Direction: Trivikram Srinivas’
Cast: Allu Arjun, Pooja Hegde, Nivetha Pethuraj, Tabu, Sunil
This Sankranthi festive is seeing a big clash at the box-office as Allu Arjun’s Ala Vaikunrapurramloo released today, a day after Mahesh Babu’s Sarileru Neekevvaru. Trivikram and Allu Arjun have previously worked together for Julayi, S/O Satyamurthy and bother were blockbusters. And will this combo strike a hattrick with Ala Vaikunrapurramloo is to been seen..
Plot:
Allu Arjun (Bantu), a typical middle class boy who aspired to to something is always underemined by his father Murali Sharma (Valmiki). The film sets up a lot of characters and ends up showcasing scenarios that are completely implausible. But the film’s biggest strength is that you buy it all, even if Trivikram, yet again, tells the tale of a man who wants to help a family he cares about.
Analysis:
The strength of the storyline is Allu Arjun and his father’s existence. The older man likes putting down his son at every opportunity, reminding him of his fate for having been born in a middle-class family. He seems more interested in his boss Ramachandra’s (Jayram) son Raj Manohar (Sushanth A) than his own and there’s a reason for it. The chaos that ensues when Bantu finds out the truth about his father and enters Vaikunthapurram (the lavish home Ramachandra and his family stay at) in a bid to help them is worth watching.
Negative:
The film has its own problems. While the romance that ensues between Amulya (Pooja Hegde) and Bantu is adorable, especially Thaman S’ numbers Samajavaragamana and Butta Bomma, the way it all begins is extremely problematic. The fact that Bantu cannot stop staring at Amulya’s legs because they’re beautiful is played for laughs, but Trivikram balances it out, very ironically, by giving his lead a line that talks about consent. Pooja Hegde manages to bring in spunk into a character that is nothing more than a manic pixie dream girl, but she sure is a delight to watch on-screen. Tabu’s character too is poorly fleshed out (what a shame), and the emotional scene she has with her husband doesn’t completely work. But she’s nothing less than grace personified. Sushanth A doesn’t get much to do either.
It stars Nivetha Pethuraj, Rahul Ramakrishna, Navdeep, Sunil, Harsha Vardhan, even the antagonist of this tale Samuthirakani and more, but the key players remain Murli Sharma, Sachin Khedekar (in a role he seems to be having so much fun with) and of course, Allu Arjun. Allu Arjun sinks his teeth into his role, pulling it off with effortless ease. He’s as comfortable being the miserable son as he is playing the man who will beat up everyone around him with swag. He, of course, dances like a dream and the fight sequences by Ram-Lakshman are a delight to watch. Especially a particular sequence that involves a fight and a folk song. There’s even a tribute to famous celebs from Tollywood.
Positive:
Thaman S’ music and background score for this one is impressive (Ramuloo Ramulaa and OMG Daddy are killer) and the cinematography by PS Vinod is good. Naveen Nooli’s editing could’ve been tighter, especially in the second half, where the film doesn’t pack the kind of punch the first half did. Trivikram’s fans might miss his trademark punch comedic dialogues, but fitting with the theme of the film, the comedy in this one is more dry and sarcastic, and it works!
Ala Vaikunthapurramuloo promises what it showed in the trailer. Although cliche, Trivikram and Allu Arjun has strikes gold with full on entertainment package.
