Europe – Europe
India – India
USA – Green screen and Annapurna Studios
Don’t get me wrong. This is how the makers of Greeku Veerudu redefine the geographic landscape
of the world and effortlessly make Big Apple, a home grown fruit. Thanks to
cutting-edge technology that made this possible. In the film, whenever you see some footage
of USA, what you see is a shoddy
compositing work by people who possess zilch experience in handling it. The naked
eye of a wayfarer with a nonchalant glance can say that the film is fooling the
audience. Sir, the audience has grown intelligent, so please refrain from such
acts. When nothing was shot in USA, how can you claim in your pre-release
publicity that the film extensively traveled through US and its exotic locales
were canned to give a visually appealing experience? But, alas! Here the audience
gets to experience Europe and was forced to mistake it for USA. There is also
Lufthansa Airlines carrying passengers from one US state to another. Oh, that’s
a long-winded homage to this ‘Green screen’ Veerudu. Before your patience wears thin
let me rush through the review.
Nagarjuna Akkineni plays a role with
shades of grey. These shades of grey can also be seen on his hair. What a
symbolism! By adding so much of gloss to the template, the production team might
have run out of hair color. When I say ‘template’ I mean the one used for
making an emotional love story or family drama. Director Dasarath wanted to push
himself light years ahead with his new offering but in the process gets pulled
years behind and nestles under dim light. What happened to me? I started with
Nagarjuna’s character and now talking about something else. That’s the devastating
effect the movie had on me. Focus… Nag believes in no-strings-attached
relationship and always hovers on a philosophy that Relationships are pain. This
bravura act gave pinching pain to audience and to whoever it may concern.
Let the story go on. Nagarjuna befriends
Nayantara, who is an activist for ‘Make a Wish foundation’, en route India.
If I am not wrong, Nithya Menon in Ala Modalaindi is also an activist for the same foundation. Does that ring a bell? And when Nag finds himself in a deep soup, she rescues him and what follows is a predictable story-line By now you might have guessed the screenplay that is from the Precambrian
era and, huh, who cares for the climax. If you dare to sit through the
lackadaisical narration even after the interval, you can pat your back and nominate yourself for ‘Red
and White Bravery Awards.’ For the record, I already sent mine. Forgot to say, Nayanatara
looked cho beautiful in Parrotish sarees. And despite sporting a crossover look of Orlando Bloom and Robert Downey Jr., Nag's age was visible on his face.
Now something serious! The film
teaches you what middle-class mentality is. Hitherto I believed that is
something similar to mine – saving a lot for the rainy day, trying to do multiple
jobs for better earnings, and many other things which are open to middle-class
imagination. But I learnt that middle-class mentality means valuing family and relationships.
That opens the Pandora’s Box minus the hope. Please note that the rich and the
poor don’t care for either. Don’t kill me for such an inane and extreme statement,
the movie said so.
As an avid lover of Telugu cinema we can’t
complain for ‘old wine in new bottle’ story-lines but the writers and directors should take proper care to present a pleasing ensemble. Who stopped them from penning
an engaging screenplay and in turn giving doses of entertainment? Where is the
witty dialogue, where is the comic relief – most of the comedians are grossly
wasted and they failed to make an impression. The scenes with M S Narayana and
Kovai Sarala were utter disaster. Why these characters come on screen without
any notice and they disappear into dark, again without any notice. Kota
Srinivasa Rao, Supreet, Venu Madhav, Nagineedu, Vennela Kishore did a ‘lightning-struck-from-nowhere’
cameo.
The movie’s release date
coincided with 100 years of Indian cinema – the release of Dundiraj Govind Phalke’s Raja Harishchandra,
and what we get to see is a painstaking film that bites the dust in the annals
of the history of cinema. That’s a bad coincidence and a sorrow moment for
Telugu cinema. Wait, though the movie goes down the drain, it has some
high-fliers. It was great to see veteran actor K Vishwanath light up the screen
with his magical presence. The supporting cast shined in some scenes inducing emotion
and drama into the narration, but they lacked profundity. Every emotion is so
sudden and the character transformation of the protagonist happened in a jiffy
that you can’t stomach them. And from now on, I refrain from talking about S S
Thaman’s music because I am not mature enough to understand the depth in his
music.
Bottom-line: The movie is a stylish yet soporific rehash of Santosham laced with characters of Mr. Perfect which was in turn
reverse-engineered from Bommarillu and Orange. Simple gaa ee sodhantaa lekundaa mana
baashalo cheppalante – Paata chintakaaya pachadilo kottaga maadipoyina taalimpu
vesinattundi ee cinema. Watch it for stylish Nag and gorgeous Nayan. Or take my
advice and give it a miss. This saves your money and also saves you from boredom. Wait wait... doctors have started prescribing this film for people suffering from insomnia. If you are one among them, please watch this film. It will be a perfect cure. Ayinaa anni cinemalu chudadam endukuraa bujji. Asale ticket rates kuda perigipoyaayi..!!
P.S. Last week I wrote a suicide
note and died. Now I became a ghost writer and this review is posted by my
ghost. Oh Telugu chalana chitra parisramaa, oka saari chacchina vaadini malli
champadam nee valane saadhyam avutundi.
My Rating: Expectation – 7/10;
Reality – 3/10
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