Film: Don
Rating: 2.5/5
Cast: Nagarjuna, Anushka, Nikitha, Lawrence, Kelly Dorjee, Chalapathi Rao, Jeeva etc
Dialogues: Abburi Ravi
Fights: Vijay
Art: Ashok
Editor: Marthand K Venkatesh
Camera: S Golapala Reddy
Producer: ML Kumar Choudary
Story, Screenplay, Choreography, Music, Direction: Lawrence
Released On: 20th Dec 2007
It’s film that proved to be toy in the hands of Lawrence. He used the opportunity to do everything he wanted to do. Yes, from direction to choreography to music to action to story!!! It sounds ludicrous to see how Nagarjuna agreed for this subject. It’s a wrong choice for him.
Story:
Suri (Nagarjuna) is a Hyderabadi based Don but does only good for society. Raghava (Lawrence) is an orphan who lives with Suri since childhood as his younger brother. A Mumbai based don Stephen eyes on Hyderabad and wants to capture. But Suri interrupts him. Then the Mumbai don wishes to put an end to Suri. The power stunt starts. Finally as expected, after a series of kidnaps and abductions the film comes to climax. Obviously, good wins over evil. There is nothing big to say than this. It’s all the screenplay, camera work and sound effect that are required to make this plot as a film. Screenplay is average, camera work is good and sound effects are again average.
Performances:
Dialogues by Abburi Ravi are not so interesting. They are quite ordinary and nothing worth to say about. Comedy is missing in the film but the audiences have to adjust only with the situational humor by Lawrence (in fact that hardly brings laughs). Lawrence appears to be very comfortable with sentimental tracks. He proved that he is poor in dealing a mafia oriented subject. He is poor with comedy too.
Nagarjuna proved to be a wrong choice for this subject. The film is lacking in conviction completely. The bearing of Nagarjuna as Don with gelled back hair style is not impressive. The only relief for audience in this flick is Anushka. She has shown her oomph factor and also acted in a lip locking scene with Nag. Lawrence over-acted in the film and his dubbing is below average. In fact it is the same voice that has been lending for him.
Music is just average. Lawrence has shown a little maturity only in music direction than in anything else. ‘Entandanga unnave…’, and ‘Su Su Soori Anna…’got good response from the audience.
Lawrence has to do home work with respect to blending proper comedy in the film, screenplay and bringing in grip in narration with right tempo.
Positive Things In The Film:
Nikitha's suspense episode
Cinematography
Style that tried to meet Hollywood standards
Mafia don's cruel game with a fight
Negative aspects:
Lack of comedy
Lawrence's over action
Predictable story line and narration
Nagarjuna's bearing as Don
Analysis:
The film is a clear inspiration from various mafia oriented films. The opening scene where the father of a college girl approaches Don’s gang to save his daughter recalls the film ‘Sarkar’. And the ‘bomb in shopping complex’ episode reminds Basha. And the name of Mumbai Don’s confidante, Anthony, recalls Raghu Varan’s character name in ‘Basha’. The film has myriad shades of ‘Basha’. On a whole the film lacks in freshness in narrating the main plot. It’s a film that shows the power stunt between a crooked Mumbai Don and a good Hyderabadi don. Lawrence blended a beaten formula with little sentiment and some love tracks. The film is not for the crowds those relish intelligent games on screen. It’s only for the audiences those like to watch their hero’s brawn. Being a mafia oriented flick; the film has shown more muscle power instead of showing the might of brain.
First half of the film runs with high voltage introduction of Nagarjuna and his love track. Second half becomes serious with the fight between Mumbai Don Stephen and Hyderabadi Don Nagarjuna. Climax concludes the film abruptly.
All the characters in the film (be it Mumbai based mafia dons or Goan ladies) speak only in Telugu. There is a ‘Note’ in the beginning of the film stating “We are showing everyone in the film speaking only in Telugu to make the Telugu audience understand the film”. So one has to go with the note and watch the film.
Lawrence made the film depending only on style and technical aspects. The required spirit in the film is lacking.
(SiraSri can be reached at [email protected])
