Tiger Nageswara Rao REVIEW: Ravi Teja starrer is dated and cringeworthy, Nupur Sanon leaves zero impact

Film:
Tiger Nageswara Rao

Director: Vamsee

Platform: Theatre

Runtime: 3 hours 1 min

Star cast: Ravi Teja, Anupam Kher, Gayatri Bharadwaj, Nupur Sanon, Renu Desai, Nassar, Muralisharma, Jisshu Sengupta, Sudev Nair, Harishperadi

Tiger Nageswara Rao review

Story

A legendary real-life robber of Stuartpuram, Andhra Pradesh called Tiger Nageswara Rao in the 1970s, is rebellious. He doesn’t bate his eyelash even to kill anyone and becomes the most wanted thief in the city. Nageswara steals money, food and jewellery like it’s no big deal. Despite all the bad deeds, he becomes the hero of the village.

What’s great about Tiger Nageswara Rao

I’m struggling to find what I really liked about the movie. The only thing I liked about TNR was the second half which reveals the better side of the story. The first half shows Nageswara as the villain; however, the second part shows him as the hero and it gives a better view. The movie also picks up the pace in the second half. I liked how they kept the mystery till the end, making you only wonder about Nageswara’s true identity.

What didn’t work for Tiger Nageswara Rao

Glorifying unethical scenes: Okay, there are quite a few scenes where it made me feel cringy. From kicking a prostitute and slamming her head against a wall for not sleeping with him to glorifying dowry, everything is shown in such a casual way. There’s another scene when Nageswara is hitting on Nupur at such a low level that she is not affected by it at all. Moreover, Ravi Teja’s character calls Nupur as his own property and no one’s allowed to touch it. I mean WTF! What century are we living in? Isn’t this concept and perception ancient now? Are we still objectifying women like this? Also, what’s the obsession about focusing the camera on cleavages, naval and legs? I feel Nupur was just in the movie to raise the glamour quotient. There are quite a few scenes that seem disturbing and annoying.

Screenplay: Somewhere the story timeline seems a little convoluted and you even lose track of the story. However, it is such a long film that it might be hard to keep up with the timeline. Second, the story keeps juggling between past and present multiple times which also adds to confusion. The story is dated and it offers nothing new. Sometimes, I wonder why those people become messiahs who do bad deeds.

Climax: the climax scene was overdramatic, dragged and highly superficial. The man has been shot multiple times and yet he is alive for the entire 30 mins climax.

Runtime: Given that the movie runs for 3 hours, you can understand why I am saying it’s dragged. They could have nicely chopped off the unwanted scenes or even songs. I don’t think the story needed 3 hours of attention.

VFX: The VFX is so patchy and shady that you don’t enjoy it. There’s a scene where Nageswara is seen chopping people off and the special effect looks so shady bad.

Star performance

Ravi Teja is the Mass Maharaja for a reason I feel. There’s a different charm and aura around the South stars and I got to see the same in TNR as well. Ravi Teja is the heart of the film and he roars like a tiger in the movie. Be it his action sequences or his simple walk, Ravi Teja’s swag and charm are hard to escape from.

Anupam Kher makes an appearance for a limited time and he plays his part well with utmost sincerity. Nupur Sanon who is introduced as the love interest of Nageswara offers nothing significant. Her character automatically falls in love with Nageswara just because he saves her from becoming a prostitute and calls her his property. Nupur lacks impact and gives a mediocre performance. She is only seen in the first half and not post interval. Nassar is also seen in the limited screen time but plays a fair job.

Gayatri Bharadwaj comes in the second half of the movie where she is shown as Nageswara’s wife. Though she is seen for a small role, she delivers a decent job. Jisshu Sengupta plays a grey character and he performs greatly. Murali Sharma is also decent with his performance but only vanishes in the first part.

Conclusion

Concluding my review, Ravi Teja starrer Tiger Nageswara Rao is high on action but takes a serious hit on content. It will leave you in torment. However, Ravi Teja’s persona and his charisma sideline the flaws. If you’re a huge fan of Ravi Teja, you will enjoy him in every scene. Otherwise, you can give it a miss.

Watch Tiger Nageswara Rao trailer post review

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