BOTTOM LINE
Manam mesmerizes
CENSOR
163 mins, ‘U/A’ Certified.
OUR RATING
What is “Manam” about?
Manam is a tale of two generations of sons who loose their parents under familiar circumstances. How fate brings them together through reincarnation and what happens to them in the end, will the fate repeat again, answers to these questions is what the film is all about.
How is Akkineni heroes performance?
Nagarjuna is the lifeline of the movie. He is present from start to end and has the biggest role among all. Nagarjuna is super effective in romantic avatar and is mighty fine in the emotional scenes as well. Chaitanya is good in his role but doesn’t get to do anything exceptional. He however continues to have great chemistry with Samantha. finally the legend Akkineni Nageswara Rao is fabulous as one would expect. Even at such an old age he is a scene stealer. In the combined scenes all the Akkineni’s do together he is clearly the best.
Direction by Vikram Kumar?
Direction by Vikram Kumar is the biggest plus for the film. His story is the highlight for the film and he executes it with great care. Many good stories are spoiled in the hands of incapable directors luckily Vikram Kumar isn’t one of those.
Samantha Sreya and Other artists performance?
Samantha gets a hyper active female lead character that she has done in few films in the past. She is completely at ease in the role and adds to the scenes where required. Shriya on the other hand has a smaller role compared to Samantha but she too manages to make a mark in her own way, especially in the flashback portion. Brahmanandam is wasted, MS Narayana is alright and Ali is okay. Rest of the actors have very little roles to create an impression. Amitabh Bachchan in cameo is superb.
How is Anoop Rugens’s Music and others?
Anup Rubens is in fine form musically. He has given good songs and also complimenting background score enhancing the impact of the film. Even in other technical departments the film is top notch. Cinematography by PS Vinod is amazing and pleasing to the eyes. Editing could have been a bit better though, however the editor must be commended for presenting such complicated story in a simple non confusing manner. Choreography of songs is good.
Apart from director and music director another person who is heart and sole of the film is Harsha Vardhan. He has provided screenplay and dialogues to the film and they are just fabulous and the reason the way the film has turned up finally.
Highlights?
Story.
Screenplay .
Dialogues.
Direction.
Casting.
Freshness.
Climax.
Drawbacks?
Drags in parts.
Repetitive feeling at times.
Length.
What about the box office performance of the film?
The film has content to match the hype and if the word of mouth spreads like wildfire, Manam is in for a good long haul at the box office. The film especially in overseas could be really big.
Did I enjoy it?
Yes.
Will you recommend it?
Yes.
OUR RATING
Reviewed by Siddhartha
