Popular Tamil film director S. Shankar’s latest movie Game Changer is a political action movie that depicts the clash between a corrupt chief minister and a district collector in Andhra Pradesh.
However, the subject of the much-anticipated movie may be a little too familiar for Tamil audiences.
The movie opens with Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Bobbili Satyamurthy suffering a heart attack and being rushed to the hospital. His power-hungry adopted sons, Bobbili Mopi Devi (SJ Suryah) and Bobbili Munimanickyam (Jayaram), are eagerly waiting to announce his death as they are eyeing his post.
Next, protagonist Ram Nandhan (Ram Charan), a policeman-turned-bureaucrat on his way to his posting at Vishakhapatnam, is introduced to viewers in a dramatic fight scene.
At his new office, Ram takes corrupt businessmen to task for violating rules. Later, there is a flashback involving his former girlfriend Deepika (Kiara Advani), whom he has not talked to for years.
In the second half of the movie, Satyamurthy dies and, in his will (a video recording), appoints Ram as the next chief minister, surprising everyone, including his own sons.
In a flashback, Ram’s biological father, a villager named Subbanna (also known as Appanna), is shown forming a political party committed to “no money politics”.
But due to Subbanna’s stuttering, Satyamurthy speaks on the former’s behalf and becomes the candidate for chief
minister instead.
Subsequently, Subbanna is betrayed and murdered while his wife and young son escape.
Back to the present, Mopi uses “politricks” (politics and tricks) to steal Ram’s chief minister post.
Ram instead is made chief electoral officer for the state election and uses his in-depth knowledge of rules and regulations to try to disqualify the two brothers from standing for election.
Positives
The best performances came from both Ram and Surya.
The former effortlessly tackled action, comedy and dancing scenes, showcasing his versatility. But what will be memorable to viewers is his acting as village leader Subbanna, who struggles to speak
without stuttering.
Ram’s portrayal of the character’s pain, struggle and embarrassment was deeply moving – it was his best performance in the movie by far.
Suryah impressed as Mopi, a power-crazy, greedy politician who will stop at nothing to achieve his goals. His dialogue delivery livened up the second half of the movie.
Jayaram also did a good job. Playing a selfish, corrupt politician who constantly makes sarcastic remarks, his comedic skills were absolutely on point for the role.
Anjali gave a noteworthy performance as Parvathy, Subbanna’s wife and Ram’s mother. Srikanth did well as the guilt-conscious chief minister Satyamurthy. Kiara, as Ram’s love interest Deepika, delighted in a brief appearance, but Samuthirakanni’s role was just too small for his talent.
Grand production
Music composer S. Thaman’s songs were riveting, the cinematography and visuals were stunning.
Apart from the picturesque backdrop, the enormous sets for the song Dhop and dancers from various cultures for the song Raa Macha Raa were just splendid.
The song Lyraanna did not make the final cut, but it was eventually included in the movie on Pongal this year due to demand from fans.
Disappointments
Given the director’s numerous hits, perhaps expectations were just too high.
The story is a bit of a letdown. The plot of an ordinary man confronting corrupt ministers is quite similar to that of Shankar’s previous movies such as Mudhalvan, Gentleman and Indian.
Furthermore, the flow of the story is somewhat disjointed with constant scene jumps. The first half of the movie felt
too rushed.
The movie also made room for too many comedic characters.
Comedic actors Sunil, Vennela Kishore and Brahmanandam could have been cut out without the movie losing much. We felt only Jayaram’s comedy seems relevant to the storyline.
The actors should have spoken in Tamil rather than Telugu with a Tamil dub. Besides that, the ending is predictable.
Ultimately entertaining
The best thing about the movie was it highlighted the powers of a district collector and chief electoral officer that are
often overlooked.
Audiences will walk away thinking about the neglect of law by those in power, while also being mesmerised by the
high-quality production.
The grand visuals, thrilling action scenes involving Ram and emotional performances are all reasons to watch this film, despite
its shortcomings.
