1111111Game
Changer
is
underwhelming
in
the
sense
that
you
see
the
potential
being
squandered
away
by
timid
filmmaking,
observes
Arjun
Menon.
Shankar’s
films
don’t
aspire
for
scale,
they
demand
it.
After
the
disastrously
misjudged
debacle
that
was
Indian
2,
the
director
seems
to
have
gotten
hold
of
material
that
can
accommodate
‘excess’
as
an
aesthetic
as
opposed
to
a
crutch.
Game
Changer,
featuring
Ram
Charan,
sees
him
playing
two
characters
united
by
a
special
bond,
separated
by
time.
Game
Changer
is
a
relatively
straightforward
political
drama
that
is
given
the
over-the-top
Shankar
treatment,
devoid
of
the
personality
of
his
much
more
effective
counterparts
in
his
filmography
like,
Gentleman
(1993)
and
Mudhalvan
(1999).
The
film
bears
an
uncanny
resemblance
to
the
basic
structure
of
Mudhalvan,
featuring
a
game
of
one
upmanship
between
a
powerful
politician
and
a
morally
upright
citizen.
However,
the
overwritten,
wrought
nature
of
the
screenplay,
(based
on
a
story
by
Karthik
Subbaraj)
doesn’t
allow
for
any
of
the
events
to
register,
and
become
a
colourful
reel
made
by
a
filmmaker
still
stuck
in
his
past
glory.
Game
Changer
is
closer
to
the
typical
Shankar
template
film
we
have
had
in
a
long
time.
In
between
all
the
glossy,
glitz
and
grandeur
of
his
recent
films,
the
bloated
exterior’s
gave
little
scope
for
the
story
to
breathe.
Bloated
doesn’t
even
begin
to
explain
this
tentpole
outing
that
follows
a
recently
posted
IAS
officer
taking
on
the
son
of
the
outgoing
chief
minster
of
Andhra
Pradesh.
Ram
(Ram
Charan)
is
a
typical
Shankar
protagonist,
a
man
weighed
down
by
his
idealism.
We
get
the
usual
sermonising,
threats
and
challenges
dolled
out
by
the
bureaucrat
hero
towards
the
corrupt
industrialist.
Like
in
Indian
2,
Shankar’s
usual
penchant
for
a
case-to-case
demonstration
of
each
bad
guy
getting
his
comeuppance
continues
here
and
you
can
sense
his
old
tricks
being
worn
out
by
constant
repetition
and
uninspired
reiteration.
The
film
is
underwhelming
in
the
sense
that
you
see
the
potential
being
squandered
away
by
timid
filmmaking.
Scenes
don’t
end
as
much
get
carried
over
onto
the
next,
and
you
can
sense
the
intriguing
ideas
on
paper
lost
in
the
execution.
Ram
is
pitted
against
the
system
and
he
has
to
take
on
menacingly
caricaturish
Bobbili
Mopidevi
(S
J
Suryah)
and
his
incompetent
elder
brother
Ramachandra
Reddy
(Jayaram),
in
what
is
essentially
a
wasted
comic
relief
side
player
part.
Kiara
Advani
is
sidelined
and
gets
a
nothingburger
part
that
is
unintentionally
hilarious,
to
no
fault
of
the
actress.
It’s
a
testament
to
the
terrible
one
note
writing
on
display.
Thiru
and
Shankar
overindulge
with
the
use
of
the
sliding
Mocobot
camera
movement
and
the
excessive
use
makes
it
feel
less
efficient.
Thaman’s
songs
have
a
experimental,
percussion-based
folk
sounding
to
it
that
adds
some
flavour.
Game
Changer
is
a
more
sensible
outing
than
the
abysmal
Indian
2
but
even
I
am
not
sure
if
that
just
demonstrates
the
late
career
slump
faced
by
Shankar,
one
of
our
most
popular
mainstream
filmmakers.
Game
Changer,
like
many
of
his
recent
outputs,
would
have
worked
wonders
in
a
pre-COVID
movie
climate
but
the
stale,
self
referential
gimmick
has
overstayed
its
welcome.
In
between
the
messy
pacing,
abrupt
songs
and
unfunny
jokes,
the
intermission
scene
had
me
intrigued.
A
brief
moment
revived
the
almost
passive
film
into
a
visceral
experience
and
I
wanted
to
punch
myself
for
not
giving
myself
over
to
the
whims
of
a
filmmaker
who
has
meant
a
great
deal
to
me
in
the
past.
The
set
piece
involving
Ram
being
tied
to
a
police
vehicle
and
fighting
off
ruffians,
with
an
unexpected
twist
suggested
the
possibility
for
a
return
to
form
for
the
director,
somehow
grasping
at
his
former
glory.
But
post
interval,
the
sluggish
dialoguebaazi
and
swirling
camerawork
resumes
and
the
film
maintains
the
same
stubborn
lowkey
randomness.
The
way
the
odd
gag
adjacent
physicality
of
Sunil’s
‘Side
Sathyam’
schtick
was
played
out
had
me
cringing
in
my
seat.
Even
in
his
most
wandering,
opaque
screenplay,
Shankar
always
used
to
be
cognisant
of
the
threshold
of
some
of
the
outdated
jokes.
Here,
we
see
Sunil
being
embarrassingly
asked
to
do
a
particular
thing
that
would
go
down
as
one
of
most
outlandish
decisions
ever
in
Shankar’s
film
career.
Game
Changer
mistakes
opulence
for
scale,
extravagant
budget
for
scope,
and
broad
social
commentary
for
political
insight.
The
film
is
a
train
wreck,
saved
to
an
extent
by
Ram
Charan’s
commitment.
Even
he
is
unable
to
do
much
with
the
wafer-thin
drama
and
is
left
to
wander
on
screen
with
no
impact.
A
labour
leader
with
a
stuttering
problem
hiring
a
speaker
for
his
party
meetings,
a
mysterious
mother
figure
still
filling
out
rooms
with
petitions
addressed
to
the
chief
minister
as
an
aftermath
of
a
past
tragedy,
and
many
more
interesting
ideas
are
thrown
in
with
genuine
conviction.
But
thanks
to
the
faulty
writing,
none
of
them
come
together.
Game
Changer
Review
Rediff
Rating:
