BOTTOM LINE
Shankar Loses the Game
RATING
2.25/5
CENSOR
2h 45m – UA
What Is the Film About?
The story of Game Changer revolves around Ram Nandan (Ram Charan), an angry young man. It traces his journey of transformation into a responsible IAS officer. In the process of convincing his girlfriend, he evolves into a dedicated public servant. Later, he takes on a corrupt politician like Bobbili Mopidevi (S. J. Suryah), who aims to become the CM of the state. The narrative highlights how Ram strives to bring about change in society. This is the high-level premise of Game Changer.
Performances
Ram Charan carries the film throughout and portrays multiple looks, though some are a mixed bag with room for improvement. Starting with his appearance as an IAS officer, it’s just about alright. He sports glasses and a lean, professional, formal look, which is adequate but lacks impact. While there are no major complaints about his performance, both his body language and acting feel just sufficient. The lack of impact is not just due to his performance but also stems from the way his character is written. It doesn’t come across as strong or impactful enough to elevate the story or provide the audience with a sense of excitement.
His angry young man look, on the other hand, is visually impressive. Ram Charan looks cool with his light beard, and the styling is excellent. However, the anger management aspects and the character’s presentation are fairly ordinary. There’s nothing particularly new or distinctive about the characterization, making it feel ordinary despite his good appearance.
As for his emotional character, Appanna, the writing is decent, and Ram Charan delivers a nice performance. In this role, the performance and character design complement each other well. Although the segment lasts only about 20 minutes, it is satisfactory in terms of both acting and writing.
Overall, Ram Charan’s performance in this film won’t rank among his best, but it isn’t disappointing either. He puts in a good effort, particularly in Appanna role and the dance sequences. However, due to the average quality of the songs by Thaman, the dances don’t leave a memorable impression. While his effort is evident, the material doesn’t fully capitalize on his capabilities.
Kiara Advani plays the female lead and looks stunning in every scene. Her styling and appearance add a significant dose of glamour to the screen, making her presence visually appealing. However, in terms of her character, there isn’t much emotional depth or substance. Her love track with Charan is extremely routine and lacks moments that would leave an impact on the audience after leaving the theatre.
S.J. Surya plays the main villain, a deeply corrupt politician in Game Changer. However, Shankar falls short in providing strong writing or presentation for his character. Despite this, S.J. Surya delivers his best performance with his energy and screen presence adding significant value to the film. Even with the routine scenes and proceedings, he manages to leave an impact as an actor.
Analysis
Game Changer is directed by Shankar, known for his signature style in Indian cinema, particularly with political dramas. This time, he returns with a predictable and straightforward story in his comfort zone. However, the script desperately needs refreshing to make it both engaging and convincing. Given that he is working with a political subject, it falls short, as real-life politics are far more entertaining and complex. A basic and straightforward political narrative simply isn’t enough, and that’s where Shankar falters with Game Changer.
The plot itself is quite simple and mundane. The film begins with Srikanth kicking off the story in an intriguing and intense political setting. However, what follows is a predictable template—a hero introduction fight, a hero intro song, and a family scene. This formulaic opening raises early doubts about whether Shankar is genuinely attempting to deliver a strong political drama.
To freshen up the narrative, Shankar decided to present Ram Charan in multiple age groups and different looks. However, once again, he fails to bring a fresh touch or perspective to the story. Take, for example, the younger Ram Charan. He looks great, but that’s the only positive aspect. The love track is completely routine and outdated. It’s strange that he chose to make the character short-tempered and struggling with anger issues. Watching this, one immediately recalls characters like Arjun Reddy. It is practically impossible to match or create that same intensity using the anger angle unless the ideas are really fresh.
Forget about matching the best anger roles performed by others—what Shankar misses terribly is the lack of real freshness in the character and the love track. It feels utterly routine and outdated.
