RRR: A love letter to a movie we don’t deserve

Ridiculous, Rambunctious, Riveting

In loss, there is great shame, humiliation, embarrassment. The usual silver lining is that you hope to learn from the mistakes that led to defeat. I experienced this pain in a game of movie trivia Jeopardy against our own American Hero, Mr. Nate Thurmond. It was a fierce battle, both building leads and then losing those leads, but going into final jeopardy, I could taste victory, glory was near. I entered that final round with a comfortable $400 lead. The winner would get to select any movie for the loser to watch. The worst movies I could imagine entered my mind on how I best was going to torture Nate. But suddenly, upon hearing the final question, my brain went blank (possibly due to the bourbon I was drinking, more probably because I was drunk of the power imminent victory). I had no answer, nothing but a half-assed guess. All my hope rested on Nate getting the question incorrect. But Nate was a more than worthy opponent. He didn’t let the moment affect him, he answered correctly. He was the victor. Fear overcame me, what monstrosity of a film was he going to make me watch. What was I to endure for a few hours? I envied prisoners of war and other tortured souls in this moment, for they had it easy. But Nate, was a kind Bro, a merciful Bro and he assigned me a film that he just wanted me to watch so he had someone else to talk to about it with. A film he actually enjoyed. A 3 hour, Tollywood Epic film called RRR. Little did I know, the incredible adventure that awaited me.

Set in 1920’s British rule of India, the film focuses on two real life revolutionaries, Alluri Sitarama Raju and Komaram Bheem. While the two very real people were fundamental in Indian freedom, they never met in life. The film was created due to coincidences in the lives of these Indian heroes and the filmmakers wanted to imagine what would have happened had they met and become friends in real life.

We constantly state on the show, that a films opening doesn’t need to be the best scene, but it needs to set the tone. This film nails the opening immediately bringing in the viewer to see the cruelty of the colonial Brits against the indigenous Indian’s. The governor’s wife stealing a child purely due to the entertainment the girl had provided. The governor throws two coins to her mother, what a Indian life was worth to them. This was the central theme to the film, we repeatedly see that the British viewed the Indian’s not even worthy of being killed with a bullet, as the bullet itself was more valuable than their own life. This moment serves as one as the motivation for one of our heroes. Bheem, the brother of the kidnapped girl, swearing that he will risk it all to return his sister to their village, back to her mother.

Our other revolutionary, Raju, is shown at first working for the British, someone with an intense and honestly insane sense of duty and loyalty. Motivated by a secret ambition, his true alliances are unknown. After being at the right place at the right time, Rheem and Raju work together to save a random child. This experience, forms a deep friendship between our leading men, but little do they know they are working against each other or a better way to say it “This an unforeseen turn of fate, which has culminated in this friendship, it is yet to be seen if this will end in bloodshed, dara dum dara dum dara dum dum”

I won’t get into the plot specifics of this film due to the fact that the less you know, the better it is. After I was assigned this film, I decided not to read or look up anything beforehand. I went in completely blind. What I found was a film that had everything you could imagine. A visual spectacle that blends fantasy and action within a historical drama. From the vibrant imagery, colors and stunning cinematography. Incredible dance sequences with fantastic choreography. Incredibly over the top action scenes. And I mean ridiculously over the top that it probably made Michael Bay blush. Logic takes a backset and entertainment grabs the wheel. But in-between the absolute insanity of the film was incredible depth and complication of duty, friendship, family, suffering. Extra props to the actors in this film, especially Rama Rao Jr and Ram Charan with incredible chemistry; as the film is so over the top it easily could have become a disaster if it wasn’t performed with a certain ability . This is a cinematic rollercoaster that will have you wanting to immediately jump back in line.

If you’ve never watched a Tollywood or Bollywood film, let RRR be your introduction into their productions. Suspend all disbelief and sense of realism out the window and just enjoy the adventure you are about to go on. 4/5.

So thank you Nate Thurmond, thank you for beating me, thank you for being a better man than I. Thank you for giving me some of the most fun 3 hours one can have when watching movie. I shall never forget your grace and kindness. And if given the opportunity again one day, and it is my turn to make you watch a film, I’ll still probably be an ass and force you to watch Bikini Hackers or Cannibal Holocaust.

-Rony Seikaly