Directed by : Gopichand Malineni
Produced by : Prasad Potluri
Banner : Pearl V Potluri
Music : Thaman
Raviteja's recent track record was not at all impressive. After a series of duds he comes up with Balupu, which is far far better when compared to his recent outings. Here's the complete review...
What is it about?
Ravi (Raviteja) has a past which is not known to anybody who is with him now except for his father Nanaji (Prakash Raj). His past haunts him in the form of Poorna (Asutosh Rana), who is a thug from Vizag city. Ravi is currently busy in teaching lesson to Shruti (Shruti Haasan), who has a habit of trapping innocent guys and using them in the name of love. Shruti falls in love with Ravi and during the engagement Poorna comes and take away Shruti with him by stabbing Nanaji. How do Ravi gets Shruti back from Poorna is rest of the story.
Performances :
Raviteja is at home in performing this role. It is cakewalk for him as he had done this zillion times already. The specialty of it is it even works for the zillionth time and thanks to the actor's superb comedy timing as well as energetic screen presence. Shruti Haasan is okay as the female lead. She tried her hand at comedy and improved a lot in the dances. She has to work on her expressions though. Anjali is good in a key role. Brahmanandam's Gangnam dance is a treat to watch. He has excelled in few scenes. It is hilarious when he exchanges text messages with Prakash Raj. Asutosh Rana is fine as the baddie. Ali is alright. Brahmaji, Srinivas Reddy and others did well as the supporting cast. Lakshmi Rai sizzled in an item song.
Technicalities :
Dialogues are witty. Music is not up to the mark. However Kajalu Chelliva and the last song are good on screen. Background score is fine. Cinematography by Jayanan Vincent is good. Editing could have been better especially in the second half. Director Gopichand Malineni didn't try too hard and kept things simple for him and the audience. It is a fun film with template formula. Director's job is make it work and he has succeeded in doing so.
Analysis :
Balupu is a neat entertainer film with lots of funny scenes. Director used many contemporary things to evoke humor. Gangnam, Jumping Jhapak dances, Gabbar Singh and Iddarammayilatho references, Brahmi imitating Pawan Kalyan, Raivteja mimicking Bala Krishna etc. clicked. There is not much rib tickling stuff, but the film doesn't take anything serious and that is where it works.
First half of the film finishes off in a flash with good comedy scenes between Raviteja and Brahmanandam. There is a nice twist at the interval and then comes the flashback. This is neither convincing nor entertaining. The film drags a bit at this point but the director made sure that there is enough fun in the climax sequence, courtesy Jumping Jhapak and Iddarammayilatho reference.
As we mentioned earlier, this is a much much better film from Raviteja and you may watch it for the entertainment. It is a time pass flick which you won't mind watching. The director should have toned down that violence in the action episodes. Those scenes didn't help the movie much and in turn got it an Adults only certification.
Verdict : Balupu is brand Raviteja film!
