Alluri Review: Neither Alluring Nor Boring

Movie: Alluri
Rating: 2.25/5
Banner:
Lucky Media
Cast: Sree Vishnu, Kayadu Lohar, Tanikella Bharani, Suman, Raja Ravindra, Prudhvi Raj, Ravi Varma, Madhusudhan Rao, Jaya Vani, and others
Music: Harshavardhan Rameshwar
Cinematography: Raj Thota
Editor: Dharmendra Kakarala
Art Director: Vithal Kosanam
Fights: Ram Krishan
Director: Pradeep Varma
Producer: Bekkem Venu Gopal
Release Date: Sep 23, 2022

Until now, Sree Vishnu has been doing content-based movies and playing boy-next-door roles. He has switched gears and acted in a cop story. Has the khaki uniform suited well?

Let’s find out... 

Story:
Alluri Sita Ramaraju (Sree Vishnu) is an uptight police officer. He works as an SI in Vizag. He doesn’t take bribes.

He goes by the rule book. After getting a name for his sincere efforts as a police officer in and around Vizag, one of his senior officers (Suman) asks him to come to Hyderabad and help him nab terrorists in the old city. 

Ramaraju plans a different strategy in Hyderabad. Will he succeed in his new mission?

Artistes’ Performances:
Sree Vishnu, in his first attempt, in the role of a police officer is sincere in his effort. Though he lacks physicality, he makes it up with his acting.

New heroine Kayadu Lohar appears only for songs. Tanikella Bharani and Suman do justice to their roles.

Technical Excellence:
The cinematography stands out among technicians’ work. The top-angle shots and wide frames provide a certain richness. Music is forgettable. The artwork is sufficient. 

Highlights:
Pre-Interval sequence
Sree Vishnu

Drawback:
Predictable narration
Regular police sequences
Second half

Analysis
All police-themed stories, by and large, look the same. Only actors who portray them look different. Sree Vishnu, who has been playing soft roles, has gone for an image change with this cop drama, Alluri.

In all his interviews, he said that the story is unique and he felt this film needed to be reached a wider audience. What did he see in this story that he felt so compelling? Is it because of the chilling climax sequence? 

From Sai Kumar’s “Police Story” to Suriya’s “Singham/Yamudu”, many such police dramas have partially or fully dealt with the same themes that we get to see in “Alluri”.

The major highlight of this film is the pre-interval sequence where the protagonist serves instant justice. Other than that the film is hardly different from cop dramas.

Forget about freshness, director Pradeep Varma's treatment is regular. The KGF style of narration (one person asking what happened to the hero and slowly the story getting unfolded) has not added much impact either.

The film presents Sree Vishnu displaying his honest ways, refusing bribes and reforming Naxalites with his attitude, bashing college rowdies, etc.

The interval bang, however, raises the curiosity. The film again changes its tracks and tone and place. The drama shifts from Vizag to Hyderabad. The second half of the film is too formulaic. 

On the whole, “Alluri” looks different in Sree Vishnu’s filmography, but for the audiences, it is a familiar cop drama with few redeeming points.

Bottom line: Routine Police Story