October 2009 ~ Early Tollywood

10.29.2009

Prabhas In & As EK NIRANJAN (2009) Movie Review

Film: EK NIRANJAN

Rating: 3/5

Banner: Adithya Ram Movies

Cast: : Prabhas, Kangana Ranaut, Sonu Sood, Tanikella, Makrand Deshpande, Mukul Dev, Posani, Ali, Brahmanandam, Brahmaji, Abhinayasri, Sunil, Venu Madhav etc

Music: Mani Sharma

Cinematography: Shyam K Naidu

Director: Puri Jagannadh

Producer: Adithya Ram

Release Date: October 29, 2009

Story:

A regular tale, the story begins with Chotu (prabhas) who works for the police department, unofficially. He keeps tracing out criminals, catching them and takes his commission from the cops. On the other hand, he is also on the lookout for his parents and for that, he looks after Chidambaram (makrand) the man who brought him up since he knows about the parents. The story takes a turn when Sameera (kangana) enters into his life and after some hide and seek, they fall in love. Johnny Bhai (sonu sood) is a dreaded don and he is on the lookout for Kailash (mukul) and his paths cross with Chotu due to a sequence of events. What happens from there forms the rest of the story.

Presentation:

The director has come up with a formula storyline and though the presentation was okay, the narrative was not upto the mark. The dialogues are good in places, the script was inconsistent and the screenplay was alright. Background score was good and songs were nice. Cinematography was standard. Editing could have been better, costumes and art department did their bit as required. Prabhas gave a good performance but he must be careful not to get repetitive with his body language and dialogues, Kangana looks sweet but she is not that good looking, make up was a defect, Sonu Sood was worth watching and he has given a good performance, the comedy track of Ali, Brahmanandam, Abhinayasri was dull, Sunil was brief, Venu Madhav was regular, Makrand was underutilized, Posani was eccentric, Tanikella was as usual. The others just came and went.

Conclusion:

The film is a typical Puri flavor and has multiple tracks running. However, there is not much voltage in it and there are no great scenes that really catch the chord with the audience. While the first half is light hearted with comedy, romance and some action, the second half goes about with the routine process and ends with an abrupt climax. Romance was weak, comedy was stale. The film doesn't have much for family audience and mass would relate to it. This will be an average grosser at the box office.

10.24.2009

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Nandi Awards of the Year 2008 -- Announced

10.23.2009

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Kalyan Ram's JAYEEBHAVA (2009) Movie Review by bharatstudent

Film: JAYEE BHAVA

Rating: 3.25/5

Banner: N T R Arts

Cast: Nandamuri Kalyanram, Hansika, Mukesh Rishi, Jayaprakash Reddy, Ashish Vidyarthi, Chalapathi Rao, Ali, Brahmanandam, Venu Madhav, Raghu Babu, Hema, Banerjee etc

Music: S Thaman

Cinematography: Dasaradhi Sivendra

Director: Naren Kondapati

Producer: Nandamuri Kalyanram

Release Date: October 23, 2009

Story:

A light hearted tale, the story begins with the rivalry between Bhavani (mukesh) and Narasimha (Jayaprakash reddy). Both have their issues settled with Yadu (ashish), the big don who is based in Hong Kong now. However, the story changes with the arrival of Ram (Kalyan), Bhavani's son. He realizes that both Bhavani and Narasimha were thick friends once upon a time but Yadu separated them. He goes to Hong Kong, traps Yadu and gets him arrested. Also, he meets Anjali (hansika) and both of them fall in love. After coming to India, Anjali discovers Ram's identity and vice versa. From then on, they decide to patch up the two sworn enemies. What happens from there forms the rest of the story.

Presentation:

The director has come up with a light hearted tale and though the presentation was excellent, the narrative lacked depth. The dialogues were okay, the script was alright but the screenplay could have been with more clarity. Background score and songs are good and three songs are worth taking home, full marks to cinematography which has elevated the film to a different league. Costumes were trendy and art department was excellent. Editing was standard but it could have been better in the climax. Kalyanram was mild and had a stable performance, he could have put more energy into the comedy sequences though. Hansika was absolutely delicious and gorgeous, her acting has been very much the same. Mukesh Rishi was mild, Jayaprakash Reddy was regular, Ashish Vidyarthi was standard, Raghu Babu was hilarious, Ali was effective, Brahmanandam was justified, Venu Madhav could have been better, Banerjee was intense, the others contributed in their own way.

