BOTTOM LINE
Violence High, Substance Low
RATING
1.75/5
Director: Ravi Babu
Story, Screenplay: Ravi Babu, Satyanand
Cast: Ravi Babu, Tejal Vikyathi, Ronson Vincent, Tanish, Siddha Venkatesh, Charan Madhavneni, Inaya Sultana, Pranavi Manukonda, Meena Vasu, Mirchi Hemanth, Pragath Jadhav
Music Director: Rajesh S S
DOP: Charan Madhavaneni
Editor: Rithvik Thammareddy
Producer: Ravi Babu, Daggubati Suresh Babu
Presented By: Suresh Productions
Production Company: Flying Frogs Production
What Is the Film About?
Kanakaraju wants to become the Chief Minister at any cost and kills the existing CM to initiate that process. Meanwhile, Vishnu runs a security cam business and has a lovely wife and kid, Teju.
What happens when Teju’s parents are killed? Who is Rudra, and why does he come to Teju’s rescue? How is Kanakaraju connected to everyone? The movie’s basic story is what happens to these people by the end.
Performances
Ravi Babu plays a full-length hero role after a long time under his direction in Razor. It’s a tailor-made part for him, and it doesn’t come as a surprise that he picked himself.
Ravi Babu is usually seen playing wacky, eccentric roles, be it as a villain or a supporting character. There is nothing of that sort here. It is a plain and straightforward hero role.
As a hero, Ravi Babu uses his physicality to the best of his ability. There is a lot of action in the movie, and his personality makes it believable. On the emotional and dramatic side, there is very little, and he is okay there.
Analysis
Ravi Babu writes and directs Razor. It is a direct and indirect amalgamation of many action-thriller movies from East and West, from the latest to the oldest.
What we have here is a protagonist on a mission (usually to save someone or himself) when the entire system is against him. He is on the run and faces several escalating hurdles.
The director doesn’t waste time and gets to the point immediately. We have the wannabe CM and his world colliding with the world of an ordinary guy, Vishnu. The introduction of the hero and his connection to all these are established without any difficulty or confusion.
Once the setup is done, it’s all about the kid, the hero, and the evil forces after them. What we get with them are back-to-action blocks, with fights executed in a raw style.
The lean narrative and the quicker pace of proceedings mean there is hardly any time for emotional connections. Things feel rushed, without any feeling. We only squirm at the gore on display but feel nothing else.
The interval, as it happens, feels more like a pause in action than anything. We know the action will resume after the intermission.
The expectations are given a brief break as we get a flashback for the hero. We know who he is and where he is from. It adds to his character graph, but the events themselves don’t bring any depth. They are predictable and have been seen many times before.
Post the flashback, the action resumes along with the technical mumbo jumbo. The technology is used here to create some tension, but it feels selectively deployed to advance the plot.
Everything leads to the showdown. But, as we have seen the same throughout the narrative, it doesn’t give any high either action-wise or emotionally. It is just another blandly executed fight.
Overall, Razor is an action thriller with absolutely nothing original to offer. Everything feels beaten to death. It is loaded with blood and gore, much of it unnecessary, making it a difficult theatrical watch, especially with its poor production quality.
Performances by Others Actors
Apart from Ravi Babu, the child artist playing Teju is decent. We also have the hero’s gang, who look all nerdy and normal and the villain’s gang, who are beefy and bulky. Apart from these physical attributes, they have nothing remarkable to do.
Music and Other Departments?
An action film like this, with so many action blocks, could have benefited from a more electric score and more dynamic editing. The former is a letdown with its predictable noise. The latter adds to the bland feeling along with the cinematography. The writing is as banal as it comes.
Highlights?
Short Runtime
Drawbacks?
Bland, beaten-to-death narrative
Poor casting
Poor production values
Cheap-looking green screen visuals
Unnecessary violence
Did I Enjoy It?
No
Will You Recommend It?
No
Razor Movie Reviewed by Kalyan, M9 News
