i - Manoharudu Movie Review

Rating: 2.5 / 5

Story:

'I' opens with a Disfigured Man (Vikram) abducting Diya (Amy Jackson) at the time of her wedding. Here comes the flashback - Lingesan (Vikram), a ferocious body-builder, who aspires to bag Mr.India title gets trapped in the glamorous world of advertisement. What were the consequences he has to face and how he takes revenge on the people responsible forms the rest of the story.

Artists Performance:

Vikram: He has given his heart, body and 3-years of his life for 'I'. May be, No other Indian actor would have gone to this extent for the sake of a single project. He is just flawless in 'I' - Accomplishes the task of multiple makeovers perfectly, Performs brilliantly in roles which offer huge scope and Exhibits excellence in action blocks. Hats off to this Great Actor!

Amy Jackson: She has got amazing screen presence and looks stunningly gorgeous throughout the course of the movie. Her attitude and chemistry with Vikram were a must watch.

Santhanam tickles the funny bone at times. Upen Patel is ineffective. Rest of the cast is adequate. 

Plus Points:

- Vikram's Makeovers & Performance

- Amy Jackson's Attitude & Beauty

- Songs

- Pre-Interval Fight

- Visual Grandeur

Minus Points:

- Wafer-Thin Story

- Lazy Execution (Run Time 3 hr 8 min)

- Second Half

Analysis:

Shankar, the only Tamil director with Rs 30 crore market in Telugu States, tests his fortune with 'I' Today. A back & forth technique has been chosen for narration of flashback and present times, forming two parallel layers. Shankar took almost 2 hours to reveal the actual point and its too late by that time.

AR Rahman's songs were pretty decent but what makes the difference is picturization in visually spectacular locations. Background Score is highly promising. PC Sreeram is a genius to say the least and the credit for making 'I' a visual feast goes to him. Dialogues were good. Stunts have been choreographed very well. Editing is poor and at least 15-20 minutes in second half could have been chopped off. Visual Effects were topnotch. Production Values are mind blowing. 

While the First Half is partly enjoyable with sizzling chemistry between lead pair, couple of songs and eye-popping portions shot in China, Second Half tests the patience of audience with more or less appearing like a routine revenge drama and there is nothing special except for Vikram's arresting performance as disfigured man. Major drawbacks of 'I' - Below Par Second Half, Excessive Run Time & Gang of Villains who doesn't appear menacing at all. To finish off, 'I' is technically brilliant but not on par with Shankar's past works in terms of story and screenplay.

Box Office: 'I' received second biggest release ever for a dubbed flick (700-plus screens for Telugu version). Theatrical Rights were sold out for a bomb and hence recovery isn't going to be easy with pretty poor word of mouth even though openings could be extraordinary because of the fantastic pre-release buzz. 

Verdict: A Boring 'I' Feast!