Badrinath

The trailers of Badrinath clubbed with the star cast boasting of names such as Allu Arjun, Tamanna and Prakash Raj raises the expectations from the film sky-high. Unfortunately, the film fails to carry the expectations.

Badri (Allu Arjun) is trained by a warrior-saint Bhishma Narayan (Prakash Raj) to protect the temple Badrinath in Takshashila. All goes well till the charming young girl Alakananda (Tamanna) walks into the temple along with her grandfather. Her grandfather wants to save Alakananda from her Aunt (Aswini Kalsekar) who wants Alakananda to be married to her son. Alakananda had insulted her Aunt sometime for calling herself the wife of a Bellary-based factionist. Badri goes on to save Alakananda and at the same time Alakananda falls in love with Badri. Meanwhile, Bhishma Narayan wants Badri to succeed him but for that, he will have to remain a bachelor. Rest is how Badri and Alakananda unite.

The film stands on a weak story and adding further, the screenplay simply drags on and on. A few flaws to be noted in the screenplay, the way Alakananda falls in love with Badri is not at all convincing, the whole sequence of the fight with the naxalites was unnecessary, the end is too formulaic. First of all, what is this way of taking revenge? Marrying son to the person who insults her! It appears funny. Also, the songs pop-up without any situation favoring them. They try hard to remain on your lips on your way home but fail. The only fair composition are Nath Nath and Nacchavura. The dance by Allu Arjun is thoroughly enjoyable in the first-half but gets monotonous in the latter.

The production design is class. Cinematography is first-rate. The sets and locations are wonderful. Costumes are well designed. Choreography explores the dancing abilities of All Arjun to the fullest. Background score is superb. Sound design is top- notch. Also, the movie has a novel idea, obviously gone waste in an enterprise like this - a well composed English song (In the night) has been used in a Telugu film, probably the first film of its kind.

Coming to the performances. Allu Arjun holds a straight face throughout. Needs to improve. Fights are good and so is dancing but fails in acting. Tamanna has improved but still goes over the top at times. Prakash Raj gets limited scope but the make-up is good. Aswini Kalsekar is perfect. Post Johnny Gaddar, Phoonk, All the Best and Rakta Charitra, this is one film which will remain as a gem in her career. The actors who portray her husband and son are fair. The comedians are wasted, all of them. Only the one who accompanies Tamanna and her grandfather gets some scope. Rest are wasted. Grandfather is good.

On the whole, the film is likely to do good in the initial weeks, but business after that seems tough. Spend a few bucks for the wonderful cinematography, background music, locales and fights. Else, avoid it.

The writing on the wall is clear: the mega success & ringing cash- registers of "Magadheera" has prompted the makers to attempt "Badarinath". Sadly none in the production team cared less to deliver a good Chandamama story. Everyone seems to be blinded by the glitter and gloss of the production values that results in a soulless pot boiler called "Badrinath".

Allu Aravind has put in lots of effort especially in the action sequences. Sadly he should have concentrated on his performance too.

Tamanna plays as usual the glam-doll, a stereo type character she prefers.

Prakash Raj is loud.

Kelly Dorjee & Ashwini Kalsekar are passable.

The plot opens up with lots of promise but sadly loses it steam as it chugs along and passes through the predictable path offering nothing new to the audience in terms of novelty.

"Magadheera" was a game-changer. It awakened the mythological sentiments which was lying dormant in the Telugu audience. And certainly the credit goes to the unstinted effort poured by Rajamouli. V V Vinayak clearly has a long way to go before he can make a mark for himself.

In this movie we can see the succession from guru to disciple and they beutifully shows the divine badrinath how they worship the god Vishnu, it's getting attention to so many people because of this movie and it has some humour and good love scenes with wonderful songs. Allu arjun acting is really good and his dance moves in the movie it's awesome.

Negatives of the movie: The main bad thing in this movie is some vfx scenes are really bad it's spoils screenplay and some fight are illogical but as a tollywood fan we can ignore that because it's commercial movie.

Finally Iam honestly saying it's good movie please ignore the negative comments and watch it.

Plus: 1. Allu Arjun dance and fights 2. Production values 3. Background score

Minus: 1. Story 2. Screenplay 3. Climax

Verdict: V.V. Vinayak is a good mass director. His films are usually entertaining even though it has nothing new to offer. If Badrinath was written by him it would have been a decent entertainer.

Badrinath is something I never expected. Allu Arjun decides to earn the respect Ram Charan Teja earned for Magadheera and he whips out a sword and kills 100s of goondas. Not just that, his character is made of a stylish personality and a god-fearing priest who's heading an ancient rivalry. How do you blend 2 poles in one? Make up your freakin' mind guys! Badrinath is unbelievably ridiculous that at one point, all we crave for is Tamanna's skimpy clothing.

Although she appears in very limited scenes (this being an Allu Arjun film), she provides her gracious charm in the given scenes. The songs were good and have been shot extensively around Tamanna and her slightly-chubby waistline. I wonder if sex & violence alone can sell more than a reasonable storyline? If Badrinath sold well to audiences, the promise of a better future to sensible Indian Cinema is almost over.

P.S. In case you're thinking on watching the film for the 3 songs featuring Tamanna's slightly-chubby waistline, watch it on youtube. Save your money!