Conclusion:

The film scored majorly on the technical aspects as the presentation was slick. However, the content was weak. While the first half is mild, things pick up during the second half but the ending was quite hasty. Overall, the film would appeal in terms of comedy, technical values, Hansika's glamour and it could have been real better if the climax was given more punch and consistent. The film will be a decent grosser at the box office and the makers will have profits. If the word of mouth goes positive then it could reach a decent hit as well.

Bharatstudent Verdict : Can be watched once

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BUMPER OFFER (2009) Movie Review by Greatandhra

Film: Bumper Offer

Rating: 2.5/5

Cast: Sai Ram Shankar, Bindu Madhavi, Sayaji Shinde, Rakhsa, Chandra Mohan, Kovai Sarala, Ali, Venu Madhav, Khayyum etc

Fights: Ram-Laxman

Art: Chinna

Editing: MR Varma

Camera: Sree Ram

Choreography: Dinesh, Sobha

PRO: BA Raju

Lyrics: Bhaskarabhatla

Music: Raghu Kunche

Story and Dialogue: Puri Jagannath

Screenplay, Direction: Jaya Varma

Released On: 23rd Oct 2009

The much publicized film that tuned most popular with the super hit song ‘Ravanamma’ has released today. Let us see how it faired well.

Story:

Sai (Sai Ram) is a motor mechanic. His father (Chandramohan) works as a clerk in a construction company owned by a rich real estate lord Surya Prakash (Sayaji Shinde). Surya Prakash’s daughter Aishwarya (Bindu Madhavi) is an arrogant girl. Consequences make Sai and Aishwarya love together. How Surya Prakash reacts to that forms the main story. He gives Sai an offer that he is ready to give his daughter to him if he can earn at least half of his property. But Sai says that if financial status is the barrier for marriage, he would bring down Surya Prakash to his standard. Things move accordingly in second half and finally how Sai gets success is the climax.

Performances:

Sai Ram:
He groomed to some extent but stills needs to be. His hair style and costumes are in tune with the character he played but his dialogue delivery is pitiful. He is not appealing for any set of audiences with that. He needs to get trained in diction part.

Bindu Madhavi:
She looked spicy and perfectly gelled well in arrogant role. Director proved successful in giving a different look for her and broken the jinx of family look that she acquired with ‘Avakai Biryani’.

Raksha is ok as rich mother of heroine and Sayaji also grooved well in his part. Chandramohan and Kovai Sarala did their part as parents of poor hero.

Ali and Venu Madhav could bring only minimum laughs with their Magadheera spoof, although there is better scope.

Music is good and trendy. Dialogues are good, screenplay is normal and direction is average.

Highlights:

Music
Lyrics in ‘Ravanamma..’
Dialogues to some extent

Disappointments:
Hero’s diction

Analysis:

The movie is a reverse of Chiranjeevi’s ‘Challenge’. The protagonist in this denies the offer given by his rich lover’s father to become rich and marry his daughter. But in turn he gives a bumper challenge that he would bring that rich man to his level (poor) to marry his lover as financial status is the only barrier for their marriage.

The scope to make it a wonderful entertainer is very big. But this movie is limited only to a few laughs. The entertainment graph has been up and down since the beginning. A few scenes like when heroine beating the hero with stick received good response. The credit goes to dialogues there.

The ‘Magadheera’ spoof of Ali and Venu Madhav started with promising entertainment but that ended up very weak. There are no thrills and chills and everything goes as predicted. On a whole, the exercise is done but that’s not sufficient for this type of film.

The take off is good, first half ends up with a powerful interval bang. The second half goes as expected and finally it ends up as predicted. The film could have raised interest levels with more humor in it. To sum up, it ended up as a mundane treat.

