By the time I finally got to watch this, it had become the nouveau critical darling, as well as made some noise at the box-office, and I was a little worried if it was just hype and nothing else.
The first 15 minutes/so did not put my mind to rest, with some amateurish acting (not from the lead, but the ones supporting him) and stilted some story-telling.
However, and this was pleasant, when the lead character settles down in his role as protector/protagonist, and we're done with 1 of the alternating flashbacks, the I felt the movie found its edge, and stuck with it.
While it begins and continues the peeling of (thin) layer-after- layer, there are a few surprises, even for seasoned twist-laden movie-watchers, that are a pleasure to behold, with each actor beginning to get comfortable in the skins of the various characters they are inhabiting.
The eponymous title refers to a 'moment' that is revealed only at the end, which is not much of a surprise, but it was kinda funny to listen to the debates of a few audience-members who claimed they did not 'get' it, or not wanting to discuss it, since they come from, and inhabit, a conservative atmosphere. As far as I thought, there was no ambiguity in that whatsoever, and kudos to the team for make it the title of this little flick.
The background score is solid, and though there's absolutely no necessity for a foreground score in a flick like this one (which, in my head, moved this from the realm of Indies, firmly into that of mainstream fare), 1 of the foreground songs really stood out, both with its mixing and sound design, not just its composition.
The makers wisely resist the temptation to go overboard in action scenes, but do that subtly, with there being absolutely no explanation for our protagonist's skills in that department/area. In spite of that, shootouts are dealt with in a sledgehammer fashion (not being drawn out painfully, the way most mainstream movies are wont to do).
Shot composition, throughout, with/without support from the editing, has been stitched together in a very smooth fashion, and the jerky storytelling at the beginning gives way to surer/smoother narration over time.
Clarity wise, for most of its running time, the frame contains grains, and I do not know if it was because of poor projection, or the makers wanted that grain in, purposefully, in a time where most low budget movies are going for pristine/clean frames for every shot. Sure that most of the audience didn't notice it, but disappointing that it existed, for any reason at all.
Performance-wise, Adivi Sesh, pulling double duties as the writer as well, comes into his own gradually, but has a stock series of expressions that are sometimes (unintentionally) funny to behold, detracting from the seriousness of a few scenes. He has been trying to catch a break as solo hero plus writing talent for a while now, and seems to have hit pay dirt with this one. He has tried breaking into big roles (Dongaata) and doing multiple duties earlier (Karma, which he wrote/directed/acted in, KISS which he wrote/acted in, like this one, with someone else directing....).
Adah Sharma, Rajesh, Kishore and Anasuya Bhardwaj all own their characters, and the casting of a few known names in non-typical roles (for them) makes sense, and provides dividends for those in the audience who can appreciate their range.
The use of real, local locations, also adds its own set of charms, calling to mind the good (I'm lamenting here, since those works seem to be few and far between nowadays) works of filmmakers like Chandrashekhar Yeleti (Anukokunda Oka Roju) or RGV (Kshana Kshanam, Shiva) or Krishnavamsi (Gulabi), in a nice way.
However, one of the main characters, who has a last-minute reveal, did not seem to be characterized consistently in all the scenes he/she was in, and that detracted loudly from what the flick aspired to be, especially since it seemed to take care about all the other characters until the time this one was introduced. To me, it stood out like a sore thumb (of sorts), and I'd blame the writing (mostly, though it could have been taken care of during production as well).
I'll be honest - though I enjoyed this one, I did feel that it could have been much, much better than what ultimately ended up in theatrical release. Since Sesh has been growing as a writer though, my fingers are crossed for his next to be even better, and perhaps more polished than this one.
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