Kuberaa

What if billions of dollars in oil reserves could make or break a nation's future? Kuberaa opens with this tantalizing premise, weaving a web of financial espionage where CBI officers, corrupt businessmen, and shadowy power brokers circle each other like sharks.

For most of its runtime, Sekhar Kammula's thriller keeps you guessing who's playing whom in this high-stakes game of greed and justice. Then comes that ending, and suddenly, all that carefully built tension deflates like a punctured tire.

Nagarjuna delivers a compelling performance as Deepak, a disillusioned CBI officer, showcasing more emotional range than his recent commercial outings. His internal conflict feels authentic and lived-in. Dhanush, in a pivotal role, brings his trademark intensity, though his character arc feels somewhat under-explored compared to his stellar work in recent Tamil films. Jim Sarbh as the ambitious businessman Neeraj Mitra is deliciously menacing, in stark contrast to his Homi Bhabha in Rocket Boys. Rashmika Mandanna, while serviceable, doesn't quite transcend the limitations of her role. Dalip Tahil is wasted in an inconsequential role.

Kammula crafts a visually striking film that tackles corruption and power with admirable ambition. The oil reserve subplot provides genuine intrigue, and the film's first two acts maintain impressive momentum. However, the resolution feels rushed and somewhat predictable, preventing what could have been a truly memorable thriller from reaching its full potential.

Despite its flawed conclusion, Kuberaa succeeds as both entertainment and a window into Telugu cinema's evolving sensibilities.

I had no expectations for Kuberaa because I didn't like Sekhar Kammula's recent movies-the last one I liked was 'Life Is Beautiful' back in 2012.

But to my surprise, I enjoyed Kuberaa. I decided to like the film in the first 30 minutes itseld because it wastes no time and dives straight into the movie's plot and establishes the equation between the antagonist and the two protagonists very clearly.

The first half is really good, with no big issues. The second half is also good because more of the story is revealed here, but it's a bit less interesting since it moves slower, has some clichés before the end, and the ending is just average.

Dhanush is great as usual-no one else could play his character. Nagarjuna is good, but he could be better; I'm not sure if it's his acting or the way his character was written, but something felt off, especially in the second half. Still, I'm glad he's doing roles that fit his age. Jim Sarbh is very good in his part. Rashmika is good too, and you can see she tried hard, especially in the real dumpyard scenes. DSP's music is okay.

Overall, Kuberaa could have been better but I was satisfied and happy that Sekhar Kammula is still in the race and he is not dated yet. Especially I liked how he shot realistic backstories of Deva and Dipya - this added some originality and authenticity to the charecters and the movie.

Each and every Sekhar Kammula's film promises an engaging and beautiful story that takes us into the movie. But that is missing in this movie. The first half is pretty good, and it hypes the movie so that by the interval, everyone will be waiting for some twists and turns and something big happening in the last, but that's not what happens. In the first half, they take us to an extreme point where we feel eager to know what's gonna happen next. The second half is a bit lagging but we will still be waiting for something. Which, in the last, remains untouched.

Only Danush's action is the one that holds us in our seats throughout the movie. He did an outstanding and brilliant job, which not all leading superstars dare to do. Other co-stars like Nagarjuna and Rashmika also did well, but Jim Sarbh, who played the role of antagonist, should be praised for his performance. But the biggest drawback is the climax. Many things that were meant to be revealed in the last were not which leaves the audience in a pool of confusion and doubts. This film is watchable but only once, and if you're someone who enjoys the performances than the plot, it's a big yes for watching it in the theatres; otherwise, you can wait for OTT...

A more preachy movie which has its moments but mostly resembling 80's cringe ... This is period of movie making where messages has to be told subtle with good entertaining elements which can take the message to people though not a new message not ever told..but when you want to tell it make it more entertaining as people are speningd their 3 hrs not to watch BHAGAVATH GEETHA but a movie. Shekar , the director made a cringe out of it. The plot is interesting with some thriller elements ...But climax last 20 minutes is more absurd and pulled the movie... Nagarajuna, the king actor to me, is wasted in an unimpressive role with not much interesting to do as his angle of the movie was also very superlatively shown with no depth... Dhanush was more natural in his acting and casual . Rashmika did her role well but again completely wasted with not much relevance in the context of the movie... Bhagyaraj in an unidentifiable role but again wastwd. Villains were more Hindi speaking and has major lip sync issues so was more irritating than generating interest... Overall a disappointing adventure by an exciting director More suitable OTT watch ..

The film feels fresh and good overall, but it still carries some cliché baggage-especially when it comes to the villains. The hero's character, though, is rare and really interesting. The first half is very good and the second half graph goes down.

It's a long ride-some scenes are fantastic, some drag like a Monday morning, and the rest are just... there. Dialogues feel pretty generic, nothing that sticks.

Dhanush absolutely nails it-can't imagine anyone else in that role. Nagarjuna looks cool and plays a refreshing part; he does a decent job.

It could've been even better if they had swapped Rashmika with Sunaina, she brought real talent to a tiny role, while Rashmika had a better role but didn't quite bring it to life.

Music fits well, cinematography looks great, and the production design is top-class-very natural and detailed. Direction is good too. Shekhar Kammula experiments a bit but still sticks to his usual flavor.

It's a good film-not a must-watch classic, but definitely not a flop either. Had the potential to be great, but missed the mark by a bit. Whether to catch it in theatres, wait for OTT, or skip it-totally your call.