Jaane Tu . . . Ya Jaane Na
Banner: Aamir Khan Productions & PVR Cinema
Cast: Imran Khan, Genelia D'Souza, Manjari
Genre: Love
Music: A.R. Rehman
Story - Dialogues - Lyrics - Screenplay - Direction: Abbas Tyrewala
Producers: Mansoor Khan & Aamir Khan
Release Date: 4 July 2008
Review:
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Imraan Khan has followed in the footsteps of his father Mansoor Khan who launched Aamir Khan in his 'Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak' (QSQT) though Imraan's movie falls far short in respect of script, music and the treatment.
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Let's analyze the story that revolves around the central character of Jai Singh Rathod played by Imraan Khan. While Jai aka 'Rats' is by far the most non-violent Rajput (unusual though) hates to pick up fights, bubbly Aditi Mahan aka 'Meow' is quite a violent person. She screams, shouts and brings the whole house down. However, Jai is capable of calming her. Though belonging to two opposite directions, they attract each other.
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Ready (Telegu)
Banner: Sri Sravanthi Movies
Cast: Ram, Genelia, Brahmanandam, Sunil, Jayaprakash Reddy, Supreet, Shafi, Bharat, Kota, Nassar, Chandra Mohan, Tanikella Bharani, Srinivasa Reddy, Ravi Varma, Sudha, Vidya, Surekha, Apoorva, Tamanna (SA) & Navadeep (SA)
Genre: Comedy/Family
Cinematography: Prasad Murella
Stunts: Peter Hynes
Editing: M R Varma
Art: AS Prakash
Choreography: Sankar, Suchitra Chandrabose & Prem Rakshit
Dialogues: Kona Venkat
Story – Screenplay: Gopi Mohan
Music: Devi Sri Prasad
Director: Seenu Vytla
Producer: Sravanthi Ravi Kishore
Release Date: 19 June 2008
Review:
Story:
Chandu (Ram), an engineering student, falls in love with Pooja (Genelia), an NRI who comes to visit her uncles in Rayalaseema. A mistaken identity makes Chandu kidnap Pooja who is about to get married. The rest of the story is all about how Chandu sends Pooja back to her place and how he marries her by convincing elders.
Artists Performance:
Actors: Ram looked fine in his role and he seamlessly executed the same. His dance in the first song is very good. The scenes in the second half where Ram makes Brahmanandam a bakra are entertaining. Genelia is an asset to the film and the dubbing of Savita Reddy goes well with her. Brahmanandam as McDowell Murthy steals the show yet again with his hilarious comedy in the second half. He is like the second hero of the film. After Dhee and Krishna, this is the third film where he had the crowds in splits. Sunil did the role of a 'theda candidate'. His bharatanatyam (spoof of Sagara Sangamam) and the way he slaps himself is good (typical Seenu Vytla brand). The third impressive characterization comes from the kid who acts as JP's grandson. Jaya Prakash Reddy and Kota are good. Nasar and in parental roles are adequate. The way Surekha scolding her son to vent frustration on JP is humorous. Tamanna and Navdeep did guest appearances
Technical Departments:
Story - Screenplay - Direction: Story of the film is intricate. The screenplay by Gopi Mohan in the second half delivered the much required punch. You do not see Seenu Vytla brand of comedy in the first half except for a couple of scenes with Sunil. Most of the second half belongs to Seenu Vytla. The way he introduced Brahmanandam and made him an integral part in the second half is strategic. He extracted solid performance from Brahmanandam without being repetitive. Direction of Seenu Vytla is good in the second half.
Other Departments: Songs and background score by Devi Sri Prasad is good. The bonhomie song towards climax is a good on the screen. Dialogues in the film are in good health, away from vulgarity. We do except a better cinematography for a film of this stature. The money spent on the film could not reflect on its visuals, showing mediocre output in patches in certain scenes. Fights by Peter Hynes are well choreographed, but the script of the film does not really demand such buildup. Editing of the film is passable and the first half needs some trimming. Production values by Sravanthi banner are very good.
Analysis: First half of the film is mediocre. The second half is good with hilarious comedy by Brahmanandam. On the flipside, a better editing of first half and some of the fights would do something good to the film. This film is stuffed with ample commercial elements, mainly the vibrant comedy. Ready has potential chances to bring a hat-trick for Seenu Vytla after Dhee and Dubai Seenu. This film is worth a watch for the comedy.
