BOTTOM LINE
ARM’s 7th Sense Awakens
OUR RATING
2.5/5
CENSOR
‘U/A’ Certified, 2 hrs 25 mins
What is the film SPYder about?
Shiva (Mahesh Babu) is an Intelligence Bureau officer who works in Call Tapping department. He hears everyone’s problem and helps them. His life turns upside down when a psychopath named Bhairavudu (SJ Suryah) enters his life. How he captures Bhairavudu (SJ Suryah) and stops all the evil plans is what the film is all about.
How is Mahesh Babu’s performance?
Mahesh Babu is good as usual. It is what the audience expects from him, and he delivers it diligently. There is no problem per se, but the film has very fewer highlight moments showcasing the acting talents. While the acting skills are perfect, there is a visible increase in awkwardness onscreen while dancing. Not that it is important for Mahesh Babu but he appears very stiff and when trying to dance it isn’t coming across well on screen.
Direction By A R Murugadoss?
AR Murugadoss is without any doubt an excellent storyteller. His repertoire consists of some gems within the commercial movie terrain. It is the reason why he is a brand in his own right, and people develop certain expectation when a film comes from him. With Spyder, he joins hands with Mahesh Babu, and that combination has resulted in the tremendous hype. Well, after all the build-up we have to say Spyder falls shorts in the primary department, that story.
The story is a wafer thin. Probably the director too knows that, and it is the reason why the screenplay is filled with “items” one after the other, rather than robust content to engage the audience. The boulder scene, rollercoaster fight, the hospital climax these all appear like specially designed items on a big scale to hoodwink the audience from the distinct lack of story.
The first half of the film feels better in comparison to the second half because it feels more like a narrative compared to the second half. There are no items and movie has a story to tell. The psycho character is established superbly. The interval scene and the conflict between hero and villain are all well done.
The problem with second half is the screenplay jumps from one block to other, and one can feel the jump. The seamless narrative much required for the thrillers in missing. On top of that the “grand visuals” lack the grandness. The visual effects are weak, and so are the scenes itself. The intelligent mind game between hero and villain is missing. Also, everything appears so derivative. The climax is, however, the biggest letdown. It just doesn’t work.
Overall, the unique characterization of antagonist and the typically good act of lead hero makes Spyder a passable one time watch, if there are no high expectations.
Rakul Preeth and others?
Rakul Preet Singh has a routine silly and dumb heroine role usually seen in big commercial flicks. She has nothing to do with the main narrative except for one scene towards the end. SJ Suryah is a scene stealer. It is a combination of his character and the performance that the actor delivers. The rest of the cast which includes many well-known faces have little to do to make an impact. Actor Bharath is wasted.
Music and other departments?
The songs by Harris Jayaraj are on a predictable note, but the background score makes up for it. The cinematography by Santosh Sivan is exceptional. Editing could have been better. Dialogues are okay.
Highlights?
SJ Surya Character
Mahesh Babu
Drawbacks?
Weak Story
Flat Narration
Not Enough Thrills
Songs placement
Climax
Alternative Take
When the characters of protagonist and antagonist are so well established, there should have been a cerebral dual of sorts between the two. More content on that lines with grandeur in thoughts rather than tasteless action visuals would have worked wonders for the film.
Did I enjoy it?
In parts
Will you recommend it?
Only for the fans
SPYder Review by Siddartha Toleti
Final Report:-
Spyder second half is a letdown. Spyder is about catching a psycho killer but offers no thrills or highs. Watch out for our frank review soon.
– The routine ending to the villain character. Movie ends.
– Hospital collapsing shots, panic gets created around, shot well including CG work.
– Harris Jayaraj’s background score is the biggest highlight of the film so far.
– Priyadarshi Pullikonda and RJ Balaji as Mahesh friends get a brief roles.
– As Mahesh said in promotional interviews Rakul Preet Singh plays the role of heroine gives relief in a serious subject with songs and comedy scenes.
– Shiva (Mahesh) is trying to catch Bhairavudu (S. J. Surya) using technology and women watching Tv serial to trap him. This episode is very lengthy and logic goes for a toss.
First Half Report:-
Spyder first half has lot of nativity issues and gets slow at times nonetheless story offers freshness. Interval bang creates hope for a better engaging second half.