One would expect a Shankar Mark political setup, but while he attempts something, the political environment within the party and the conflicts are very basic. There’s nothing strong enough to drive the story toward an emotional high. What we get is a greedy, power-hungry politician, Surya, who is loud—but beyond that, it’s unclear what makes Shankar believe this political drama will be a big success. Forget about the overall story—even the scenes that should create a strong impact fail to do so.
For example, when Anjali takes the stage for a confrontation scene with the Chief Minister, Ram Charan slaps the Minister in front of a massive political crowd. However, the scene feels incredibly dull and lackluster. This highlights how Shankar has lost his touch with political subjects. The political drama lacks depth, and the writing is as ordinary as it gets.
The interval, despite being illogical—especially the sudden announcement of a Chief Minister—does create interest for the second half. Overall, the presence of a star like Ram Charan, along with energetic S.J. Surya, helps make the first half watchable. Despite unimpressive writing and drama, the first half remains a passable watch.
The second half begins with the emotional Appanna character. Although it’s not entirely a refreshing block, there’s a sincere effort to bring an emotional angle, and it works to some extent due to decent performances from Ram Charan and the intent behind it. The 20-minute Appanna block adds value to the film. However, once the flashback is over, the plot becomes utterly predictable with routine ideas, such as the IAS suddenly turning into the election commissioner to counter S.J. Surya’s character. Shankar introduces ideas like 2,000 IAS officers writing letters to revoke Ram Charan’s suspension. This kind of writing seems more fitting for a junior writer, not a vintage director like Shankar, who is known for memorable political dramas.
There are some relatable scenes, like the impact of vote-buying and how people ruin their lives by accepting cash for votes, but the real issue is how Ram confronts and tries to stop S.J. Surya. The tit-for-tat techniques used by the lead character are utterly ordinary. For example, a powerful CM candidate facing trouble over minor government expenses and the hero issuing fines. These ideas are so basic they’re almost laughable, and they don’t work in a political narrative these days.
One example of this is when Ram Charan sits with a group of villagers and suggests they ask for 20,000 instead of 5,000 per vote to counter S.J. Surya. These kinds of simplistic ideas, used to show the lead character’s strategy against S.J. Surya, demonstrate the weak writing quality. As the second half progresses, the film becomes more routine and unconvincing. The root of the problem lies in the lack of quality writing. The ideas Shankar relies on are too basic, and the presentation lacks a high-energy action sequence that could bring excitement.
The storyline by Karthik Subbaraj is as outdated as it gets, leaving one to wonder why a director like Shankar, known for his strength in social subjects, was tempted by a story like this from another director.
Overall, Game Changer is far from being a game changer for Shankar. It pales in comparison to his past political and social subjects, and the outcome is nowhere near his best work. While it’s not fair to compare this to his earlier successful social dramas, if you’re looking for a strictly passable watch for the festive season, go ahead—but keep your expectations in check.
Performances by Others Actors
Game Changer features a boatload of supporting cast members, though only a few play key roles in the story. Among them, Anjali delivers a decent performance despite her brief role. Her makeup comes as a surprise, and for the age-specific role she plays, she does what is required.
However, senior actor Jayaram, alongside S. J. Suryah, is completely wasted. Despite being immensely talented, Jayaram is relegated to an odd comic role that lacks any real impact. Others, like Samuthirakani and Naveen Chandra are just adequate in their brief appearances.
Vennela Kishore’s appearance in a single block feels cringeworthy, while Sunil has a longer role. Though his comedy isn’t particularly entertaining, it isn’t overly bothersome either.
Srikanth surprises with his role, delivering a good performance supported by impressive makeup and well-utilized screen time.
The film also features numerous other supporting actors, including Brahmanandam, Raghu Babu, Priyadarshi, Comedian Sathya, Viva Harsha, Sudarshan, and 30 Years Prithvi. Unfortunately, most of them have underwhelming roles with little significance to the story, leaving their presence in the film feeling unnecessary.
Music and Other Departments?
