BAAHUBALI- IF ONLY 'U' & "I" HAD 250 CRORES........ .
Bottom line: We would probably never have even attempted to produce or direct a film like this one; and that my readers is nothing but the truth & the whole truth! This film is all pomp and show with very little or no content.
Cast - Prabhas - Mahendra Baahubali, Rana Dagubatti - Palavaathevan, Tamannaah - Avantikaa, Anushka - Devasena, Nassar - Pingala Devan, Ramya Krishnan - Sivagami, Sathyaraj - Kattappa and many others
& Crew - Story - V.Vijayendra Prasad, Direction S.S.Rajamouli, SP- SS Rajamouli, Rahul Koda, Madan Karky & Vijayendra Prasad, D.O.P - K.K.Senthil Kumar, Music - M.M.Keeravani, Edit - Kotagiri Venkateshwara Rao
Produced By - Arka Media Works
There are some truly devoted and fanatical Tamil film viewers who will on reading my review posse these questions:
Question1 - Look! Let's encourage this attempt by a director who is trying to compete with Hollywood. If they can do it so can we!
Ans: Then I suggest that you buy only Indian made cars like an Ambassador, a Fiat or a Nano after all they are an inspiration and are trying hard to compete with the Merc's, BMW'S , the Audi's, the Honda's and Toyota's! Why therefore encourage these foreign brands. Or probably keep on buying them till they reach the level of quality of the foreign cars.
Question 2 - The director has produced a fantasy film. So please give him some slack.
Ans: Fantasy! yes! But the content should not be a fantasy too!
The Mahabharata and Ramayana are two great epics. Why? Because the rock solid content in them make the epics believable fantasies!
Question 3 - The visuals and action scenes in this film are awesome!
Ans: The visuals and action sequences even in Avatar, Gravity, Chronicles of Narnia, Harry Potter and even older films like Benhur and Cleopatra were even better. Why even Tamil films like Sampoorna Ramayanam, Lava Kusa, Chandraleka and Maya Bazaar were equally good - And the cost of tickets to watch these films was around the same or even less.
Question 4- We have a limited budget.
Ans - Yes! So! Why splurge money; work within your means and outsmart hollywood films using your brains to envisage good content to beat hollywoods CG and gimmicks.
KAKKA MUTTAI, PAPANASAM, QUEEN AND PK are standing examples.
Lets leave it at that and review this film 'Baahubali'. Let me not try to elaborate on the premise; because it's the usual revenge saga rehashed for the nth time. Father and senior Prabhas (Arjuna) is the half brother of senior Rana Daggupatti (Duryodhana). Rana's father Nassar with a deformed hand (based on the character the blind king Dhritarashtra) plots to kill Prabhas to
crown his son the king. The queen (Ramya Krishnan) is the ruler and favours Prabhas. Sathyaraj is a loyal servant and soldier sworn to protect the villainous king and kingdom but his loyalty stands exposed & divided between the treacherous king Rana and the deposed and enslaved queen Anushka. The supposedly dead son Junior Prabahas (based on the character Abhimanyu) of the slain senior Prabhas (double role) comes back as Bahubaali to free his mother Devasana and reek revenge on those responsible for killing his father.
This film is all about visuals, CG, costumes and action scenes.
Visuals - The set erected to depict the palace looks grand; but once again having watched better sets on hollywood films makes this one look pale in comparison. The CG works in parts and proves to be definitely better than 'Irandaam Ulagam' and 'Kochadiyaan" but there again having watched films like Chronicles of Narnia, Harry potter, Gladiator, three hundred and the likes this film is found wanting. The visuals and scenery looks once again good in parts but again disappoints on the whole. The water falls, the forrest visuals etc are pleasing but sadly reminds you of the treatment adapted by director Mani Ratnam in Ravanan. The scene depicting the disrobing of Tamannah (Draupadi) by Prabhas the hero instead of (Dushsasana in Mahabharata) may be a novelty to some but in my opinion the director has only envisaged the scene to arouse some kind of sexual erotism among youngsters by exposing her body to the extent possible. The action scenes are mostly borrowed inspirations from films like Three hundred, gladiator, Chronicles of Narnia, Ben Hur etc. The arrows, spears and maces are inspired from the arsenals of the Kaurava and Pandya epic battle of Kurukshetra. These fight scenes may be lapped up by certain segment of viewers of Tamil cinema who will go Gaga over it. But for those exposed to hollywood type of computer graphics and gimmicks will be highly amused at this novice of an attempt. The dialogues in this film which are delivered in serious, menacing tones brought out total laughter at times and jeers at other times from the viewers. The foreign language conceived by the director once again supposed to be menacing simply makes you guffaw with laughter at the ludicrousness of the whole concept. The double act by Prabhas adds nothing but confusion to the already lack of content.
& the climax after almost 3 hours the film never explains or unravels the plot and the ending only serves to explain the essence of the premise of the sequel to follow....
Acting: Rana Dagubatti has emoted better than Prabhas if that's any consolation. Tamanah walks and acts like a replica Xena the warrior princes. The face savers were Sathyaraj, Ramya Krishnan and Anushka. Poor Nassar! Why can't people see the potential in him ever.
Music: Adequate. At times the BG was off key with the premise.
Editing: 30 min cut a must.
Finally a quote - One 'E' truly does not make an "Epic"!
My Rating - 2/5 Minus .25 for lack of content - Total 1.75/5
Until Next Time
Director Haricharan
11/07/2015
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