BOTTOM LINE
Illogical Mass Thriller
OUR RATING
2/5
CENSOR
“A” Certified
What Is the Film About?
Ravi (Ravi Teja) is a criminal lawyer working under his ex-girlfriend Kanaka Mahalakshmi (Faria Abdullah). While a lot is on their platter, Ravi shows interest in Harika’s (Megha Akash) case. Why is he keen on taking up her case? What is the connection between Ravi and a series of gruesome murders taking place is the movie’s basic plot.
Performances
Ravi Teja is in form as one expects. He plays a character with dual shades wherein the second avatar is the surprise package. The first one is regular, which we see all the time. It has all the timing and trademark energy associated with the actor. The second one is the unusual one with a negative tinge. Ravi Teja is good at it as well and delivers the required.
Lookswise, too, Ravi Teja is presented neatly with a classy appeal. The styling gives a freshness which, combined with the characterisation, makes the actor stand out. Ravanasura isn’t a particularly memorable outing, but it has enough to register for now.
Faria Abdullah, Megha Akash, Anu Emmanuel, and Daksha Nagarkar play the female leads in the movie. Among them, Faria Abdullah and Megha Akash have decent roles. The former has the better character among the two, even though the actual length isn’t that big. They are okay in their respective characters. Anu Emmanuel and Daksha Nagarkar are mostly wasted in minor roles.
Analysis
Sudheer Varma of Swamy Ra Ra and Ranarangam fame directs Ravanasura. He picks an exciting setup and goes ahead with the narrative blending his thriller style and the commercial requirements of the star.
In the first half of Ranavasura, one sees clearly the commercial and thriller genre mixture from Sudheer Varma. A large chunk of the first half revolving around the characters of Kanaka Mahalakshmi and Ravi serves the commercial needs. It has comedy and romance dominating the other elements.
However, the comedy itself and so does the narrative lack freshness. It comes off as very formulaic and provides passable entertainment at best.
As we move towards the interval, the thriller angle takes over in Ravanasura. The series of murders and sequences leading to the interval is where Ravanasura grabs the attention. There is intrigue in the proceedings overcoming the illogical things offering the thrills.
The beginning of the second half maintains the momentum and the thrills that commenced from pre-interval. However, as the narrative progresses and we get to the ‘why’ of all the killings, things fall apart for Ravanasura.
The core plot revealing the reason for killings is utterly predictable, offering nothing new. We know where things are headed after that point.
To add to the predictability woes, we have the illogical thrill elements taken to the next level. They are so over the top that it’s laughable. The prosthetic makeup aspect is very unconvincing and gets ridiculously silly after a point. The intrigue goes for a toss entirely as the proceedings reach the climax in this logic-less way. One wishes the law and criminal lawyer aspects were cleverly used in the narrative.
Overall, Ravanasura is a commercial drama with thriller elements. Some parts offer intrigue, but a fair share lacks the impact with its illogical and over-the-top proceedings. If you like Ravi Teja and want to see him doing something different, even a small part, try the movie. But have the expectations firmly in check.
Performances by Others Actors
Ravanasura is filled with numerous actors. Most of them are seen in bits and pieces parts, though. Sushanth plays a crucial role in the movie’s progress. Despite such a pivotal part, it doesn’t require heavy-duty performance, and the actor goes about the work casually. Meanwhile, Sreeram doesn’t have much to do at all.
Poojita Ponnada, as the cop, registers in her brief appearance. Hyper Adhi, similarly, works out his punches as the sidekick. In a poorly written role, Jayaram isn’t that effective, whereas Murali Sharma is wasted appearing in a scene or two. Rao Ramesh is adequate but doesn’t quite hit the high with the dialect given to him.
Sampath Raj, Praveen, Jayaram, Harshavardhan and others act as fillers doing the necessary within the limited time they get. There are many more known faces, but they have even poor roles.
Music and Other Departments?
Harshavardhan Rameshwar and Bheema Ciciroleo provide the music. The songs are forgettable once they are done on screen. The background score further drowns them with its loudness. It is pretty noisy out there.
Vijay Karthik Kannan’s cinematography is satisfactory. The narrative has a slick look in parts that take a thriller approach. Naveen Nooli’s editing is neat and gives a racy feel to the proceedings during thriller sequences. The writing should have been better, undoubtedly.
Highlights?
Ravi Teja (The Negative Shaded One)
Pre-Interval
Post-Interval Sequences
Drawbacks?
Predictable Core Plot
Laughable logicless key scenes
Zero Surprises
Missing Thrills
Alternative Take
Did I Enjoy It?
Few parts
Will You Recommend It?
With huge reservations
Final Report:
Ravanasura has a familiar core plot that’s presented as a thriller. Parts of it works, but some are very over the top and laughable. Ravi Teja does well as one expects, especially with a negative shade.
First Half Report:
Ravanasura starts alright and then slips into formulaic passable entertainment soon. It gets on track with pre-interval and interval blocks (logics aside) and creates intrigue for the second half.
— Ravanasura show started. Stay tuned for the first half report.
Stay tuned for Ravanasura Review, U.S. Premiere Report shortly.
Cast: Ravi Teja, Sushanth, Anu Emmanuel, Faria Abdullah, Megha Akash, Daksha Nagarkar
Banner : Abhishek Pictures, RT Team Works
Screenplay & Director: Sudheer Varma
Producer: Abhishek Nama, Ravi Teja
Story & Dialogues: Srikanth Vissa
Music: Harshavardhan Rameshwar, Bheems Ceciroleo
Dop: Vijay Karthik Kannan
Art Director: D R K Kiran
Editor: Naveen Nooli
Story Development: Prashanth Baradi