– Interval bang. Stage set for big fight with psycho Bhairavudu (S. J. Surya)
– Much talked Rollercoaster action block is not that great, both vfx and action choreography is not up to the mark.
– The Tamil movie flavor is pretty evident in many scenes especially the scenes of Bharat childhood but they are engaging nonetheless with very good background score.
– Third song “Ciciliya Ciciliya” song shot well in nice foreign locals.
– Mahesh gets a lead, trying to find Bharat (suspect in murder).
– A brutal murder happens. Mahesh and his friends Priyadarshi and RJ Balaji at intelligence bureau trying to find the man and mystery behind these killings.
– Second song quickly, “Achcham Telugandham” shot well showing some story running between Mahesh and Rakul.
– Shiva (Mahesh) overhears Rakul and her friend phone conversations.
– First song “Boom Boom” song has typical Mahesh dance moves.
– Mahesh intro as IB employee in Hyderabad. He gets to know public panic and their troubles through his software.
– Spyder titles started with setting the mood for Spy thriller.
SPYder US Premier Live updates will begin from 12.30 AM IST.
Preview: SPYder
Mahesh Babu is a Superstar in Telugu and a debutante in Tamil. So, the diversification between the two markets is quite evident. For Mahesh, this film is important in two ways. In Tollywood, his previous movie ‘Brahmotsavam’ was a complete washout though it came right after the blockbuster, ‘Srimanthudu’.
| S# | Movie | Collections |
|---|---|---|
| SPYder | $1.01 Million | |
| 1 | Brahmotsavam | $560 K |
| 2 | Srimanthudu | $535 K |
| 3 | Aagadu | $523 K |
| 4 | 1 | $233 K |
| 5 | SVSC | $205 K |
Henceforth, it is essential that his ‘SPYder‘ erases bad memories of his previous movie. In Kollywood, this movie is Mahesh Babu’s first straight film. If this movie works well in Tamil, it is going to open new avenues for the Telugu Superstar and his future films will also follow the same path. Bilingual or else Tamil dubbing will be on cards for Mahesh’s future movies.
AR Murugadoss is a brand name for action thrillers. But, his last release ‘Akira’ turned out to be a mixed bag. To be frank, neither the box-office collections nor the movie was up to the standards of ARM brand. This movie is crucial for him as he is going to direct Tamil mass star Vijay after this movie.
So, a superhit will be a path for a good lineup for the director who gave blockbusters to Vijay. If ‘SPYder‘ clicks, the director will walk away with the credit of introducing a new hero to Tamil audiences and also he’ll get the credit for the openings as Mahesh is relatively a new hero for Tamilians except for the metro city, Chennai.
Coming to the music, the album delivered by Harris Jayaraj wasn’t great and one has to agree that the songs have no repeat value. If the visuals are appealing, the songs may look good on the screen. For an action-thriller, the background score is very crucial and hope the music director scores big here.
National Award winning cinematographer Santosh Sivan might have weaved his magic into the visuals through his camera eye. Nevertheless, only if the content and execution are good, his cinematography will enhance the feel of the movie.
| S# | Movie | Collections |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Srimanthudu | $2.8 Million |
| 2 | SVSC | $1.6 Million |
| 3 | Dookudu | $1.5 Million |
| 4 | Aagadu | $1.4 Million |
| 5 | 1 | $1.3 Million |
Besides Mahesh Babu, seasoned actor SJ Suryah looked impressive in the promos as the main antagonist. There is Bharat playing a negative role and ‘SPYder’ has the top heroine, Rakul Preet Singh for the glamour relief. Put together, ‘SPYder’ is not only a big movie regarding the budget but also the people involved in it.
It is not the kind of movie which can be labeled as a minimum guarantee film like ‘Jai Lava Kusa’. Anything can happen. Going by the first time combination of Mahesh and Murugadoss, common audiences only hope for a thorough entertaining fare.
Not mincing words anymore, let’s wait for the genuine and integrated Spyder review from our mirchi9 team. Stay tuned folks. We’ll be back, very soon.
Latest update:
Spyder collected $1.01 Million from US premiers. This is a rare feat. Spyder is the 4th movie to collect million dollars from US premiers.