Thaman, who disappointed outright with his audio for Game Changer, compensates with his background score. The songs for a pan-India film like Game Changer are outright underwhelming. Not a single track works at the level it needs to, either audio-wise or visually. Even though Shankar attempts to add grandeur, the songs fail to stand out or make any significant impact on the film. However, Thaman’s background score is more than decent throughout the movie and significantly enhances the overall experience.
The cinematography by Tirru is good, but it doesn’t reach the level of Shankar’s usual social dramas, which are known for their unique camera angles and distinct presentation, especially in political and social subjects we have seen. That signature Shankar touch is missing here. Nevertheless, Tirru’s work is solid, and the film looks visually appealing.
Shameer Muhammed and Antony Rubens are credited with the movie’s editing. They have done a good job in keeping the narrative racy. The cuts are razor sharp and there is not much lag even though so much is happening and feels over the top. It’s also a minus in that emotions hardly register simultaneously due to the quicker pace. The action design by choreographers Anbariv is far from satisfactory; at no point do the sequences feel on the level of a pan-India film.
Dialogues by Sai Madhav Burra occasionally make an impact but overall miss the mark. There is limited VFX work in the film, but the VFX in the “Dhop” song is done nicely under the supervision of Visual Effects Supervisor Srinivas Mohan.
Production-wise, Dil Raju’s Sri Venkateswara Creations banner supports Shankar’s vision. The production values align well with the scale and background of the film, leaving nothing to complain.
Highlights?
Film looks visually good
Appanna’s character
Thaman’s BGM
Drawbacks?
Writing is too basic for a political drama
No Shankar touch in a social subject
No emotional or action-packed moments
Follows an outdated, routine formula
Did I Enjoy It?
Not so much.
Will You Recommend It?
Yes, but know what to expect. It’s not Shankar’s usual strong political drama. If you’re okay with a not-strong, festive watch, then go for it.
Game Changer Movie Review by M9
Final Report:
In terms of political drama and writing, Shankar delivers the bare minimum, whether it’s the conflicts or solutions. Watch it for Charan and SJ Suryah this festive season, but don’t expect much from Shankar beyond a passable narrative and routine proceedings. Thaman’s BGM elevates the film overall. Stay tuned for the detailed Game Changer review and rating.
First Half Report:
The first half of Game Changer is alright, with no depth in the political drama or a strong conflict in the political setup. The routine love story makes it passable. The interval twist may seem illogical, but it creates scope for an interesting second half. The film is visually appealing.
— Dhop song has trendy dance choreography and a blend of VFX. Charan’s slick dance moves are enjoyable.
— Game Changer show kicked off with Srikanth establishing the political drama, followed by Ram Charan’s entrance in a mass Lungi look, an action scene, and the song Raa Macha. Stay tuned for the first half report.
Update:
Cinemark and Regal locations have reported a slight delay in Game Changer’s first premieres, pushing them back by 30 minutes. Further details are awaited.
Stay tuned for Game Changer Movie Review, USA Premiere Report, Talk.
Director Shankar returns to his strong forte of the social genre with Game Changer, marking the first big star’s film of 2025. It is also the first pan-India film from the Telugu industry, with Dil Raju credited for carrying the production over three years. Fans are hoping for a strong comeback from Director Shankar.
Cast: Ram Charan, Kiara Advani, Anjali, Samuthirakani, S J Surya, Srikanth, Sunil, Jayaram, Naveen Chandra, Vennala Kishore, Rajeev Kanakala, Brahmanandam and others.
Director – S. Shankar
Producers – Raju, Shirish, Zee Studios
Tamil Producers: SVC – Adityaram
Writer – Vivek
Story Line – Karthik Subbaraj
Co-Producer – Harshith
DOP – S Thirunavukkarasu
Music – Thaman S
Dialogues – Sai Madhav Burra (Telugu), Vivek (Tamil), Rajendra Sapre (Hindi)
Editor – Shameer Muhammed, Antony Ruben
U.S. Distributor: Shloka Entertainments
