Buzzing Movies

After a blockbuster Pokiri and a dismal Sainikudu, Mahesh's latest movie is Athidi. This is Surender Reddy's third flick after Athanokkade and Ashok. While the former seems to favor single word titles and the latter titles that begin with 'A', Athidi is better than both the actor and director's previous movies, i.e., Sainikudu and Ashok respectively. The first half is gripping and the second half has a lot of violence and twists.

Plot Amrita's parents take in an poor orphaned boy and name him 'Athidi'. They are killed by an insane robber and Athidi is caught at the scene of the crime holding the gun. He is sent to juvenile prison for 13 years. When he comes out, he is full of revenge and hatred for any criminal, and wants to seek out the murderer of Amrita's parents. Amrita is a pretty young girl now; she doesn't know his identity and falls in love with him after a chance meeting. Meanwhile, a ruthless criminal known for his kidnappings, 'Kaizer', is terrorizing the state. Ajay Shastri is the cop in charge of catching him and his gang. Athidi finds out that Amrita is under threat, and in a series of bizarre weaves and turns, seeks out the wrongdoer.

Story, Screenplay and Direction Athidi has enough elements to be getting along with-a sympathetic character who is stuck at the scene of the crime and gets punished is the main element. Then there is the girl in question, who he wants to protect. This makes up most of the first half, while 'Kaizer', the villain remains a mysterious enigma terrifying the public and keeping the police force busy with his crimes. So it is gripping enough, with a strong central character, a female lead who is a part of the main storyline and a larger than life villain. Oh, some fights, some comedy and some music too.

Then the second half begins well. But it has several twists, and many climaxes. One solution leads to another problem, which needs to be solved and so on. The twists keep the viewer occupied, but seem a little forced at times. The last action sequence is more like a video game, and with a lot of violence and bloodshed.

The cinematography and editing are good. The song 'Satyam Emito' has been picturized well. The sub-plots intertwine with the main somewhere, but still there seem to be too many. The scene where Athidi discovers Amrita's identity and later when she discovers his; the scene where he chooses his little cousin over her when the kidnapper gives him a choice, the scene where the MLA puts his foot in the mouth regarding Kaizer and the cop after him are some of the good scenes. The scene where Suneel and Brahmanandam make Mahesh drink is comical.

Performances Mahesh is very good-controlled and consistent. He has obviously worked on the character, and that becomes a plus point for the movie. He has come a long way from his debut, and his voice modulation and body language show that. Credit must be given to the writer for creating a consistent character too, and for not entrusting him with too many dialogues.

Murali Sharma is generally a good performer, but his character is such that he becomes a little loud towards the end. Amrita Rao has done better work than this, but she's convincing. Her chemistry with Mahesh is not bad too. Subbaraju-Mahesh scenes are reminiscent of Pokiri. Suneel, Brahmanandam and Venumadhav are brought in to add the comic element and do just that. Nasser is good and Kota Srinivas Rao gives a repeat performance. The little girl is okay; Venu and one other guy as Mahesh's friends justify their roles. Ashish Vidyarthi is comical-those braids suit Amrita more than Vidyarthi.

Music and Dance 'Satyam Emito' is shot well. The item number with Malaika Arora, 'Rathraina' could have been so much better. The rest of the songs are okay. The background music towards the end is good and suits the sequences.

Last Word The plot keeps the attention of the viewer intact. There could have been less of those 'clever' little u-turns and some more light moments. The stylized picturization, reasonably good music and performances, heavy action sequences and some touching moments make Athidi watchable.

End Credits

Starring:Maheshbabu, Amrita Rao, Murali Sharma, Nasser, Ashish Vidyarthi, Brahmanandam, Suneel, Venumadhav, Ajay, Kota Srinivasa Rao, Subbaraju and Others.
Art: Srinivas Raju.
Action: Stun Shiva.
Cinematography: Sameer Reddy.
Dialogues: Abburi Ravi.
Editing: Goutham Raju.
Music: Mani Sharma.
Rachana Sahakaram: Vakkantham Vamsi.
Story, Screenplay & Direction: Surender Reddy.
Producer: G. Ramesh Babu.
Presenter: UTV Motion Pictures.
Banner: Krishna Productions Pvt. Ltd.
Release Date: 18th October, 2007.

Labels: amrita rao, Athidi, mahesh babu, surender reddy

Posted by Raj on Thursday, 1 November, 2007 at 1:48 PM | Permalink