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Rakta Charitra Heroine RADHIKA APTE Photo Stills

10.21.2009

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Ram Charan's Third Film "ORANGE" Movie Launch

Pooja ceremony of Ram Chara Tej's latest movie in the direction of Bommarillu Bhaskar was held at Hotel Novotel on the morning of 21 October. This is the production no.7 on Anjana banner that is being produced by Nagababu. Genelia and Kajal Agarwal are playing female leads.

Dasari sounded the clapboard, D Rama Naidu switched on the camera and K Raghavendra Rao directed the first shot. Chiranjeevi, Venkatesh, Allu Arjun, RaNa, Allu Arvind, Puri Jagan, Krish, SS Rajamouli, VV Vinayak, Seenu Vytla, Shyam Prasad Reddy, Gemini Kiran, Surender Reddy, KL Narayana, C Kalyan, B Gopal, Paruchuri Gopala Krishna, Edida Nageswara Rao, Meher Ramesh, Vamsi Paddipally, Dil Raju, Srikanth, Sivaji, Veera Shankar, Uttej, Kodi Rama Krishna, Chota K Naidu, Nikhil, Brahmaji, KC Sekhara Babu, KS Rama Rao, A Kodandarami Reddy etc attended it.

Shooting in Australia and Hyderabad - Nagababu

Nagababu said, "Bommarillu Bhaskar is one of very few directors who show love and human emotions in an effective manner. This movie is the third film for both Ram Charan Tej and Bhaskar. We are using 'Orange' as working title for this movie. But the title is not official yet. Ram Charan Teja doesn't want to be typecast as a mass hero after the stupendous success of Magadheera. Hence he choose a subject of different genre. At the same time there will be a bit of action elements in this movie. The shooting will start in November in Hyderabad. We will go to Australia to shoot in December and January. Rest of the movie will be shot in Hyderabad later."

It's a feel good movie - Bommarillu Bhaskar

Bhaskar said, "It is a big responsibility to direct Ram Charan Tej after Magadheera. I am confident of fulfilling my responsibility. I was not tensed after watching Magadheera film. I felt that I am safe. The script of this movie will project Ram Charan Tej in entirely different way. It will be a good entertainer and a feel-good movie.I got good technical team and a supportive producer in the form of Nagababu. I am looking for hat-trick for me and Ram Charan with this movie."

Fabulous script and a challenging role - Ram Charan Tej

Ramcharan Tej said, "We decided on this project after 40 days of shoot of Magadheera movie. I knew that Magadheera would be a mass entertainer and I didn't want to remain as mass hero. That was the reason why I was particular that Bhaskar should direct my third movie. I want to do films from all genres. It's a fabulous script and challenging role for me. I hope that I will justify the script. This film will have all popular entertainment. Kiran Reddy who did cinematography for Ram Gopal Varma's Naach is doing for this movie. I am extremely comfortable with Nagababu outside my family members and spending time with him relieves you of all the stress. I am happy to be working in Anjana Productions."

Harris Jayaraj composes music. Kiran Reddy handles camera, Anand Sai is the art director. Marthand Venkatesh edits the movie. Thota Prasad is the dialogue writer.

10.19.2009

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Jaganmohini (2009) Movie Review by Bharatstudent

Film: JAGANMOHINI

Rating: 1.5/5

Banner: Murali Cine Arts

Cast: Namitha, Raja, Vadivelu, Nila, Kota, Riyaz Khan, Jyothilakshmi, Bala Singh, Alex etc
Music: Ilayaraja

Cinematography: N K Vishwanathan

Director: N.K. Vishwanathan

Producer: Murali

Release Date: October 17, 2008

Story:

Set on the stage of mythology, the story begins with the announcement of engagement between prince Jagan Prathap (raja) with princess Jayanthi (meera chopra/nila) and when the entire kingdom is ready to rejoice, terror strikes in the form of a water cyclone that destroys the major part of the kingdom. That happens to be the water devil Jaganmohini (Namitha) which comes to seek revenge. However, the sorcerer (kota) manages to hold it through his spell and controls it. The flashback shows that Mohini (namitha) is from a fisherman's family and her island is visited by the prince sometime back and both fall in love. Just when everything looks set, the prince's father, the King, doesn't want a girl from a fisherman's family and so he sends his troops and kills Mohini. Now, she is out seeking revenge and also to have the prince for herself. What happens from there forms the rest of the story.