Mere Baap Pehle Aap (Hindi)
| Cast: Genelia Dsouza, Akshaye Khanna, Naseruddin Shah, Shobhana, Paresh Rawal, Om Puri, Rajpal Yadav, Manoj Joshi, Archana Puran Singh Genre: Comedy, Romance, Slapstick, Family, Relationships Lyrics: Tausif Aktar, Vidyasaagar Music Director: Sameer |
| Director: Priyadarshan |
| Producer: Ketan Maroo, Mansi Maroo Release Date: 13 June 2008 |
Review:
Janaradhan [Paresh Rawal] has spent his life bringing up his two kids, Chirag [Manoj Joshi] and Gaurav [Akshaye Khanna]. Now when the duo has grown up, Gaurav takes up the responsibility of his father. They both manage the household chores and their business to the best of their abilities. Though he is the younger son, he treats his father like his son. Gaurav shouts, threatens, fights, even locks up his father occasionally so that his prankster-friend Madhav [Om Puri], who is desperate to get married, does not spoil him. Madhav and Janaradhan, who are always in search of a bride for Madhav, forever land up in trouble and every time Gaurav has to bail them out and face the embarrassment.Gaurav starts getting prank calls from a girl who turns out to be his old college friend Shikha [Genelia D'Souza]. Shikha is staying with her guardian Anuradha [Shobhana], who happens to be Janardhan's first love.
Gaurav and Shikha notice changes in Janaradhan and Anuradha's behaviors when they come face to face after many years. They come to know about their past. Now Gaurav wants his father to get married to his lost love. Of course, the path is not so smooth, there are obstacles.
Mere Baap Pehle Aap is a complete time pass venture. Priyadarshan is very clear that he isn’t out to become a Madhur Bhandarkar or Amole Gupte and take away accolades. Priyan establishes his connect with the masses and is no doubt the good luck charm for all his producers.
Mere Baap Pehle Aap takes off as a complete laugh riot. The sequences and flow of events are so well executed. No one does such sequences better than Priyan. His characterization is simply splendid. For those who have had a sensation that Paresh Rawal is overdoing his comedy bit, watch this flick.
Priyan just didn’t want to rely on comedy to run this flick but ropes in drama too. The drawback comes in here as he fails to sustain the length of the film which goes over 2hrs 30 mins. Except for the last 20 mins or so, the movie is tightly held and bound by Priyan’s style and brilliance.
Cinematography by Piyush Shah is a delight with the splendid locales of
Music by Vidyasagar blends well with the film. The ‘Ishq Subhanallah’ and ‘Maine Hawa’ are tracks out to become hits provided they are promoted well.
On the acting front, Akshaye Khanna fits the bill and excels with his expressions, dialogues and body language.
Genelia does well primarily with her expressions. She’s one heroine who is set to go places. No one besides Priyan could have given her such a meaty role.
Om Puri comes in as a revelation with comedy. The actor makes you giggle nonstop. Watch the interaction between him and Genelia at a mall. It’s hilarious. He is no doubt the best in this flick.
Paresh Rawal too excels with comedy and this time doesn’t look or sound repetitive. The sequences involving him and Archana Puran Singh are splendid. Do watch out for the combination of Om Puri and Paresh Rawal.
Rajapal Yadav surprisingly is barely there. Manoj Joshi is ok. Shobana impresses. Archana Puran Singh does well with her bit as the cop.
Mere Baap Phele Aap is the right mix for the family. It’s sure to make you either giggle or laugh for most portions. Priyadarshan proves it once again that he holds strong.
