Duvvada Jagannadham or DJ movie review: The chemistry between Allu Arjun and Pooja Hegde in the film has already become a hit, thanks to music by composer Devi Sri Prasad. All the songs from the film are well received. The movie is special for producer Dil Raju as it is a landmark film in his career.
Duvvada Jagannadham or DJ movie director: Harish Shankar
Duvvada Jagannadham or DJ movie cast: Allu Arjun, Pooja Hegde, Vennela Kishore, Rao Ramesh
Duvvada Jagannadham or DJ movie rating: 2.5 stars
A misfit, rebellious teenager from the Brahmin community, Duvvada Jagannadham, guns down five goons who try to kill an honest cop at a deserted public place. Without thinking twice, the same kid empties the remaining bullets into a rape accused at the police station from the same gun that he used to kill five bad people earlier that day. It was just the beginning of a series of killings that were about to follow. The honest cop, played by Murali Sharma, sees a warrior in the boy and lets him continue the killings with impunity to uphold justice and punish the wrongdoers so that he can sleep peacefully at night.
About 15 minutes into the film, we are introduced to now adult Duvvada Jagannadham (played by Allu Arjun) one of the most loved youngsters in his community. A Brahmin youngster, who has mastered the Vedas and mantras, takes care of his family and its business that is catering services, respects elder, abides by the law (in the day) and keep preaching the right messages to the civil society. He is the ideal son and citizen when he is around his family members. When he steps away, his body and language completely change and he goes by the name DJ, a legend of sorts among the criminals. Any criminal who has the misfortune to see in person means that he has lived his last day on the earth.
In simple words, he is a vigilante. But, director Harish Shankar, who has also written the film, has failed to give a solid reason to justify what drives a teenager to kill criminals in cold blood and continue doing so for years. It seems like he overlooked the necessity of logic while writing this film, hoping that the fans would accept Allu Arjun anyway and without questioning.
DJ managed to capture the interest of the audience when the filmmakers released the teaser showing Allu in a non-glamorous avatar as a Brahmin boy. And the director has managed to milk that role in the film to the hilt to enthrall the audience. In a scene, DJ introduces himself to a group of goons, before killing them in style as the most interesting and entertaining character. But, actually, it is his Duvvada Jagannadham character that keeps the audience engaged throughout the film. His mannerism and dialogues draw some genuine laughs from the audience. When it comes to DJ, let’s say we have seen Allu playing that role in many films under various names in the past. Duvvada Jagannadham’s role is rather the only surprise in this regular run-of-the-mill commercial entertainer.
Harish, meanwhile, has packed some punch into the screenplay of the film keeping hard-core Allu Arjun fans in mind. Allu’s performance is the mainstay. While we expected Vennela Kishore to deliver some rib-tickling comedy, his character and jokes fall flat. Allu excels in the comedy in the film too. It looks like the director has poured all the interesting ideas into one character and made DJ alias Duvvada Jagannadham.
Pooja Hegde has convincingly done the given job that is to look stunning in every frame of the film. Especially, she looks ravishing in all the song sequences. Rao Ramesh’s character that initially comes across as a clever antagonist, has been compromised just to benefit the DJ character. No other performances stand out in the film except Allu Arjun’s. It is a commercial entertainer made by the book and it works to some extent. And yes, composer Devi Sri Prasad’s music is a big plus and dance choreography is just the icing on the cake. If you can keep your expectations level low and watch the movie, it might just be the thing for a lazy weekend.
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