‘Mechanic Rocky’ movie review: Ravi Teja Mullapudi and Vishwak Sen save the best for the last

Vishwak Sen and Meenakshi Chaudhary in ‘Mechanic Rocky’
| Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

Mechanic Rocky, right from its title to the romance and comedy in the initial scenes, has the markers of an entertainer that plays to the gallery. It takes up a pressing issue (to discuss it here might be a spoiler) that makes headlines frequently and presents a thrilling drama disguised as an entertainer featuring a smart alec protagonist (Vishwak Sen in the title role) who throws both punches and ‘punch dialogues’. The Telugu film directed by Ravi Teja Mullapudi aims to blend mass action with a smart thriller. While some portions of the film evoke interest, others are middling.

Ravi Teja Mullapudi narrates his story through the character of Rakesh aka Rocky, who works at a car garage established by his father, Ramakrishna (Naresh). The father thinks the son is worthless, and the reason is rooted in a satirical backstory in Rayalaseema. The story initially proceeds along expected lines. With the garage doubling as a driving school, it sets the stage for the arrival of Maya (Shraddha Srinath) who wants to learn to drive. The comedy in the Rayalaseema portions as well as Maya’s driving gaffes (the confusion between turning left, right and so on), unfortunately lack the spark. Meanwhile, Rocky also recounts his romance with his college sweetheart Priya (Meenakshi Chaudhary).

There are subtle indications that Mechanic Rocky is not what it appears to be at the surface level —like the prologue, the choice of actors who play pivotal characters — particularly Vishwadev Rachakonda and Naresh. Even though the film would like to convince its audience of the events unfolding on screen each moment, I viewed some of their portions with disbelief, but convinced that there is more.

Mechanic Rocky comes into its own in the last hour, when it reveals its cards by and by. Until then, one has to sit through uninteresting segments of romance, song and dance, and clashes between Rocky and a certain Ranki Reddy (Sunil).

When the conceit unravels, the smartness comes to the fore. The credit goes to the screenplay that keeps revealing twists before the final picture emerges. Some of these twists can be guessed a few minutes in advance but still manage to impress. However, the final portions do not capitalise on this cat-and-mouse game in its zealousness to create a crowd-pleasing mix of humour, action and drama.

The last hour is also when its key actors, both Vishwak Sen and Shraddha Srinath, get to shine. Vishwak is given a role tailored to his image. Sample this: There are references to Rocky’s ‘loose tongue’, as though addressing the social media trolling that target Vishwak for being overtly gregarious in his speeches. He plays Rocky with effortless ease, making even the Rayalaseema portions somewhat entertaining. There is also a reference to a popular fun conversation in Ee Nagaraniki Emaindi between him and Jeevan Kumar, who appears in a cameo.

Shraddha’s character is the surprise package in the film. She plays the final portions with all the required chutzpah. Meenakshi is sincere in her portrayal as the leading lady who carries the burden of personal trauma. Her damsel-in-distress role does not have much room for surprise but she manages to evoke empathy. Naresh and Viva Harsha are dependable as always. Roadies Raghu Ram appears in a brief part that benefits from his persona.

If Mechanic Rocky had done away with some of the stereotypical humour and song and dances and leveraged on its thriller portions, it could have been far more engrossing.