Santosh Subramaniyam (Tamil)
Banner: AGS Entertainment Pvt Ltd
Cast: Genelia, Jayam Ravi, Prakash Raj, Kausalya, Geetha, Premji Gangai Amaran
Genre: Family
Music: Devi Sri Prasad
Director: Raja
Producer: Kalpathi S. Agoram
Release Date: 11th April 2008
Review:
 Hats off director Raja and Jeyam Ravi for hitting the bull's eye for the fourth time in a row. The duo continues from where they left in Unakum Enakum to provide a feel-good light-hearted family entertainer sure to be enjoyed with the family. It is a whiff of fresh air amidst the nauseating action-packed flicks where men run around wielding guns aimlessly and the hero mouthing punch dialogues. The movie probes deep in to the psyche of parents and their grown up children to analyse where and how conflict between them starts. It also presents a solution. Prakashraj plays a dotting father while Jayam Ravi his callous son. Both have handled their roles with ease and elegance. Both are natural and render justice to their characters. Ravi is bubbling with energy and is enthusiastic on screen. He is charming and elegant. Genelia is the perfect foil for the female lead. In the role of a innocent and fun-loving girl, she has managed to deliver one of her best performance so far. She is spontaneous as an happy-go-lucky-girl and expressions come out quite comfortably from her. Hitherto she was looked as a glamour doll in Kollywood. Thanks to director Raja, she has managed to prove everyone that she too can sparkle in performance-oriented roles.  Santhanam in the company of Premji Gangai Amaran evokes laughter. His slapstick comedy evokes laughter at several places in the theatre. The movie has a huge star cast which includes Kousalya, Geetha, Shayaji Shinde, Sathyan and former Indian cricketer Sadagoppan Ramesh. All have a contribution to make in the movie. Devi Sri Prasad's pulsating musical score is a major highlight of the movie. The racy numbers linger in our hearts, while his background score sets up the momentum. Santosh (Jayam Ravi) has everything in life, but in excess amounts. His father, Subramaniam (Prakash Raj), decides on what is good for Santosh and gives him more than what he asks for. But never he gives a chance to his son to express his opinion.  He selects the girl of his choice to Santosh. That is when Santosh meet a bubbly beauty Hasini (Genelia), whom he has waited all his life for. Now he has a complex situation. First he need to propose and win her over. Then convince his over-obsessive father. Then make his ladylove's father accept him. Then break the engagement. How he successfully comes across all these is Santosh Subramaniam. Raja now joins the big league of directors delivering a movie that will satisfy all sections of the audience. Producer kalpathi Agoram should be equally complemented for churning out the venture. Santosh Subramaniam is no doubt a film that is sure to spread santhosam (happiness) to one and all. Director Raja said, “I had taken great pains with Genelia’s character and she has done justice to the role of a chirpy, innocent girl. Genelia will definitely make her mark in the industry.” Genelia steals the show in the role of Hasini. Her spontaneous and innocent performance convinces everyone that no other actress could do the role like Genelia. |
Rendezvous With Genelia
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Mr. Medhavi (Telegu)
Banner: Lifestyle Art Films
Cast: Raja, Genelia, Sonu Sood, Dharmavarapu, Suman, Tanikella Bharani, Suman Shetty, MS Narayana, Brahmanandam, Hema
Genre: Love
Music: ChakriCinematography: Sunil Kumar ReddyArt: KV VarmaEditing: KV NagireddyStory - Dialogues - Screenplay - Direction: Neelakanta
Producer: Bodduluri Rama RaoRelease date: 26 January 2008
Story:
Vishwak (Raja) is an orphan who is adapted by his school teacher. Later Vishwak becomes independent and takes care of himself. During this process, Vishwak becomes manipulative guy in order to succeed life. During his childhood, he happens to meet an NRI kid called Swetha who joins his school for a few days. They develop a close friendship. They happen to meet again after they grow up. The rest of the story is all about whether they fall in love or not.
Raja is looking very handsome in this film. He suited the role very well and got into the skin of the character. Genelia is cool as usual. Her performance is excellent when she invites Sonu Sood to her house. She gave a matured performance in the climax of the film. But her make-up and hair style should have been better. Sonu Sood did a guest role and he is adequate. MS Narayana and Dharmavarapu Subramanyam provided comic relief. Suman, Hema and Tanikella Bharani are good.
Technical Departments:
Story - Screenplay - Direction: Story of the film is simple and narration is linear. Mr. Medhavi who is an expert at giving love advices to everybody failing in his own case resembles us of Hitch. The director followed different narrative (like main leads narrating the story in Mr & Mrs Smith) in the film. Screenplay of the film is adequate and there is a nice twist towards the climax. Direction of the film is good. Neelakanta stuck to his own plot instead of diverting the attention in order to attracts the masses. However, the narration of the film is very slow and there are boring moments in the second half.
Other Departments: Main asset of the film is the superb cinematography by Sunil Kumar Reddy. Shot framing, lighting techniques and camera angles are different. Music by Chakri is good. The kids songs and Manasu song stand out. However, the last two songs in the second half appear forcibly inserted. Dialogues are well written. Editing is alright.
Analysis: The film starts with an interesting note. The kids episode is impressive. First half is decent. The second half has some dull moments, but the climax twist makes it up for sagging second half. The plus points of the film are casting, narrative style and clean concept. On the flipside, the second half should have been in a more interesting way. The way Raja is taught about relationships is good. Neelakanta should be appreciated for having guts to insert the ‘HR SWOT’ episode in the film which lasts for over 15 minutes. On a whole, Mr. Medhavi is a well intended and a decent film. This film will definitely appeal the ultra A class audiences. The commercial appeal for an average moviegoer is very much limited.
Dhee (Telegu)
Banner: Siri Venkateswara Films
Cast: Vishnu, Genelia D'Souza, Srihari, Tanikella Bharani, Sunil, Brahmanandam, Jaya Prakash Reddy, Supreet, Chandra Mohan, Prema, Ajay, Master Bharat (Venky fame), Chitram Seenu, Giri & Delhi Rajeswari
Genre: Comedy
Story - dialogues: Kona Venkat
Story development: Gopi Mohan
Editing: Marthand K Venkatesh
Art: Narayana Reddy
Cinematography: Prasad Murella
Executive Producer: Tallam Surendra
Co Producer: K Surya Narayana Reddy
Screenplay - Direction: Seenu Vytla
Producer: Mallidi Satyanarayana Reddy
Release Date: 13 April 2007
Story
Shankar Goud (Srihari) is a popular don in old city. He dotes on his lovable sister Pooja (Genelia). Srinivasa Rao alias Babloo (Vishnu) is a wayward youngster. He joins as an employee in Shankar Goud’s accounts department. There he gets to know Pooja and the inevitable happens. The rest of the story is all about how Babloo plays some mind games to win Shankar Goud’s confidence and marry Pooja.
Artists Performance
Vishnu: Vishnu’s main strength is his spontaneity and the director exploited it to the full extent in this film. Vishnu is home playing the role of Babloo. Vishnu’s always took care of fights in his earlier films and ignored the main content. But in this film he seemed to have stuck with the script. In one certain scene he even imitates Mohan Babu in a prank call given to Srihari.
Genelia: Watching Genelia on the big screen gives us a lot of relief as we are fed up with so many new heroines coming in and going out of the industry without leaving any impact. Genelia is exceptionally good and she contributes a lot to the script with peppy portrayal of the character.
Others: Srihari is very good. His role in this film reminds us of the role he played in Mahanandi. He adds value to the film with his neat work. Brahmanandam and Sunil never entertained the crowds in such a way in recent times. Brahmanandam is superb. The way he refers to Vishnu as ‘Rao garu’ and then sums up by saying 'Nannu Involve cheyyakandi' is cool. Sunil is excellent. The situational comedy on Jaya Prakash Reddy is also good. Supreet (Katraj of Chatrapati) is competent as villain. Shafi is pretty cool as assassin.
Technical Departments:
Story - Screenplay - direction: Story of the film is simple and certain part of it reminds us of Mahanandi (don-heroine-hero relationship) and Ranam (mind game). What makes this simple story into enjoyable fare is the screenplay. Screenplay of this film is very good. Seenu Vytla’s forte has always been his comedy timing and he made sure that he filled the entire film with entertainment. He has the uncanny ability of creating humor out of nothing and runs it successfully for minutes together. He arranged the content of romance, comedy, action and suspense in such a way that they complement each other. The way hero traces the heroine’s place in the climax of the film is pretty intelligent. On the other hand, he made the role of Srihari passive throughout the film which made the movie lose out on action drama aspect
Other departments: Music by Chakri is alright. But it is under promoted. Hence many people would not have heard the music before coming to the film. Dialogues by Kona Venkat are very good. There are neat one liners (Brahmanandam to Sunil: Mahesh Babu milk boy laga vuntadu. Nuvvu milk iche geda laga vunnav.) and philosophical dialogues (chaavu ante santhi). Prasad Murella’s cinematography is fine. Editing by Marthand K Venkatesh is good. Fights are adequate.
Analysis: First half of the film is very entertaining. Second half is good too. The best part of the film is screenplay. Vishnu is likely to get a commercial break with this flick. Genelia is a plus. The comedy by Brahmanandam and Sunil is spread wisely throughout the film. The major minus of the film is that the Srihari’s character is made dumb throughout the film for screenplay convenience. Hence the title ‘Dhee’ will not be appropriate as it becomes one-sided match. On a whole, Dhee is an entertaining film and is the only film I liked in this year’s Telugu releases so far. Hence, I have no second thoughts about recommending it to you..
