinde, Nasser, Murali Mohan, Brahmanandam, Raghu Babu, Master Bharat etc
Music: Devisri Prasad
Cinematography: Vijay K Chakravarthy
Editing: Marthand K Venkatesh
Director: Dasaradh
Producer: Dil Raju
Release date: 22/04/2011

Prabhas is back and after almost a year. He paired up with Kajal and it is also a crucial big budget venture for producer Dil Raju. Let us see how perfect this gets..

Story
Vicky (Prabhas) who lives in Australia grows with a rule that he would never compromise for anything he doesn’t like. Given his practical thinking, he wants everything to be perfect, even in relationships. The marriage of his sister gets him to India and here he meets Priya, daughter of his father’s friend (Murali Mohan). As such, Vicky’s father (Nasser) wants him to get married to Priya.

Initially, both Vicky and Priya feel repulsive but in no time, Priya starts falling in love. She begins to change herself to suit Vicky’s life and thoughts. However, when the moment comes, Vicky gives his practical outlook and returns to Australia.

Here, he meets Maggi (Taapsee) through a competition and feels she is the perfect one. How perfect is Maggi for Vicky? How true is Priya’s love for Vicky? How correct is Vicky in his thoughts? All this forms the rest of the story.

Performances
Prabhas has given a decent performance. He scores in his outfits and timing of dialogues but he should have reduced the mannerism of keeping his hand in pant pocket in almost all scenes, might look like fashion and style but felt like an overdose.

Kajal Agarwal is expressively beautiful and is drop dead gorgeous in sarees. She is a visual treat to the audience and steals few more hearts with her endearing smiles. Performance wise, she was apt.

Taapsee looks hot and fits the bill rightly given her character. The dubbing suited her expressions and she fills the glamour quotient.

K Vishwanath was elegant, Prakashraj was matured, Sayaji Shinde was noisy, Nasser was natural, Brahmi tried to bring few smiles, Raghu Babu was jarring, Master Bharat was regular. The ladies did their bit to support.

Highlights

• Prabhas- Kajal screen chemistry
• Locations and cinematography
• Costumes
• Theme of the film
• Screenplay

Drawbacks

• Second half
• Weak emotional scenes
• Overdose of moral preaching

Analysis:
The film comes across as a clean, family entertainer and the intention of the makers must be appreciated. Their attempt to reiterate the values of love, life, relationships in today’s world is acknowledged. However, dealing with such human subjects requires humane feel and a deft handling of the script, that was missing here.

As such, the protagonist goes with the flow of destiny but there is nothing significant he does to perfect the situations. He is more on the receiving end most of the time. On the other hand, the idea of a girl willing to adapt herself like that was rather unconvincing (of course, finding a girl like that in today’s times is jackpot fortune).

First half comprises with good humor and flow of drama. And second half also continues in similar fashion recalling the blend of Santhosham and Bommarillu but with weak handling of emotions. Required emotion is not carried in the fag end of the film and hence it appeared weak.

The film deals with the understanding of relations between younger generation and the older ones. The plus point in the film is that all the songs are good with pleasing music and sensible lyrics. But all are situational songs and no duets are seen in this genre of film, surprisingly.

Having said that, the film appeals largely due to the conviction in the belief of love, sharing and how few things in life cannot be got merely by rational thinking. At the box office, this is a treat for the family audience and given the craze for Prabhas and Kajal, the openings will be strong. Overall, this would be anywhere between an average and profit grosser.

Bottomline: For family audience