'Alluri', produced by Lucky Media, hit the cinemas today (September 23). Here is our review of the latest release.
Story
Fearless cop Rama Raju (Sree Vishnu) decides to uproot crime in Vizag, but his mission is thwarted by the local MP and his gang of baddies. The hero bulldozes over them and triggers the ire of powerful forces. DIG Kasi Viswanath (Suman) is sympathetic to Rama Raju and gets him transferred to Hyderabad, where he is posted in the Old City. Once in the city, Rama Raju decides to put an end to organized crime. How he does it is what the second half is about.
Performances
After playing serious roles in 'Bhala Thandana' and 'Arjuna Phalguna', Sree Vishnu is seen in a more-than-serious role in the film under review. He understands the demands made by a combative cop's role well. But the lackluster dialogues and terribly bad writing fail him throughout.
Actress Kayadu Lohar, who makes her Telugu debut, is supported by able dubbing. But she gets to play a typical housewife of a super-busy cop. Tanikella Bharani and Suman approach their roles regularly. Raja Ravindra, Prudhviraj, Ravi Varma, and Madhusudhan Rao Reddy are seen in unexciting roles.
Technical aspects
Harshavardhan Rameshwar of 'Arjun Reddy' fame doesn't quite push the envelope. The BGM is inexcusably routine. The cinematography by Raj Thota is basic, unlike his other works like 'Arjun Reddy' and 'Maha Samudram'. Dharmendra Kakarala's editing deserves a minus rating; the film's running time of more than 2 hours 40 minutes tests your patience.
Analysis
In 'Alluri', the hero eliminates people in broad daylight in the middle of a street. He guns down anti-social elements at will. He even walks up to a powerful MP and warns him; 'If you don't reform, I will have to force you to mend your ways', he declares with fire in his eyes. But, he waits for the common man to lodge a police complaint before he can act against drug peddling and other heinous crimes in the town. He wants someone to formally lodge a complaint so that he can proceed to put a full stop to the crime with all his might, overnight. Our question is this: Rama Raju anyways doesn't care for the rule of law. Why does he want to religiously follow that one rule that there has to be a formal complaint before the police can swing into action?
It's not known where writer-director Pradeep Varma picks his understanding of police protocols and legal conventions. If his research told him that's how things happen in real life, he should have stuck to realism. Karthi's 'Khaki' and Gautam Menon's 'Gharshana' did so. That's why they are respected. You have to stick to either realism or make a 'Singham'. Don't flip-flop. If you are clueless, you will end up making a cheap version of 'The Warriorr'.
Now that we are on the Ram Pothineni film, 'Alluri' is a shade worse than 'Warriorr'. That film at least had two superb DSP numbers. In 'Alluri', the scenes are strictly driven by convenience and ancient-era templates. Some guy alerts the hero about a crime in the town, the hero reacts instantly, goes and solves it. Sometimes, he assumes the functions of a District Collector.
But once at home, he is a romantic husband. He actually commits an offence to find time for a sexy honeymoon. But when he is absent, can law and order exist in the town? No. Remember those cop movies from the late 1980s and 1990s movies. Every time the hero is a cop, he is too duty-minded to go on a vacation with his wife. But if, by mistake, he goes on a vacation, some bad thing happens in his absence. An innocent girl gets raped or things like that happen.
The hostage crisis has been shown in an incredibly silly manner in 'Alluri'. So much so, it will give even a grandfather the confidence that he can uproot terrorism. Make no mistakes, that's actually the purpose why Rama Raju exists. He wants to give the common man the confidence that anyone can be an Alluri Sitaramaraju. Well, well!
Closing Remarks
If you liked 'The Warriorr', you might hate 'Alluri' less. But disliking the movie is a given.