Chennai Kadhal (Tamil)
Banner: V. Creations
Cast: Bharath, Genelia D'Souza, Radha Ravi
Genre: Romance
Music: Joshua Sridhar
Director: Vikraman
Producer: Kalaipuli S. Thanu
Release Date: 8 December 2006
Review:
Story
It is not easy for anyone to try something different from their routine. Director Vikraman, hitherto known for his sentiment packed family entertainers, has tried a commercial pot-boiler with Chennai Kadhal. And with youngsters by his side, he has managed a decent outing.
Though he has taken a beaten-to-bush theme, where the hero and heroine fall in love and thereby antagonize their parents, the director has infused pace in the narration, which works out well.
Chennai Kadhal is a city based love story that alternates between Chennai and Mumbai. It is totally a different fare for Vikraman and the hero Bharath, as the neatly choreographed stunt sequences take Bharath on a different plane altogether. A mish-mash of romance and action with a liberal sprinkling of humour sums up Chennai Kadhal.
The story begins with a bang. Indeed so, for even in the opening we get to see the hero bashed up by some thugs, stabbed, and thrown atop a moving train in Mumbai. And his flashback unfolds amidst curiosity. Gowtham (Bharath) is a happy-go-lucky-youngster in Chennai. Irresponsible and spirited, he does not take life seriously. He incurs the wrath of his father for his attitude.
Gowtham meets Narmada (Genelia) near her hostel accidentally. They get into a teeny-weeny argument. Later on, he comes across Narmada in an express train. Due to some untoward mishap, the train gets halted in a remote village for three days. Gowtham and Narmada get acquainted with each other. The sequences in the train remind one of certain scenes in the Hindi flick DDLJ. Nevertheless, the sequences arouse interest.
Goutham is mostly seen in the company of his friends who run ‘Cine Vehicle Suppliers,’ a company which supplies vehicles for film shoots. As it happens, he also gets a chance to share the frame of a film in a Police costume. The turn of events leads Narmada (Genelia) believe that he is, in fact, an inspector. She expresses her love to him, which he accepts, and things go well until she comes to know that Gowtham is not a police officer. However, she is soon convinced by Gowtham.
Enters Sakthivel (Radharavi), father of Narmada, a dreaded thug in Chennai. Narmada, who had cut off all ties with him after knowing that he is a ruffian, had been studying and staying in a hostel while working part-time to manage her expenses. At such circumstances, Sakthivel decides to get Narmada married to a gangster's brother. Sensing trouble, Narmada and Gowtham elope to Mumbai. Sakthivel's men go on their trail. But an unexpected turn of events brings about trouble to the lovers again. The rest is about how Gowtham fights against all odds and successfully marries Narmada.
Radha Ravi’s comeback to films is heartening. It goes without saying that he has done a commendable job. Bharath has done enough justice to his role, so has Genelia. Genelia’s costumes deserve special mention here. She is indeed a treat to the eyes. Likewise, the foreign locales where the songs are picturised. They transport you to cool blue waters, captured beautifully by Muthu Ganesh’s camera. Joshua Sridhar emerges a winner with songs belonging to different genres and re-recording, which is easy on the ears. Editing by Antony is crisp. Jaguar Thangam’s stunts are also good.
Vikraman has introduced the winner of a popular regional television show in this film. He has played his part well, and his histrionics has helped to carry the story forward.
Laudable performances, a racy screenplay and the light-hearted comic sequences make Chennai Kadhal a definite winner.Bommarillu (Telegu)
Banner: Sri Venkateswara Creations
Cast: Siddardha, Genelia D'Souza, Prakash Raj, Kota, Jayasudha, Sunil, Satya Krishnan, Sudeepa, Dharmavarapu, Surekha Vani, Chitram Seenu, Vijay, Ravi Varma, Neha & Bill Bitra
Genre: Family
Music: Devi Sri Prasad
Dialogues: Abburi Ravi
Lyrics: Sirivennela, Chandrabose, Bhaskarabhatla, Kula Sekhar, Anant Sreeram
Cinematography: Vijay K Chakravarthy
Editing: Marthand K Venkatesh
Story - screenplay - direction: Bhaskar
Producer: Dil Raju
Release Date: 9th August 2006
Review:
Story
Siddu (Siddardha) has everything in life, but in excess amounts. His father (Prakash Raj) decides on what is good for Siddu. He selects the girl of his choice to Siddardha. That is when Siddu meet the girl Hasini (Genelia) he has waited all his life for. Now he has a complex situation. First he need to propose to Hasini and win her over. Then convince his over-obsessive father. Then make Hasini’s father accept him. Then break the engagement. And so on!
