Movie Reviews
Ahimsa Review – Himsa For Audience

BOTTOM LINE
Himsa For Audience
OUR RATING
1.75/5
CENSOR
U/A, 2h 42m
What Is the Film About?
Raghu (Daggubati Abhiram) is a kind-hearted and ordinary guy whose love of life is Ahalya. She is fierce and advocates violence, whereas Raghu is the exact opposite.
What happens when Raghu faces is pushed to the extreme by the system after a tragic incident shatters his life is the movie’s plot. Did it change his basic nature is the undercurrent theme.
Performances
Abhiram Daggubati makes his acting debut with Ahimsa. He is moulded as a typical Teja hero in the movie. The character, too, deals with similar emotions. From a soft-spoken guy to a fierce personality, the change forms the arc given to him.
Abhiram has surface-level looks to fit the ‘typical’ director Teja hero personality. There is a fear plastered on his face, and it is exploited to the maximum by Teja. Abhiram is seen mostly with the expression, and then there are additional fear and aggression when necessary. The problem is that other expressions are dominated by the pertinent one. For a debutant, he is okay, but Teja has managed to extract better in the past with his heroes, debut or otherwise.
Geethika, the heroine, tries hard but fails. Her tole is more expressive than the hero, and she goes way overboard with it. The characterisation, particularly the dialogues and actions, don’t help her cause. In the emotional scenes, she is fine, but again they are overdone. In the end, it turns out to be a forgettable fare.
Analysis
Teja, the veteran director of blockbusters like Nuvvu Nenu and Jayam, directs Ahimsa. At a basic characterisation level, Ahimsa is similar to his past flicks, but here the core theme is related to violence and non-violence, and it is dealt with through the backdrop of a relatable topic and victimhood.
The movie opens with intrigue, but it soon digresses into mundaneness with the romantic track. It wouldn’t be a problem normally, but the over-the-top execution, the acting and the dialogues make one cringe in discomfort. It instantly takes us back to the Nijam days from Teja. Who can forget the ‘Eenadu’ and ‘Andhra Jyothi’ comedy track? Well, we have a companion here.
It would still have been fine if the cringe and over-the-topness were restricted to comedy or romance, but that is not the case here. Every new character that arrives behaves in the same way with loud and over-dramatised action.
Amidst all the verbal mayhem torturing the senses, there is a core courtroom drama surrounding an issue. The content is contemporary, and we have seen it getting execution in a far gripping way in grounded settings and performances. Here everything is overblown and excessively done. The direction also screams outdatedness. Still, Ahimsa manages to hold the attention briefly.
By the time the courtroom drama ends, the engaging part of the movie also ends. The next direction the narrative takes is where Ahimsa loses the whole plot.
For starters, the time taken to reach the interval portions itself is overstretched. By the time the interval arrives, one gets a feeling of watching an entire movie. But the real ‘himsa’ is only beginning at the time.
The second half offers nothing novel. It is all about the hero and heroine escaping from three different sets of gangs who are after their lives. The ‘Lomdi’ gang among the three are the definition of excess in a script that leads to assault on the senses.
Just when one thinks the movie might end, there is another half an hour with a song in the mix. The final stretch towards the completion is sheer drivel with so much unnecessary violence. Even until the last minute, the director doesn’t waste time in inducing the pain.
Overall, Ahimsa has two key issues which would have made for an outdated but engaging narrative. However, the outdated and over-the-top execution and mind-numbing second half kill any chances. If you are a fan of the director, skip the movie and save yourself from the pain.
Performances by Others Actors
The movie is filled with actors. Everyone goes overboard in their performance, starting from Sadha. She is still fine, considering the impact of the role in the narrative. But, others like Rajat Bedi are highly irritating. Manoj Tiger playing the scheming, devious lawyer is fun, but in a bad way. The rest of the actors, like Ravi Kale, Devi Prasad, Kamal Kamaraju etc., fail to register.
Music and Other Departments?
RP Patnaik works as music director for Teja after a long gap. However, the combo fails to deliver any worthwhile song, although a couple does sound nice on the ear. The background score is effective, even though loud. Sameer Reddy’s cinematography is okay, capturing the rustic and raw settings of the village and forest. The editing is okay. The writing comes with a generous mix of double entendre. A couple of lines register, but overall it’s nothing more than ordinary.
Highlights?
Basic Theme (Violence Vs Non-Violence)
Brief courtroom Drama Stretch
BGM
Drawbacks?
Weak Story
Second Half
Outdated OTT Execution
Did I Enjoy It?
No
Will You Recommend It?
No
Ahimsa Movie Review by Mirchi9

