Sree Vishnu’s Gaali Sampath Movie Review – A Subpar tale of two halves

Successful director Anil Ravipudi penned the story and provided directorial assistance for Gaali Sampath which stars Rajendra Prasad and Sree Vishnu in the lead roles. Anish Krishna directed the film and it was promoted as a suspense drama with a comical touch. Let us what it has to offer.

Story:

Sampath (Rajendra Prasad) loses the ability to speak as his vocals chords are seriously damaged following a fatal accident. He makes “Fi fi” sound while speaking and hugs villagers name him Gaali Sampath. However, he doesn’t give up on his dream to become an actor and his never-ending efforts land his son Suri(Sree Vishnu) in trouble more often than not. After Siri’s love marriage gets cancelled due to a mistake by Sampath, the duo part ways. One day, Sampat falls into a trench behind his house and owing to his underlying problem he can’t shout for help. How does he come out of the trench? The answer to this question forms the plot of the film.

What about on screen performances?

Veteran actor Rajendra Prasad’s performance in Gaali Sampath will go down as one of his finest works in recent times. His body language, mannerisms, “fi fi” dialect, and energy breathe life into the role. His monologue during the interval block is a highlight of the film. Sree Vishnu plays a responsible son in the film and he delivers a matured performance. The emotional scenes between Rajendra Prasad and Sree Vishnu in the interval block came out well. Satya’s comedy is good. The rest of the star cast do what is expected of them.

What about off-screen talents?

Gaali Sampath has a good premise as it showcases the struggles of an aged person falling in a trench with the liability of not being able to shout for help. However, the screenplay and narration are outdated. The film looks like a medley of famous comedy scenes from other Telugu films. Moreover, the lack of proper character establishment results in zero emotional connect which is a big no-no for a story like this. Anil Ravipudi’s screenplay is neither entertaining nor emotionally touching. Anish Krishna struggles to present his story in an engaging manner.

Sai Sriram’s cinematography set a thriller tome for the film and he is to be appreciated for his good work. Atchu Rajamani’s songs are decent but the real standout is his background score. He adds a whole new layer to the film with his excellent soundtrack. Editing should have been better.

What’s Hot?

Rajendra Prasad’s praise-worthy performance
Satya’s comedy
Illogical but reasonably engaging first half
Background music
Story and premise

What’s Not?

Weak flashback episode
Routine and outdated screenplay
Bland narration
Emotional connect goes missing
Second half

Verdict:

Anil Ravipudi is known for making commercial films and he explored a new territory with Gaali Sampath, content-driven film and his expedition is not a smooth one. He fails to work his magic with the suspense drama. The film is powered by an excellent performance from Rajendra Prasad but it fails to hold the attention of the viewers, owing to the bland narration. The audiences never really connect with the characters and that works against the cause. The concept is good but the execution not quite.

Watch or Not?: The first half is watchable but the second half not quite.

TeluguBulletin.com Rating: 2.5/5