Artists Performance
Bommarillu is the best example of perfect casting. Here is another tailor-made role for Siddardha. He is very natural, charming and elegant. The most crucial part of his performance comes in the confrontation scene with Prakash Raj. Genelia steals the show with her mind-blowing performance as a happy-go-lucky and innocent girl. She is like an angel with lot of purity. Savitha Reddy (dubbing artist) has given her best output for the Hasini character in this film. Praksh Raj is at his best in this role that demands extraordinary performance. One wonders why Jayasudha is taken for such a role which has got very few dialogues, but her performance in confrontation scene with Prakash Raj in climax is enough to justify why it takes a natural actress like Jayasudha to do that role. After many years Sunil has done a superb comdey role. His expressions as servant in Prakash Raj’s house remind us of comedians of golden era. Kota is very good in the role of Genelia’s father. Sudeepa is terrific as aspiring beautician. Satya Krishnan is cute. Bill Bitra is very smart as kid in Prakash Raj house. Dharmavarapu Subramanyam is neat. Chitram Seenu, Vijay and Ravi Varma are adequate as friends of hero.
Technical Departments:
Story - screenplay - Direction: Bhaskar arrives with this film as a terrific talent that makes Telugu film industry proud. There is lot of freshness in the film. Director understands the nuances of filmmaking extremely well and applies them all with perfection for his debut film. Story of the film deals with the relationship that sours between a good father and a good son. Screenplay of the film is tight. Direction is exceptionally good. He dealt both fun scenes and emotional scenes with same degree of dexterity. At one point of time, Bollywood produced great flicks like DDLJ and KKHH. I always wondered why can’t we have such films in Telugu. Telugu film industry too produced such films, but most of them are inspired ones. Bommarillu is one film that matches the brilliance of above mentioned films.
Music: Music of the film is very good and background music is excellent. The scenes in the first half are so good that songs come as speed breakers to the narration. The songs in second half are excellently blended into the narration with good emotional quotient. The choreography for ‘Bommani Geeste’ song (4th in the film) is exemplary. The pathos song that comes in parts in second half is brilliant.
Other departments: Cinematography by Vijay K Chakravarthy is priceless. He makes this film a visual treat with rich and vibrant colors. Dialogues by Abburi Ravi are excellent. Editing by Marthand K Venkatesh is crisp. Artwork is fabulous. Dil Raju produced this film with high standards of filmmaking. Dil Raju knows the recipe for success and this time the recipe is more yummy than his earlier films.
Analysis: First half of the film is excellent. Second half is even better. The last 20 minutes of the film is extraordinary with perfect emotions. This film is so good that I don’t find any negative points. The huge plusses of this film are director Bhaskar, perfect cast (Genelia’s exceptional performance), priceless piece of work by Vijay K Chakravarthy, appropriate music by Devi Sri Prasad and good judgment and involvement by Dil Raju. If director Bhaskar can make films of other genres the way he made Bommarillu, he is the one who can take the Telugu cinema to the next level. After a gap of 44 months, it gives me a great pleasure to give a ‘Jeevi Rating’ of 4.5 for a Telugu cinema in the form of Bommarillu.
Tail piece: Watching Bommarillu at Prasadz is like sitting in a ladies special show (as 75% of the patrons were good looking women). The film is so good that people are refusing to leave the auditorium as the titles are scrolling.
Raam (Telegu)
Banner: Sri Venkata Ramana Pictures
Cast: Nitin, Genelia D'Souza, Hrishitha Bhatt
Music: Yuvan Shankar Raja
Producer: N. Sudhakar Reddy
Director: N. Shankar
Release Date: 30th March 2006
Review:
Story
Revenge is one of the basest of human emotions. And that is why you have many films still being made on that theme. Perhaps after love and friendship (other basic human emotions), revenge is the most played out feeling in films. 
