Petta Movie ReviewBOTTOM LINE
A Superstar Show All The Way

OUR RATING
2.5/5

CENSOR
‘U/A’Certified, 2 hrs 52 mins


Rajinikanth Petta Movie Review
What is the film about?
Kaali (Rajinikanth) is a hostel warden who helps with the love of one of the students. How that incident ends up connecting to his past and brings back Petta avatar is what the movie is all about?

How is Rajinikanth’s performance?
Superstar Rajinikanth is terrific and in his elements. The Peta acting is the definition of one man show and it has been a long time coming from the Superstar. The style and swag remind us of the vintage star moments. The energy which has been somewhat missing recently is also visible in abundance much to the joy of the fans. If you’ve ever wanted to witness the vintage Rajinikanth mannerism and mass this is the film.


Director Karthik SubbarjuDirection By Karthik Subbaraj?
Karthik Subbaraju is a sensational upcoming talent and his films are proof of that. However, we have seen in the past how some very talented directors also falter when it comes to handling top stars. Luckily, for Superstar fans Karthik Subbaraju is not one among them and knows what he wants.

Right from the introduction until the very end, Karthik Subbaraju delivers a fan feast collections of moments of vintage Rajinikanth. That is the primary success of the director. Secondly, he has built a fresh universe and populated it with big names and established character artists. It is helpful is giving the audience a sense of anticipation with so many names around.

Everything that is mentioned above along with Rajinikanth in his stupendous energetic form makes the first half an engaging watch. The action and comedy are also well integrated into the narrative.

The expectations increase for the second half as a result and that leads to disappointment. The core story revealed in the second half and the narrative built around it is highly cliched. Again, only Rajinikanth keeps lifting up the proceedings but none come to his support.

The freshness and excitement are once again felt, albeit momentarily during the climax sequences when the various characters come together to deliver a grand finale. The small twist, although too late, is also well done with a full blown out action sequence ala Kabali.

Overall, Peta despite a weak second half is enjoyable to fans for Superstar Rajinikanth show alone. Others have to settle for a decent first half which alone might not be enough eventually. Go in with low expectations and there is a high chance to be Rajinified.


Trisha Krishnan - Petta ReviewTrisha and others?
Trisha and Simran are two female leads in the movie. They have small portions with Rajinikanth and a song each. But, nothing is memorable. It is the other male supporting cast that the movie is filled with, who dominate the proceedings. Nawazuddin Siddique, Vijay Sethupathy, Bobby Simha, Aadukalam Naren and others have small but engaging parts that drive the narrative forward. They all do just enough to elevate the Superstar.

Music Director Anirudh-RavichanderMusic and other departments?
Anirudh Ravichandar has done fantastic work with the background score. It helps in elevating each and every Rajini moment. The songs lose value in the dubbing process, otherwise, they are alright. The cinematography is good. The editing is neat but the narrative could be crisper with some trimming in the second half. The dialogues are decent in Telugu


Simran Bagga - Petta ReviewHighlights?
Rajnikanth
Background Score
First Half
Climax

Drawbacks?
Routine Story
Second Half
Length


Yogi-BabuAlternative Take
Considering the kind of movie Peta is and the number of known actors present in it, a tight plot in the second half bringing the duo of Nawazuddin and Vijay Sethupathy with Rajinikanth earlier would be an interesting alternative take.

Did I enjoy it?
Yes
Will you recommend it?
Yes but with huge reservations

Petta Review by Siddartha Toleti

Petta-Movie-Review

Final Report:

Another Rajinikanth film disappoints! A disappointing second half with cliched story and presentation. Another young director fails in providing a complete mass entertained featuring the Superstar. The vintage moments aren’t a replacement for solid storytelling. Visit back for our frank review soon.

– Petta (Rajini) takes revenge on Simhachalam (Nawazuddin Siddiqui). Movie ends. Final report shortly.

– The important block where the relationship between Vijay Sethupathi and Rajini gets revealed isn’t really revealed in a gripping manner. This could have been an interesting episode.

– Simhachalam (Nawazuddin Siddiqui) becomes a big name in mafia and politics. Petta is now planning an attack on him.

– Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Petta have a deep rivalry and the reasons revealed.

– The second half started with Petta’s flashback episode.

First Half Report:

A decent first half due to fresh packaging of Superstar Rajinikanth by director Karthik Subbaraj. A vintage Rajini treat for fans, for sure, but nothing happens story wise. The second half becomes very critical.

– After a couple of murder attempts on Kaali (Rajinikanth) in the hostel the real name ‘Petta Veera’ is revealed. Interval.

– Simran introduced as a mother of Kaali’s student. Kaali is getting closer to her. On the other hand, Kaali is dealing with a bad group in the college.

– Kaali (Rajinikanth) started focusing on issues in the college. He goes against the hostel food contractor.

– Kaali (Rajinikanth) takes charge as a hostel warden to control the ragging issue.

– Petta show begins with a fight. Kaali (Rajinikanth) beats a gang of rowdies.

Petta US Premier live updates will begin at 4.30 am IST (6 PM EST).

Preview: Petta

Once, Superstar Rajinikanth’s movie is like a straight release in Telugu. But, things have changed after the box-office fate of the Telugu versions of ‘Kabali’, Kaala’ and the recent ‘2.0’. The distributors bought those movies for exorbitant rates, and they had to face heavy losses. The impact can be clearly seen on ‘Petta‘.

‘Petta’ is coming in a scenario when the theatrical trailer was neatly cut showing Rajinikanth in all his glory but the poor promotions and the lack of theatres because of three potential straight movies namely ‘NTR Kathanayakudu’, ‘Vinaya Vidheya Rama’ and ‘F2: Fun & Frustration’; ‘Petta’ struggled to get a decent number of theatres for the Telugu release.

To worsen the matters, the producers Prasanna Kumar and Ashok Vallabhaneni’s controversial comments on Theatre Mafia made them lose several theatres that could have gotten them very good collections. Never before did any Rajini’s movie faced such a critical situation when it was seen as not proper to compete with straight Telugu movies. In Tamil, it is Ajith’s Viswasam’ that is going to take head-on with ‘Petta’.

Coming to the actual content, it is young director Karthik Subbaraju’s dream come true to direct the Superstar and as far as we can see from the promos, he seems to have made the most of the opportunity he was bestowed upon by Rajini himself. Of course, the verdict will be out very shortly and we hope, he didn’t do a Pa Ranjith, i.e., impressing with trailers and not living up to the expectations when it comes to delivering the entire content.

There is always nothing to complain about Rajinikanth, his aura and his performance. He has that thing in him to be stylish, conduct himself with swag and impress audiences with whatever he does. ‘Petta’ looks like a visual treat for his fans with all the antics the superstar is adept at. Is a sumptuous meal in store for his die-hard fans?

Looking at the music, Anirudh definitely could have scored chartbuster music but he limited himself to delivering an okayish album instead of a standout album. This is the music director’s first combo with the superstar and he missed rendering a memorable album. Hope, the background score will be exceptionally well.

Trisha and senior actress Simran are like jewels in the narrative and we’ll know how their characters were etched by Karthik Subbaraju. It’s time to know if Karthik Subbaraju got things right for Rajinikanth, unlike Pa Ranjith who failed to deliver though he has got dual opportunities to direct the superstar.

Stay with us and we’ll be back with a comprehensive ‘Petta’ movie review from our mirchi9 team. Don’t miss, folks! Stand by for more.