Vijay and Samantha starrer Telugu film "Police" aka "Policeodu," which was released in theatres on April 15, has received mixed reviews and average ratings from critics.
"Police" is the dubbed version of director Atlee Kumar-written Tamil film "Theri," which is an action entertainer. The movie is about Joseph ( Vijay), who is leading a happy life with his daughter Nivedita (Nainika). Nivedita's school teacher Yami (Emi Jackson) falls in love with him and starts researching about him after seeing his aggression. She finds out that he is an honest police office named Vijay.
The critics say "Police" is a routine revenge drama and it deals with predictable story, which lacks interesting twists. Vijay has delivered a wonderful performance and the movie is his show all the way. Samantha, Amy Jackson and Nainika have done good jobs and their chemistry with Vijay is a treat to watch on screen.
G V Prakash Kumar-composed songs are not up to the mark, but his background score helps the director elevate several sentimental scenes in the film. George C. Williams' cinematography and well choreographed action sequences are other highlights in the technical front. The movie has been rated 2.25 out of 5 stars.
We bring you some critics' verdict and ratings for the movie. Continue to see them in the "Police" review roundup:
A lot lies on Vijay's shoulders to pull off this film. He's been a part of better mass/cop films. There's a throwaway reference to one of his previous hits, Thuppaki. Police doesn't have the smartness of Thuppaki. The graphic description of the plight of the rape victim looks out of place for a film given a clean U certificate. Watch Police if you're curious to see a slickly shot Tamil-style cop masala flick.
Even though Police is a hugely predictable film from the word go, elements like Vijay's performance, Samantha's lovable character and some commercial thrills will keep you interested in the proceedings. Vijay's fans would have loved his role in Tamil but for the Telugu audience, this film is just a passable masala entertainer.
Director wasted a lot of time on buildup shots and hero elevations that he had to fast forward the plot during the final scenes. This film may appeal to Vijay fans as the director has penned few scenes exclusively for them. There is nothing special about the film except for adorable baby Nainika's performance.
Director Atli Kumar failed to show the movie differently. Second half of the movie goes predictable as villain Venkat Reddy's revenge scenes are revealed in first half. Atli kumar seems concentrated only on screen presence of Vijay than story. It is a quite regular story that police officer loses his family due to villain, takes revenge on them. There is nothing new in the story.
This movie begins with the showcase scene of Joseph as a innocent and a guy who don't encourage violence and his love for his daughter Nivi. Screenplay is good and engages audience but songs with non-sync lyrics act as hindrances. When the original character of Joseph is revealed movie picks momentum and heroism starts. It ends on a very interesting way which is enough for audience to create their own stories for second half. Second half starts with a slow pace. Atlee failed to handle this half. Atlee, who did a fantastic job as director with his debut film "Raja Rani" did an average job in handling a big star in this revenge action drama. To sum up, Policeodu is a mass police drama.