In N Shanker's Ram, the theme of revenge is packaged around youthful romance and some other mass fun. Despite the best efforts of Nitin and others in the cast, the film does not rise beyond the ordinary simply because the packaging is very average. The film does not go beyond the mundane as the script is infantile and unimaginative. A hero taking it out on the baddies for their sins of the past needs to be told attractively to hold the viewers' interest. The director, Shanker, who is also in charge of the script, fails on this count.
In the event, the well-intentioned efforts of Nitin, who is full of energy and enthusiasm, and the gamine charm of Genelia all go waste. The story is wafer thin. Ram, the eponymous hero, is a happy go lucky guy in Hyderabad. He is an up and coming cycle champion. A win in a competition takes him to the final round in Mumbai.
But in Mumbai life pans out differently for him. He ends up unravelling the gritty knots of his family, especially that of his grandfather (Krishnam Raju). The granddad had been a do-gooder for the society but had been taken out by the baddies (Devraj and Jeeva). They also have an eye on the old man's property. So our hero avenges all the killings and in the process also wins the hand of one of the baddie's daughters (Genelia).
It is a tacky story that needs all the push from the script. But unfortunately it doesn't come. In the event, Nitin's vivacity and spirited dances all go in vain. Nitin sure has good screen presence, but alas it is still not big enough to carry off a bad script. Genelia looks cute and cuddly. Her role is limited. So is Hrishita Bhatt's who plays Genelia's sister. The two provide some feast in cool beauty. Devraj and Jeeva as baddies go through the motions. Brahmanandam as a doctor is okay. Venu Madhva's comedy is in the so-so category.
Yuvan's musical score does not get extra lift on the screen. His rerecording is pretty good. The technical values are nothing much to complain, overall.
But you cannot say the same thing to the efforts of the director Shanker. There are mass elements and there some good moments too. But if only he had worked even harder, Ram could have been a battering Ram. But it ends up as battered Ram.
Happy (Telegu)
Banner: Geeta Arts
Cast: Allu Arjun, Genelia D'Souza, Manoj Bajpai, Brahmanandam, Tanikella Bharani, Suman Setty, Venu Madhav, Vijay, Rama Prabha, Seetha, Apoorva & Jahnavi.
Genre: Comedy/Romance
Basic Story: Radha Mohan
Dialogues: Kona Venkat - Swamy
Cinematography: RD Rajasekhar
Editing: Anthony
Music: Yuan Shankar Raja
Lyrics: Sirivennela, Chandrabose, Kulasekhar, Vishwa, Pothula Ravi Kiran, Anant Sreeram
Art: Chinna
Fights: Vijay & Allan Amin
Screenplay - direction: Karunakaran
Producer: Allu Arvind
Release date: 27th January 2006
Review:
Story
Bunny (Allu Arjun) is an orphan who works as a Pizza delivery boy. Madhumati (Genelia) is the daughter of a caste-based politician and studies MBBS. Bunny and Madhumati meet each other in a strange situation and are forced to get married in an unforeseen situation. The rest of the story is all about how this couple who never had any intention of love find soul mates in each other.
Artists Performance
Allu Arjun: Allu Arjun has given his career best performance in the last 2 minutes of this film. Allu Arjun’s characterization in this film is of a typical happy-go-lucky guy. That’s a tailor-made role for him and he did it with great élan. Dances have always been a big asset to Allu Arjun and his steps in ‘Vassa’ song make masses go crazy. There is stylishness in Arjun and his wardrobe is pretty good.
Others: Genelia has got lots of scope for performance in this film and she did exceptionally well. Manoj Bajpai impresses everybody with his cameo. The one who did the role of evil cop has shown intensity in his performance. Rama Prabha, Tanikella Bharani, Suman Setty and Jahnavi are adequate.
Technical Departments:
Story - screenplay - direction: Direction by Karunakaran is fairly good. There are a few scenes in the film (hero behaving like God scene, a replica hero dancing when genelia sits on his bike for the first time) that shows the exceptional creativity of the director. Screenplay of the film is smooth, but for the last 25 minutes. Karunakaran’s ability to chip in sweet nothings in songs is exemplary. The scene in which heroine shows door to hero in the second half is unconvincing.
Music and songs: Music by Yuan Shankar Raja is excellent. All songs are well picturized with nice themes. The best song of the film is ‘Ye Hrudayam’. Here is the description of each song n the order of appearance -
1. Hyderabadi: This song showcase the landmarks of Hyderabad coupled with riveting dances of Allu Arjun. Probably a song is shot for the first time at Buddha statue in Hussain Sagar. This song is merged into narration and shows how hero got settled in Hyderabad.
