The Birthday Boy Review : A Gripping Narrative Sending You on a Journey of Emotions as the Plot Thickens.
Cast :
Sai Arun, Vikranth Ved, Raja Ashok, Rahul Ch Mani Vaka, And Others.
Crew :
Writer and Director – Whisky
Executive – iBharatth
DOP – Sankirth Raahul
Music Director – Prashanth Srinivas
Production Designer – AR. Vamsi G
Editor – Naresh Adupa
The Birthday Boy is an emotional thriller based on a true story that tries to connect with everyone’s possible nightmares.
Story: Five NRIs living in the US, minding their regular lives, plan a birthday party, which leads to the fateful death of one of them. The laws in the US are stringent and cannot be influenced politically or financially. They do not accept or “understand” the “mistake” of killing someone accidentally. This is where the entire batch of friends and their family come to a collective decision to stand with the boys. Is the death really accidental, or did anything else happen as suggested in the trailer? Why would a friend want to kill a friend? The answers to these questions form the rest of the story.
Innovative Screenplay Techniques
The Birthday Boy is definitely not your typical thriller. The director tried to adapt the screenplay in an innovative way for Telugu audiences. The zoom-in, the pause at this time, the character comes up with some idea or the next step, a plan of action, then a zoom-out. The pause allows the audience to travel with the characters and think about what happens next. It almost feels like they could use the interactive technology to let the audience decide what the characters should do next. Which is implemented in some Hollywood series. This pause, although it may seem like a drag for traditional Telugu movie watchers, was explored in international films. Bringing that into the thriller-serious genre is a welcoming concept.
Dark Humor and Social Commentary
The characters themselves have no idea what to do or what happens next. The dialogues “Evariki cheppochu” and “next em chedham ra,” which come in every scene, actually give off a vibe of dark humour. This dark humour is sensible. It almost doesn’t seem like a comedy. When one can see the irony and the sarcastic delivery, the mission is accomplished. The story is a mirror of some incidents when anything crosses limits. The story incorporates social issues and revenge drama in a thriller to give the audience a satisfactory feel.
Cinematic Challenges and Achievements
Due to the premise of the movie, the entire story happens in one house, which is a huge burden for a first-time filmmaker to keep it gripping throughout the entire narration. That task is successfully achieved by Whisky.
Musical and Visual Craftsmanship
The music by Prashanth Srinivas has depth and purpose in the movie. The background score, which is the most important for a thriller, was handled well. The songs are refreshing, meaningful, and resonating.
Editing and cinematography are exceptionally good.
Acting and Realism
Rajiv Kanakala delivered a standout performance, portraying raw and authentic emotions upon learning about the sudden death of his beloved son. Pramodini Pammi delivered a stellar performance, effectively capturing the depth of her character’s emotional turmoil. Ravi Krishna demonstrated his expertise gained through experience. Everyone played their roles with utmost dedication and loyalty to the story.
In a thriller movie, the most realistic thing the audience connects to is the acting part of the cast. All eyes are on them. The Birthday Boy seems to loosely hold a grip on that part. The actors have a theatre background. One of the differences between theatre and cinema is the acting, melodrama, and drama levels of the acting. Cinema is entirely received as the story that’s unfolding in front of our eyes. Hence, the acting of every character should be as realistic as possible. In The Birthday Boy, that’s a bit blurry. The actors brought in the “theatre” too much. At one point, it wasn’t clear why the actor gave too many expressions in one single scene, and another actor was being too emotional. It takes time for him to reach a point where he finally expresses what’s actually bothering him. These all disturb the flow of the movie, which could distract the audience’s attention. When the story is worth telling, the “telling” part should be carefully screenplayed for cinema.
Verdict
The Birthday Boy is a true story that has to be told. It’s a new story that’s never touched on Indian cinema. This has an avant-garde screenplay and direction, which makes it a potential cult classic. When you really want refreshing storytelling, watch The Birthday Boy.
Sarkar Rating: 3/5
Read Also: “The Birthday Boy’: Whisky’s Debut Comedy-Drama Teaser Launch
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