Godfather Review: A decent political action drama

Godfather

What’s it about?

When Chief Minister PKR dies, a question arises regarding the successor. PKR’s son-in-law Jaidev (Satya Dev) swiftly swings into action. His wife Satya Priya believes that her husband is doing everything for her and her family. She loathes her stepbrother Brahma (Chiranjeevi) and is determined that the party doesn’t go into his hands. 

Brahma, on the other hand, has the support of many MLAs, who act on his word. Understanding that Jaidev is trying to grab the party in his hands, Brahma plans that his sister Satya Priya becomes the new party president. Then, Jaidev’s game to become the new Chief Minister becomes tough. 

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How Brahma exposes Jaidev’s true nature and averts his efforts and saves his sister from him becomes the main plot of this political drama.

Analysis

An official remake of Malayalam blockbuster ‘Lucifer’, Chiranjeevi starrer ‘Godfather’ follows the spirit of the original but also differs from it. As director Mohan Raja said in his interviews, he has made many changes to the script, by omitting certain characters and adding new ones. The character of the Chief Minister’s younger son was removed entirely. Manju Warrier’s daughter role turns into Nayanthara’s sister here. 

The original film is not just about succession but drug cartels. The aspect of the drugs has remained in the ‘Godfather’. But the political drama and the successor game are altered. Political drama is over masalafied in ‘Godfather’.

‘Godfather’ is largely gripping in the first half. The biggest trick Mohan Raja has scored with this film is that he doesn’t let us think about Chiranjeevi’s usual introduction song or romantic thread. Thankfully, the film sticks to the original in this aspect. For the first time in his long career, Chiranjeevi has done a movie without the usual dance numbers or romantic angles. 

Mohan Raja succeeds in presenting a new megastar that befits his age. 

If we start comparing the film in all aspects with the original, the review will be too long to read. In short, ‘Godfather’ follows the outline of ‘Lucifer’ but gets some portions rights, some things wrong. We don’t get many complaints with the first half, but the final act completely goes wrong. 

The very decision of casting Salman Khan is bad. Even the scenes involving Chiranjeevi and Salman Khan lack the native factor and don’t provide any thrilling moments. The final moments give a feel of the rushed product. 

Coming to performances, Chiranjeevi’s swag and style is the main highlight. He reinvents himself with this film. 

Among the other characters, Nayanthara (dignified), Satya Dev (decent), and Murali Sharma (good) shine. Sunil, Brahmaji, Samuthirakani, Divi Vadthya, and Shafi are okay. 

Among the technicians, cinematographer Nirav Shah and dialogue writer Lakshmi Bhupala deserve appreciation. Thaman’s music is standard. Director Mohan Raja does a neat job in remaking the original. 

Bottom-line: For all these years, Chiranjeevi has done films or roles that provided scope for his dance numbers or mass sequences. For a change, he reinvents himself with ‘Godfather’, which is bereft of such moments. This is a novelty. Though the film is not as good as the original ‘Lucifer’, it makes a decent watch on its own. 

Rating: 3/5

By Jalapathy Gudelli

Film: Godfather
Cast: Chiranjeevi, Salman Khan, Nayanthara, Satya Dev, and others
Dialogues: Lakshmi Bhupala
Music: Thaman S
Cinematography: Nirav Shah
Action: Ram-Laxman, Anal Arsu
Production Designer: Suresh Selvarajan
Directed by: Mohan Raja
Release Date: Oct 05, 2022

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What’s it about?When Chief Minister PKR dies, a question arises regarding the successor. PKR’s son-in-law Jaidev (Satya Dev) swiftly swings into action. His wife Satya Priya believes that her husband is doing everything for her and her family. She loathes her stepbrother Brahma (Chiranjeevi)...Godfather Review: A decent political action drama