Just don't get why #Antariksham got such bad reviews!! It is an extraordinary effort for a real space adventure film - the first ever in India! The space scenes look very real and the VFX is plain awesome and doesn't look cheap at all. It costed just ~$3.5m, for heavens sake!! #SankalpReddy is the hero of the film for me - the care for details, a scientifically feasible plot line, underplayed drama, good acting, and scintillating BGM - and the commitment to tell his story w/o 'selling' it! Just ignore the nelabench reviews and watch the film on Prime. You will be doing TFI a whole lot of good!!
Reviews
10 Reviews
Oopiri
(2016)
Hope Tollywood makes more such films!
22 November 2018
Oopiri - a differently abled movie that tugs at your heart strings. Vamsi Paidipally needs to be added to the list of directors who are carving out new paths in Tollywood. Mind you, this ain't no typical indie film. It has all the elements of commercial cinema, but takes a new look at the mainstream paradigm. Initially, I thought that they could have cast a Telugu actor instead of Karthi - someone like a Allu Arjun, or a Nani. But, by the end w/o doubt, Karthi brings the much needed fresh authenticity to the character. With Nagarjuna, the Akkineni gene shows throughout the film. A few quibbles, here and there, fall by the wayside due to the high quality of filmmaking!
Arjun Reddy
(2017)
More needed!
22 November 2018
The pertinent point here isn't whether or not Arjun Reddy is a good movie, but whether it has dented the existing star-power driven ecosystem prevalent in the Telugu film industry. My verdict - I believe it has managed to make a good-sized crater!! A solid and meticulous screenplay, brilliant acting by Vijay Devarakonda, and a directorial effort from Sandeep Vanga that doesn't pull punches and stays away from typical formulaic hypocrisy!
Padmaavat
(2018)
Good one!
22 November 2018
If I keep aside, for a moment, my dislike for films that Bollywoodize history, Padmavat was entertaining too with some very well made scenes including the now-taboo Sati scene. I have to say it's an out and out Padukone film. Shaheed with his underaction and Ranveer with his overaction were pretty irritating. I must say that all the negative publicity may have actually helped the film.
Pad Man
(2018)
Sooperaho!
22 November 2018
Padman is impressive, simply since the subject is not an easy one to deal with. In fact, I'd say it's an impossible subject for an Indian movie. Kudos to Balki! He pulled it off in an absolutely brilliant manner. The Linglish speech in the UN scene could have fallen flat, but Akshay hits it out of the ballpark.
Mahanati
(2018)
I am not sure about this one!
22 November 2018
In an interview regarding the movie Mahanati, Tarak (Jr NTR) said that the makers of the film had approached him with a request to play a cameo of NTR in the film. He had responded stating that he does not have the guts to do it and that he would never consider it in his lifetime.
He had me thinking!
How does someone make a film about a larger than life persona such as Savithri, whose films touched many generations of filmgoers? Can a biopic do justice to the person, amidst the many myths and half-truths?
Director Nag Ashwin tried it and here is what I feel about it.
Nag Ashwin put in his heart and soul into the movie and I must say the whole cast did a wonderful job, except for Dulquer who I felt was a miscast. The story-telling was good, though there was so much more that could have been done, and done differently. At the end of the first half, I felt the movie was going down the proverbial rabbit hole.
In my mind, the true test for this film was going to be how well it transported you into the life and world of Savithri - and in that the first half was somewhat average. It is a lost opportunity that the director focused more on the love story vs. memorable nuggets from Savithri's films and vignettes of her wild popularity. At one point I almost forgot that the love story I was watching was of Savithri and Gemini Ganesan due to too many unnecessary scenes between Keerthy and Dulquer that took away from the cinematic experience. In other words, the love story in the first half could have been any other love story!
Incorporating cameos of famous film personalities of the time viz., KV Reddy, LV Prasad, Chakrapani was brilliantly done. I would give high marks to Nag Ashwin for that.
The second half somewhat redeemed the movie. A huge part of the credit for the second half must go to Keerthy Suresh. She absolutely hit the ball out of the ballpark! But the poor taste in my mouth from the first half lingered on with some missed chances, such as the gajarohana scene, and did not let me enjoy the second half as much as I thought I should have. I read that Savithri's gajarohana was a big event with many luminaries walking in front of the elephant, which could have been a great scene to enhance the characterization.
My summation is that - paraphrasing what Tarak said - it is easy to venture down the path of making a biopic of an icon like Savithri, but to make it memorable, guts alone are not sufficient; you need to have the stuff. Period!
I must say that Nag Ashwin will go places. This is his second film and he demonstrates huge promise. Kudos to him for daring to dream!! My advice to him is to try to venture out of the circle of influence.
Around late 70s, there was a movie called Bhumika by Shyam Benegal which was a biopic of the famous actress Hansa Wadkar. Now, that's the other extreme of how you'd make a biopic. Somewhere in between would have done it for me!!
Rangasthalam 1985
(2018)
Rangasthalam redeemed my trust that we can still make good films - and that even the smallest of characters can be provided with depth!
22 November 2018
Indian films focus on the star but not the character. And characters rarely mimic real people. But, with Rangasthalam, Sukumar broke the mould and proved that authentic/realistic films can be made without compromising on quality/quota of entertainment. Basically, the movie beats the formula! Rangasthalam proves that you can't go wrong with a tight screenplay, honest story-telling, realistic characters, solid music/lyric, brilliant camerawork, authentic locations, and an A-list star that is willing to push the envelope! Ramcharan's was a powerhouse performance as a village youth with a hearing impairment. Not an easy character to pull off. He did it with ease which will open new doors for him. Totally blown away! And Samantha and Aadi hit it out of the ball park! The other thing that particularly gave me goosebumps were the lyrics and music. Ending was pretty stark. I don't believe I saw this good of a noir ending in a Telugu movie ever.
Ae Dil Hai Mushkil
(2016)
Difficult screenplay to convert into a mainstream Bollywood film.
22 November 2018
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