2. Happy: This song has a theme. The best thing about this song are the editing cuts by Anthony. The set was used pretty creatively to narrate the song theme with right picturization. On a whole it’s a typical music video kind of song done with high quality.
3. Vassa Vassa: This is a massive mass number of Happy album. Mass steps composed by Ashok Raj rocks masses away. It is a set song and Allu Arjun shows his dancing prowess again with this song. The way director made Manoj Bajpai sing the first lyric of the song and clubbed such a mass song into narration smoothly is innovative.
4. I hate you: This song comes as the first song after the marriage. It is a very trendy song that has teasing elements. It is shot on the mean leads and their friends. It is another creative song.
5. Egire Mabbulona: This song is the best song of Happy. And its scored high in all aspects - lyrics, situation, music, melody and theme. Karunakaran canned this song with lots of dexterity. This song shows the blossoming of love between the lead pair.
6. Nee Kosam: It is another good song that is used for the separation of the couple with ample flashback scenes.
Other Departments: Photography by RD Raja Sekhar is exceptional. Editing by Anthony is cool and trendy. His editing cuts in songs are good. Set work by Chinna is first-rate. Fx work is really fine, especially the titles animtion. Fights are adequate. Dialogues by Kona Venkat and Swamy are good. Production values by Geetha Arts banner are exceptionally good.
Analysis: First half of the film is entertaining and promising. Second half is adequate. The last half an hour of the film does not gel well with the rest of the film. However, the last 2 minutes of the film is heart-touching. The plus points of the film are Allu Arjun, songs picturization, technical values and comedy. On the flip side, tempo in the latter part of the second half went down. On a while, Happy is a happy film watch for its songs and comedy.
Sachein (Tamil)
Banner: V. Creations
Cast: Vijay, Genelia D'Souza, Bipasha Basu, Vadivelu, Raghuvaran and more
Genre: Comedy / Romance
Tag Line: The Miracle of Love
Music: Devi Sri Prasad
Producer: Kalaipuli Dhanu
Director: John
Release Date: 14th April 2005
Review:
Story:
But Sachien is a campus love story much in the shades of Vijay's earlier venture Kushi ---- the same hero, an egoistic heroine, an old comedian still studying in the campus and an oomph girl having some fun with the hero. Kushi ---second innings, actually.
Though Vijay has given a creditable performance, unfortunately the lack of a novel story and a dull script which moves the movie at a snail's pace unfortunately take the sheen out of it all. In a nutshell, it's a Vijay's show all through (which ends in a disappointment).
The entire film occurs in Ooty. The movie unfolds with Sachien (Vijay) waiting to take a flight to go abroad. The flashback begins.
Sachien is a carefree and noble-hearted college student, who comes across Shalini (Genelia) in the campus and falls in love with her.
Ayyasamy, (Vadivelu) and Santhanam (Lollu Sabha Santhanam), students in the same college also love Shalini. Shalini though is a good friend of Sachien, doesn't want to tell those three words that he wants her to. It eventually becomes a cat and mouse game. Enters Manju (Bipasha Basu), who runs behind Sachien with skimpy costumes, and that makes Shalini go green with envy.
When Sachien comes to know that Shalini's parents have arranged her wedding with an industrialist's son in Canada, he decides to bid bye to her and even asks apolgy for running behind her so long. Now enters Gowtham (Raghuvaran), a rich businessman and father of Sachien. Following a sequence of events, Shalini develops a soft corner for Sachien and decides to express her love to him.
And she does after a typical climax in the airport.
Vijay, who proved his skills in playing a comedy role in Vasseegara, seems to have reproduced such a good show in Sachien too. His body language and dialogue delivery deserves a special mention. Genelia is too expressive. As beautiful as the dew-dappled flowers that the film abounds with, she comes with a spunky show especially towards the climax. She also can shake a mean hip. Bipasha Basu, for whom a huge amount was paid, is just not there in the film. She comes, and she goes. And what a hype for all this! Vadivelu usual brand of humour fails to work.
The real hero of the movie is cinematographer Jeeva, who has captured the Ooty landscapes quite very well. Devi Sri Prasad has rendered typical peppy numbers. Johan has his father's touch. But that alone is not enough in these times.
Watching Sachien is a bit like watching the real Sachin bat these days ---occasionally good.
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