Rathnam Movie Review

Vishal is back with yet another film, Rathnam, directed by Hari. The combo has previously worked on Bharani and Pooja, and Rathnam is their third film. Rathnam has been dubbed in Telugu with the same name and was released today. DSP scored the music and Priya Bhavani Shankar is the heroine. Read our review here.

Plot

Rathnam(Vishal) is a very close aide of Panner Swamy(Samuthirakani), and he goes to any extent for him. One fine day, he falls for Mallika(Priya Bhavani Shankar) and starts going after her. At a point, he comes to know that Mallika’s life is in danger. Rathnam then decides to save Mallika at any cost and there is a proper motive behind him trying to save her. What is the motive and how he saves her is the basic story of the film.

Performances

Vishal is a sincere actor and performs his characters sincerely. In Rathnam too, he does well and is amazing in all the action sequences. But as the narration is quite poor, his performance looks a bit over the top in a few confrontation scenes. Priya Bhavani Shankar suits her role perfectly and does what is required for the film. Samuthirakni is neat in his role and does not add much to the narrative. The rest of the characters are just okay.

Technical Aspects

Devi Sri Prasad composed the music for this film, and his work is ordinary. Though he tried hard to elevate all the action sequences, his BGM is a bit loud in most of the scenes and looks outdated. The camerawork is impressive, and the action sequences, especially the lengthy action episode, are showcased in a beautiful manner. The Telugu dubbing is decent, and nothing much to rave about. The editing is worse, as the action sequences are stretched for no reason. The rest of the storyline is quite ordinary.

What’s Good

Production Values

What’s Bad

Outdated Story
Over-the-top drama
Lack of strong conflict

Analysis

Hari is a kind of director that does not showcase anything new. All his stories have a routine plot, but his fast-paced narration makes all the difference. But sadly, in Rathnam everything goes for a toss here in this film. The narration is slow and jaded, and it feels like we are watching the film forever. Such is the case of Rathnam.

Vishal tries hard to keep us in the game, but the bland narration pins things back most of the time. Also, in all previous Hari films, the entertainment factor used to be decent, but in Rathnam, that goes for a toss. There is not a single episode in the film that stands out. Such is the dull rate with which the film progresses.

Also, the film’s slow pace is a disadvantage. The second half is filled with action, and one gets the feeling that there is no need for so many action sequences. One of the biggest drawbacks is that it lacks basic emotions. Those shown hardly make any impact. The goons and the manner in which they come in and go into the narrative look forced.

The character arc of the heroine, Priya Bhavani Shankar, and her past is not streamlined properly. Her motive and the way Vishal manages to help her look okay in the narrative, but in execution, they falter big time. Finally, Rathnam is an over-the-top action drama that fails to evoke any excitement and ends as yet another dud from Hari.

Bottom Line – ‘Rathnam’ Failed In All Tests

Rating: 1.75/5