Operation Fails
OUR RATING
1.75/5
CENSOR
‘U/A’Certified, 2 hrs 07 mins
Arjun Pandit (Aadi) is a military officer who is responsible for capturing of dreaded terrorist Ghazi Baba. One of his followers Farooq (Manoj Nandam) plans to get him out. They plan to kidnap a minister’s daughter and get out Ghazi in return. How Arjun thwarts this plan is what the movie is all about. As one might have guessed, the mission undertaken is named Operation Goldfish.
How Is Aadi’s Performance?
Aadi plays a different character as a military officer for the first time. It is a welcome change as he has been playing the usual lover roles with comedy pretty regularly. His physical fitness and body language are alright.
Aadi is seen playing a serious role out and out with no comic deviation. The only break comes in the form of action. He has done a decent job but still fails to make an impact due to the weak story and clichéd moments within a thriller.
Saikiran Adivi has chosen a different subject related to an army backdrop. There is a subplot involving college episodes that takes him back to Kerintha days.
The basic concept of Operation Goldfish involving terrorism angle narrated in a slick and thrilling manner is the more visible ‘new’ genre in Telugu cinema these days. Makers are trying to stick to a single style and provide a clean, thrilling narrative with an edge of the seat moments.
Operation Goldfish ticks all the boxes, only it fails at every turn in providing that edge of the seat riveting entertainment. The direction has a lot to blame here and the story, which is as predictable as they come. The subplot involving the collage bunch and their love stories further kill the effort.
The movie begins on a decent note even if a lot predictable. However, the interest begins to wane as soon as the subplot involving the four youngsters starts. The whole track is banal and uninteresting from the start to the end. It gets interesting only when the core plot takes precedence. We can see that at the interval block.
The second-half builds on that interest initially, but it loses the track with the love story and political and family drama thrown in. All three tracks lack surprise and go through the motions with zero thrills. The way they all converge is shabbily done. In between, there is a jingoistic war of words going on between terrorist and army chief.
It all comes across as tacky and cartoonish by the time we reach the end. The proceedings also become a full-fledged commercial fare in a typical masala sense with hero becoming the one-man-army taking on the terrorist(s).
On the whole, Operation Goldfish is a predictable thriller genre with zero thrills. It’s as good as eating a Biryani with no salt and spice. If you have a taste for it, give it a try, otherwise, just forget it.
There is no romantic interest for the lead. But, there are two sets of pairs. Parvatheesam, Sasha Chettri, Karthik Raju, and Nithya Naresh play those parts. Among them, easily Parvatheesam stands out with his comedy. But, there is nothing given to them otherwise. Their tracks are poorly written and developed. Manoj Nandan looks suitable for the part but plays it routinely. Krishnudu gets the most thankless role for an actor in a long time. Rao Ramesh has a decent bit-part but is ultimately forgettable.
Sricharan Pakala, who has become a go-to composer for thrillers, delivers again. He tries his best to keep the narrative alive with his pulsating score, but the dullness never leaves the proceedings. The cinematography is superb in parts, considering the low-budget. However, at times, there is a short film vibe as well. The writing by Abburi Ravi is not up to his standards. He has been writing too many films in a similar space, and we can feel the fatigue. There are a couple of excellent dialogues, though, like one involving ‘Badha and Bhayam’.
Background Score
Interval
Aadi
Short Length
Drawbacks?
Predictable Story
Weak Subplot
Climax
Reducing the collage story and love triangle clichés and integrating them into the main plot sooner would be one way. The other would be the Main Hoon Naa route, but then the hero is too young for that sort of story. What way it is, avoiding or subverting the clichés is the point.
Did I Enjoy It?
Very few parts
Will You Recommend It?
No
Review by Siddartha Toleti
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