Godfather Movie Review - Telugu (2022)

Movie: Godfather (2022)

Director: Mohan Raja

Production: R. B. Choudary & N. V. Prasad

Cast: Chiranjeevi, Satya Dev, Salmaan Khan, Nayanatara, Murali Sharma & Others

Music: S. S. Thamman

Editor: Marthand K Venkatesh

Cinematography: Nirav Shah

Streaming Platform: Netflix

Release Date: 05/10/22

Rating: U/A

 'A Remake worth watching but with limitations' 

2.5/5

'Godfather' is a Telugu language film starring megastar Chiranjeevi in a leading role which is a remake of Malayalam superhit film 'Lucifer' starring Mohanlal, Prithviraj, Tovino Thomas, Manju Warrier and all other biggies. So, Chiranjeevi brought this film to Telugu audience with yet again a huge cast but with few changes that induce a nativity flavour. So no more delay let's get into the details.

01. How is Godfather different from Lucifer.

First of all, I'll share my opinion. When I initially watched Lucifer I wasn't completely satisfied, despite of the great first half & gripping story, the film lost it's pace eventually & the moto is diluted towards the ending of the film with lot more unnecessary twists, but there was huge problem with the pace of the film, I felt it was a bit slow & lagging. 

But, Godfather too couldn't escape from that bad pace of the original film's influence but the addition of commercial elements made it a bit watchable. I cannot opine it as a great remake but will definitely say that it hasn't spoiled any essence of original as people all over are discussing. The commercial elements definately entertained the Telugu audience. So, no need of the unnecessary fuss. It's no where any kind of insult to the original film. 

02. The cast of Godfather.

I would say that the cast of the film is a blessing itself. Satyadev was at his best, he was waiting for such an opportunity to prove himself. And he uses this golden opportunity to the core, his looks nor performance, can be treated with gold equity. He's damn good. Murali Sharma too gets a great screen space & he's amazing like his usual. Nayanatara is dull & feeble, I don't know why inspite of so many years of her career in acting, she still fails to impress me & that dubbing of Sunitha to Nayanatara is absolutely useless according to me, however it happens in every film of her, but don't know why these two women will never impress me with their acting & voice respectively. 

Sirivennala fame Sarvaddamman gets a crucial role but is unwanted, not a performance that could be talked of. Sunil, Puri Jagannath, Samuthikirani, Divi, Bhrammaji, Anasuya etc also shine in their respective roles. 

Chiranjeevi as Bramha and Qureshi is like an extended cameo role, same happened with Mohanlal also in Lucifer but here I felt Chiranjeevi wasn't too good. He was dull & his energy was somewhat low. I felt he's losing his 90's energy & charm eventually. For the first time felt this from Chiranjeevi's performance. Salmaan Khan as Masoom Bhai in one more extended cameo is yet again another waste, he was there, because he was there. The bromance between Chiru & Salmaan too couldn't help the film in any way. 

03. For what should we watch Godfather?

Godfather isn't any different from Lucifer, someone who didn't like Lucifer will definitely not like Godfather. Someone who loved Lucifer will feel some void in Godfather or they'll either love Godfather, it's both the ways. 

So, the positives that lie with Godfather is the great score from Thamman, his BGM will literally give chills, he rocked the scores. That fight along with Najabhajara song is an absolute treat for Chiru's fans, his expressive eyes & that rocking BGM, my god- a combination made in heaven. The director made sure that Chiru's fans get atleast one of such goosebumps stuff in the film. The MLA'S scene too is worth watching. And Satyadev, is an absolute treasure in the film. He's the hero in the film, according to me. I though thoroughly enjoyed his performance. The brother sister track between Chiru & Nayanatara too worked well. First half was gripping enough, it had enough guts to manage the audience ' mood. 

04. Drawbacks in Godfather. 

Not one but there are many, 

Firstly the pace as I was talking, the original version too had a problem with pace & this film too cannot rectify that issue. 

The screenplay is somewhat lagging, same issue persists like with the original one.

Editing and cinematography is of medicore quality, the visuals with slow motion in action sequences get in the boredom. 

Salmaan Khan is there just for those action sequences and nothing more, so the drama in the original got compramised here for the sake of commercial elements here. 

Chiranjeevi & Nayanatara were dull and boring, even their expressions weren't proper, so they diluted the story with them being the weekend links in the film. 

Mohan Raja tried hard to manage to restore the essence of original but could only partly do that. 

Loose second half, we just had action sequences to brace on that's it, entire drama got deleted, so the essence and flavours too got compramised.

05. So which one is better? Lucifer or Godfather?

I would say both with limitations and reservations again. Lucifer for the screenplay, gripping story & excellent picking of drama and apart from everything able to manage the screen space of evey artist's role & their scope too was justified. Mohanlal too was a blessing for Lucifer, who could have the guts to point out at the complete actor, he's just great. 

Godfather too was good and entertaining, but in parts only. If not for few countable sequences, BGM & music, Satyadev this film is a waste. The dragged second half tells why people choose to not lift the film to any extent. 

06. How will I recommend it to you.

If you are a fan of Lucifer, this isn't for you. But if you love Chiranjeevi this will work for you in parts. But as a normal cinema lover, this movie is below average, just of mediocre quality, so it's just a one time watch. And rest everything depends on you about how you take the film.