Review: Guntur Karam.

Headline: Not emotionally satisfying.

Plot:

Ramana (Mahesh Babu), bred in Guntur, grows with his single father Sathyam (Jayaram) after his mother Vyra Vasundhara (Ramya Krishna) has a fallout with the latter. His uncle (Raghu Babu), aunt (Eswari Rao) and cousin (Meenakshi Chaudhary) form his support system but, deep down, he badly misses his mother, whom he blames for ditching him and his father and marrying someone else (Rao Ramesh). 

Ramana`s life takes an unexpected turn when his grandfather Venkata Swamy (Prakash Raj), a wily politician, asks him to declare in the court that he has nothing to do with Vasundhara, now the Law Minister. When Ramana threatens to be caught in a web of deception and chaos, he asserts himself and refuses to do Venkata Swamy`s bidding. This endangers his life, but there could be another key character who is also in danger.

Performances:

Mahesh Babu never looked this handsome in any of his recent movies. He was stoic in `Maharshi`. His makeover was very good in `Sarkaru Vaari Paata` but it was far from perfect. In `Guntur Kaaram`, though, he is something else. In a way, Sree Leela would have appeared cool had it been some other hero. Opposite Mahesh, she stands no chance. Even in silly episodes involving tertiary characters, Mahesh doesn`t let the energy levels take a dip. It is only writing that fails him.

Ramya Krishna is no Nadhiya and that`s a special achievement of this film to waste such a talent. She hardly gets to speak, probably because Trivikram wanted her few lines to hit hard when she utters them in the climax. Prakash Raj has long become a weak performer. His character`s physical vulnerability doesn`t make any difference to the characterization. It is mired in generic beats.

Everyone in the Guntur household speaks while making zero impact. Jagapathi Babu, the baddie, gets better text compared to them. Jayaram`s presence, so also Murali Sharma`s demeanour, kindled the memories of the inimitable `Ala Vaikunthapurramuloo`. Vennela Kishore is bearable. Ajay Ghosh, Ajay and Brahmaji are downright jaded.

Technical Departments:

Music (songs): Two songs are wow.

Background music: Among Thaman`s weakest works.

Production Values: Not bad.

Cinematography: Nothing out of the ordinary.

Editing: About 5 minutes should be done away with.

Merits:

1. Here, men are in distress rather than the women (at least in terms of what we get to see). Trivikram must be appreciated for trying it in a family entertainer space.

2. The dependence on Mahesh Babu`s swag is too much. But it is to the film`s credit that he rises to the occasion. You can`t blame this film for getting the hero`s casting right.

3. The songs have creative lyrics, if you think about it. Even `Kurchi Madathapetti` has got interesting lines.

4. The final scenes could have been well-rounded but they are watchable.

Demerits:

1. Too many dialogues should have been avoided. Today`s audience are smart enough to understand silences.

2. In the climax, the characters suddenly converget at a place. It looks unnatural and is also a dated template.

3. Some scenes make the film look directionless. The second half, especially, was designed with the intention of delivering a mindless family entertainer. The attempt falls flat because that`s not Trivikram`s forte.

4. Too many names of persons. It feels like you are reading a novel where you can`t follow the names of the characters.

5. The visual palette and, occasionally, the background scores, takes us back to a few of Trivikram`s previous movies.

Rating: 2.5/5