Presentation:

The director has come up with the remake theme but by no means is the narrative or the presentation good. The dialogues are sloppy, the script was pathetic and the screenplay was horrible. Even background score and songs were total crass and the only saving grace is the cinematography which was good at few places. Editing was amateur, costumes were alright but art department was not good. Raja looks dull as usual and he looks like a small boy in front of Namitha, she is all over the screen and it must be said that she is looking totally out of shape though she has oozed a lot of glamour and skin show. Meera Chopra was the saving grace with her beauty, Kota was standard, Riyaz Khan was regular, Alex was normal, Jyothilakshmi was brief, Bala Singh was plain, the others didn't have much to offer.

Conclusion:

The film happens to be the remake of the 1978 super hit movie which had Jayamalini in the title role and despite the hype created by the makers, the film was a major disaster. The content or style of presentation was poor and the graphics were utterly inferior. While the first half revolves around the revenge saga, the second half goes about with the love tale and how evil is warded off. Overall, the film has failed to appeal to the audience in any department. Though hardcore Namitha fans might like it a bit, her overbearing frame might just be too much to handle. This will sink big time at the box office.

10.16.2009

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EVV's Bendu Apparao RMP (2009) Movie Review by bharatstudent

Film: BENDU APPARAO RMP

Rating: 3.25/5

Banner: Suresh Productions

Cast: Allari Naresh, Kamna Jethmalani, Meghana, Ahuti Prasad, Uttej, Srinivas Reddy, Jeeva, Kondavalasa, AVS, Raghu Babu, Telangana Sakuntala, Subhashini, Dharmavarapu, L B Sriram, Suman Shetty

Music: Koti

Cinematography: C Jairam

Director: E V V Satyanarayana

Producer: D Ramanaidu

Release Date: October 16, 2009

Story:

A light hearted tale, the story is set on the backdrop of Bobbaralanka and here lives Bendu Apparao RMP (Naresh) who manipulates the sicknesses of people and earns money. However, his hand works well and the illness is cured. The story takes a turn when Apparao along with his friends (Uttej and Srinivas reddy) chance upon a dying man on the road. He reveals about the money he brought and pleads with Apparao to give it to his parents. Despite many efforts, Apparao fails to locate the dead man's family but given his kind heart, he builds a school in the village and at the same time, gives part of the money to both his friends and all three of them solve their problems. However, the real family lands in the village one day due to a government transfer and Apparao realizes this information soon. What happens from there forms the rest of the story.

Presentation:

The director has come up with a regular storyline but it was the narration that really stole the show. The presentation was alright. Dialogues were hilarious, script was good, screenplay was apt. Music was standard and songs were not that great. Cinematography was effective, editing was crisp, costumes were suitable and the art department was realistic. Allari Naresh came up with a good performance and he was energetic, Kamna looked fresh and sexy as usual, even Meghana was competent and though she was brief, her one song was sizzling, Ahuti Prasad came up with a rocker, he was excellent. Uttej, Srinivas Reddy, Kondavalasa, Jeeva, Raghu Babu, L B Sriram, Suman Shetty, Chalapathi Rao all did their bit and added value to the film. Ramanaidu was graceful. The others did their bit as required.

Conclusion:

The film is an outright comedy but then there is also a good bit of sentiment and melodrama in proportion. While the first half just goes breezily without any issues, it is the second half that lacks the speed and goes slow due to the melodrama angle. Overall, good pace has been maintained and it must be said that the doses of comedy are quite high. The village backdrop also gives a nostalgic feeling and it is a typical Telugu filled humor. This will go well at the B and C Centers while the urban centers will attract comedy loving and youth audience. The film will yield profits to the makers.

Bharatstudent Verdict: Time pass comedy entertainer, watch it once