Trigger warning for inc*st, attempt to s*icide, and s*lf-h*rm. It's probably a "me" thing but I just found the entire experience of watching this movie "meh". I feel like it tried too much within a limited amount of time, which almost paradoxically made it feel longer than it really was, and left me with a heavy head and a weird feeling throughout the day. I don't want to sound apologetic about a "famous" movie that I didn't like, but even though I understand that there's a lot to appreciate about this movie (the most obvious being the movie's feminist core, and its complete disavowal of the typical savarna feminist who doesn't believe in intersectionality), the movie as a whole just doesn't work for me. What I mean to say is that I don't think that it's a bad film at all, it just isn't for me. My biggest problem with the movie has to be the character of Zeenat. I completely fail to understand her motivations, and I...
I definitely would not have enjoyed this true-blue libertarian movie had it not been for the stellar performances. Chiranjeevi, of course, carried the film with his fiery act as Gandhi, and managed to save the movie from slipping into a cringe parody version of itself. Suhasini was amazing as Lakshmi, and such a delight to watch on screen. However, it was Vijayashanti who won my heart. Not only did she look like the most adorable sweetheart, but she was also fierce when she needed to be, like the scenes where she admonishes her father. Rao Gopal Rao was intense and evil as the main villain, and was a good foil to Chiranjeevi. I also felt very proud of myself for recognising a young Rajendra Prasad as Vidyarthi (this film has a lot of indigenius moments like this) and of course, baby Allu Aravind who seems to have forsaken a career in comedy (rip @ us). Speaking of comedy, Gollapudi Maruthi Rao was hilarious but also sinister as Hanumantha Rao, a fine balance to pull off. Lastly, Silk S...
After watching Aapadbandhavudu , I was shocked to learn that it had "under-performed" at the box office. It has all the elements necessary to make a classic Chiranjeevi movie- the action sequences, the DANCE, the impossible but very necessary romance, the comedy, the rich and poignant human drama, and of course, a canvas for Megastar to showcase exactly why he is deserving of that title. What makes the underwhelming box-office response even more surprising is that in the very same year, Chiru delivered one of his career-defining hits, Gharana Mogudu . Two of the biggest factors, however, that make this movie a "must-watch" for me are the caste dynamics and the treatment of mental health. Both these things are rarely done right in Hindi cinema, which is what I have predominantly consumed my entire life, so it's quite refreshing to find better examples in movies from the South. And when combined with a brilliant performer like Chiranjeevi, these heavy topics seem...
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