BOTTOM LINE
Twist Hits, Emotions Hit & Miss
RATING
2.5/5
Director, Story, Screenplay: Sreekanth Sangishetty
Cast: Harshith Reddy, Smeha Manimegalai
Music Director: Eswar chand
DOP: Vamsi Patchipulusu
Editor: Hrishikesh Pasapal
Producer: Arha Media, Vasudev Koppineni, Sridevi Karyampudi
Presented By: Geetha Arts
Production Company: SK Media
U.S. Distributor: Prathyangira Cinemas
What Is the Film About?
Munna (Harshith Reddy) is a typical wayward boy next door. One day, he sees Amulya (Smeha Manimegalai) and instantly falls in love with her, attracted to her beauty. Munna is ready to go to any extent to show his love for her.
Deewana is all about the problems Munna faces for his love. Does his love eventually succeed is the overall story.
Performances
Harshith Reddy plays a boy-next-door kind of character with a rough-and-tough outlook. He is always at loggerheads with someone, and that mixture of aggressiveness and amateurishness is neatly conveyed.
The actor really gets into character in the last half an hour, delivering heavy emotions. The pre-climax and climax are especially good in this regard. Looking at his short career, Deewana is for sure the best act he has come up with.
Smeha Manimegalai also fits the role perfectly. There is beauty and emotion in the part, and she comfortably pulls off those. The character is unusual and brings a different emotion into play, but she also does well as an actor and doesn’t rely solely on the predicament.
Analysis
Sreekanth Sangishetty writes and directs Deewana. It is an emotional coming-of-age drama plus a romantic melodrama.
Deewana struggles to find a consistent tone initially. Right from the beginning, it oscillates between trying gritty realism, pulling off typical middle-class emotion, and a love story. The result is a patchy feel, and the narrative works only in parts.
Some scenes that work showcase the movie’s potential. It is the love story amidst all this, and the hero’s character does a decent job of holding things together.
Everything feels normal after a point, with unevenness being a big issue. However, the interval throws a surprise and masks the major problems.
Post-intermission, the proceedings feel a little more cohesive, even though the same issues as before remain. It’s the melodrama, whether it’s forced or natural, that does the trick.
There are multiple emotional blocks one after the other during the final hour, and some of them work out well. The father-son one stands out along with the main love track.
The pre-climax scenes featuring the hero and his family, and the way they culminate, deliver the required emotions, even if we see it coming and it’s predictable. Finally, the important climax also passes the test.
The emotions, in the end, become the mainstay point of the movie. Be it related to love or family or friends, things eventually turn out decent by the time it reaches the final moments, despite the hit-and-miss kind of thing.
Overall, Deewana is a typical intense mass love story, but with a twist. It takes a long time to get going and then delivers a few engaging moments. Deewana, in the end, turns out to be a decent watch provided the right expectations are set.
Performances by Other Actors
The friend characters and people in the hero’s locality are prominent supporting roles. While the hero is the all-important guy, the rest too get a scene or two to shine through the narrative.
Naresh and Jhanvi, as parents, are good, and so are the two playing the hero’s friends. Swapna (heroine’s friend) gets nice little emotional moments towards the end.
Music and Other Departments?
Eswar Chand provides the music. The songs sound nice, though not all are memorable. The background score is better and effectively conveys the emotions. The cinematography is alright. The editing could have been better. The proceedings feel chaotic most of the time. The writing is par for the course.
Highlights?
Last Half An Hour
Performances
Few Emotional Moments
Drawbacks?
Chaotic Beginning
Uneven Tone
Feels lengthy
Predictable Emotional Beats
Did I Enjoy It?
Yes, mainly during the second half, when expectations are properly set after the interval.
Will You Recommend It?
Yes, if one doesn’t mind the overly melodramatic content, whether it’s genuine or routine.
Deewana Movie Reviewed by Kalyan
