Entertaining movie tells tale of three generations
MANAM (8/10)
NAGARJUNA’S dream project came to fruition with the completion of Manam.
Nagarjuna plays the lead role with his father, the late Nageswara Rao, who died in January during the film’s production phase.
Nagarjuna’s wife, Amala, their son, Akhil, and Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan all make special guest appearances. The film also stars Naga Chaitanya, Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Shreya Saran, Saranya Ponvanannan and Bhramanandham.
The story begins in 1983 and looks at the troubled life of eight-year-old Bittu. His parents — Radhamohan (Chaitanya) and Krishnaveni (Prabhu) spend most of their time bickering. A tragic series of events results in Bittu’s life being turned upside down.
The story then moves to the present, when an adult Bittu (Nagarjuna) is a motivated and successful businessman. On an aeroplane trip he meets someone who closely resembles his late father, which begins a chain of events that results in three generations of stories being unveiled in an unusual manner.
Nagarjuna handles his role splendidly, but he is comfortable in giving more screen space to Chaitanya, Prabhu and Saran, who all give impressive performances.
Prabhu, in particular, is in magnificent form. One of the best performances comes from the late Rao, in what became a fitting final role for him.
The first half is perfectly paced and builds rapidly to a breathless intermission. Unfortunately, much of the momentum is lost thereafter with a second half that’s longer and slower-paced, only picking up speed again towards the end.
Director Vikram K Kumar has taken some liberties with the logic quotient in the story, but he succeeds in creating a extremely entertaining movie.
PS Vinod’s cinematography is pleasing to the eye, but it makes no attempt at any kind of innovation. Prawin Pudi’s editing, though, is top notch.
Anoop Rubens, who had earlier worked with Vikram Kumar on Ishq, does a brilliant job of the songs with unusual melodies and creative instrumentation. His background score is not as impressive.
Manam is clean family entertainment that appeals to a wide audience. Despite the flaws in logic and pace, it is a film that will delight, move and inspire.