Movie Reviews
Peddha Kapu 1 Review, USA Premiere Report

Final Report:
Peddha Kapu offers solid technical values and supporting cast, but the core story, emotions, and drama are lost in the confusing narration. Director Srikanth Addala’s comeback is a mixed bag.
First Half Report:
Despite superb visuals and a solid score, Peddha Kapu feels a bit all over the place in the first half but still maintains intrigue. Hopefully, the second half will provide less confusion and more clarity on character arcs and the core plot.
— Peddha Kapu show started with an intense, chaotic action sequence in a village, setting up the perfect beginning for the drama. Stay tuned for the first half report.
Stay tuned for Peddha Kapu 1 Movie Review, USA Premiere Report.
Peddha Kapu 1 is directed by Srikanth Addala, marking his return after a long hiatus since “Brahmotsavam” in 2016. The film features Virat Karrna, Pragati Srivastava, Rao Ramesh, and Tanikella Bharani in lead roles. Srikanth Addala, known for his soft genre films, is making a comeback with this intense film, and the trailer has raised expectations for the movie.
Cast and crew : Virat karrna, Pragati srivasthava, Rao Ramesh, Naga Babu, Tanikella Bharani, Brigada saga, Rajeev kanakala, Anusuya, Eeshwari Rao, Naren
Producer : Miryala ravinder reddy
Director: Srikanth Addala
Dop : Chota K Naidu
Music : Mickey J meyer
Fights : Peter Hein
Editor : Marthand K Venkatesh
Art : GM Sekhar
Dance Master : Raju sundaram
Movie Reviews
Believer, The | Reelviews Movie Reviews

When one speaks of cultural relevance, some movies capture
it in the moment (oftentimes dating the production in the process). Others
grasp it as if looking in a rearview mirror. But there’s a small group, either
through clairvoyance or happenstance, that achieve it years or decades ahead of
time. The Believer is one such film; its themes seem more relevant two
decades after its release than they did when it reached theaters in 2001.
The directorial debut of Henry Bean (who wrote the
screenplays for both Internal Affairs – the good – and Basic Instinct 2 – the bad) offers numerous challenging ideas but falls short when it
comes to character development and motivation. The narrative is scattershot –
events happen too quickly, transitions are frequently missing or truncated, and
certain aspects aren’t believable. Although the movie uses flashbacks to
explore why the main character, Danny Balint (Ryan Gosling), has adopted the
philosophies he espouses, there’s still something missing.
Danny grew up Jewish but, as a child, he pushed back against
orthodox interpretations of the Torah. As an adult, he has repudiated Judaism
altogether, opting to become a neo-Nazi and partnering with 21st
century fascists Curtis Zampf (Billy Zane) and Lina Moebius (Theresa Russell).
Although Curtis and Lina disagree with Danny’s virulent antisemitism (they
perceive fascism as an economic and political philosophy not necessarily tied
to race), they are impressed by his passion and oratorical skills and believe
he can be an asset to the movement. After beginning a relationship with Lina’s
daughter, Carla (Summer Phoenix), who is also sleeping with Curtis, Danny exhibits
conflicted emotions regarding Jewish iconography. Although he violently attacks
a Jew in the streets and attempts to shoot another, he shows a fascination for
the Torah and, at her request, begins to teach Carla Hebrew. Danny’s evolving
conflict is evident in a bizarre scene where he combines a Nazi salute with a
Hagabah.
Although The Believer does an adequate job
postulating how a disaffected Jewish youth might not only repudiate his
heritage but become hostile toward it, the film does not effectively flesh out
Danny as a fully formed individual. Oftentimes, he appears more like a writer’s
construct. The situation is exacerbated with Carla – a lifelong fascist, her
sudden fascination with Judaism is inexplicable and unexplained. Her character
represents one of The Believer’s biggest problems because everything
about her is forced and artificial. Her motivations are as obtuse as her
feelings about Danny and Curtis. When asked by Danny why she is with him while
also sleeping with Curtis, she responds that the sex is better with Danny.
I was not as impressed with Ryan Gosling’s performance as were
many of the contemporaneous critics who reviewed the film, although I agree
that there are several scenes in which his intensity is frighteningly effective,
the most notable being during a confrontation with journalist Guy Danielsen
(A.D. Miles), when Danny brandishes a gun. Overall, however, I found Gosling’s
acting to be uneven, but I acknowledge that this could be more the fault of the
screenplay than the performer.