The fact that I am not an Indian and don't live in India is something you should consider when you read my review. I do lover Indian films and have seen a couple hundred...but I am definitely an outsider. "Athadu" is a film I enjoyed during the first half of the movie. But as the film progressed, my interest waned greatly. And the CGI- intensive ending really, really annoyed me.The film begins with a sweet little kid, Nandu, murdering some gangster type. Obviously this is NOT an ordinary little psychopath. Soon a guy sees the kid's psychotic promise and gets him to become a contract killer. The credits appear and then suddenly the boy has grown to be a studly man. He is now a super-assassin. In fact he's so good that he's approached with a bizarre proposition...he's to deliberately make an unsuccessful attempt on a politician's life. They explain that the injury will guarantee the guy an easy win in the election. However, when Nandu is setting up and readying for his shot with a rifle and scope, someone else shoots and kills one of the folk!! Almost instantly, the police KNOW where Nandu is and try to catch him...he's obviously a patsy for someone's evil plot.After evading the police, he finds himself in a train with a talkative man named Pardhu. It seems that Pardhu has been estranged from his small town family for over a decade and now he's finally returning. However, after conveniently telling Nardu EVERYTHING about himself, Pardhu is killed by police fire as shots ring out. Nardu escapes again and makes himself to the town where Pardhu was headed...with the intention of him assuming Pardu's life and identity. This is a nice setup and I liked this portion of the movie. But when the super-clichéd lady love interest is introduced, the quality and style of the movie changes. It had been an exciting and gritty crime film...but now a sappy and ridiculous romance. She turns out to be the most spoiled, obnoxious and self-absorbed woman I have EVER seen in a movie...and, inexplicably, you know that faux Pardhu will fall for her. This makes no sense...and having him KILL her would have made much, much more sense. What also doesn't make a lot of sense is seeing a serial killer slowly changing into a swell guy who comes to love his new family!While all this is bad, it gets MUCH worse at the end with a giant shootout with many baddies and faux Pardhu taking them all one and, naturally, winning. This is bad enough but so much of this is done in slow-motion, with crazy ridiculous CGI. It is so over-stylized and dumb that I found myself praying for the movie to end!!!The bottom line is that I know you will a few clichés in Indian movies...they are so often formulaic. But the awfulness of the woman took it from formula to the ridiculous...and the ending was hellishly bad. It's a shame....it really DID start off very well.

Athadu is a film about an assassin who assumes a dead man's identity while on a run from the cops.The main power of this movie lies in its powerful writing.The story of the movies was simple yet its presentation on big screen was superb.The main charm of the movie lies in its smooth and flowing screenplay which keeps you entertained all the time.The movie generally revolves around the family in which Nandu lives and depicts very less about the investigation.Its comic scenes were good.The romantic scenes between Trisha and Mahesh were nice and breezy.The first of the movie is very good but in second half the movie slows a little.The climax of the movie ended too soon.It seemed as it had been done in hurry.This is a movie which solely relies on Mahesh babu and he does it again.His body language,style of talking,his expression,everything looked so convincing.He gave one of the best and most intense performances of his carrer.Trisha looked very sweet and played his part smoothly.Sonu sood was wasted.Music of the movie was very good especially the title song was so mesmerizing.Visuals were also nice.If you love a good family entertainer then you should not miss it.And if you are a Mahesh babu's fan then it is a must watch for you..... RATING : 7.3 out of 10

Athadu is about an assassin (Babu) who changes because he realizes the importance of love and family. He gets framed for killing a competitor in a major political election. Therefore, he switches places with Parthu, a decent and friendly man that unfortunately gets murdered on a train. Switching places with Parthu, Nandu starts challenging his own intentions, and not only starts treating Parthu's father as his own, but also falls in love with Poori, a vivacious young woman. What happens when they find out his true identity? Will Nandu get to the bottom of this case and finally get the best of both worlds? Athadu has pretty good special effects and is cleverly taken. It is not my favorite movie but for all Mahesh Babu fans: this is one of his best.

an almost perfect movie .. with some minor flaws (which doesn't matter much to a sensible tollywood cine-goer .. i swear). Mahesh is perfect for the role .. handsome - as usual.. trisha - the lady lead is good, even though she might not be given proper footage. but some light vein comedy track by the lead pair is a must watch for everyone. people who are familiar with trivikram's knack of writing powerful one liners will find them throughout this movie too. some action sequences are commendable.. photography for the title song is simply great .. and boy... what can I say about the theme song??? no words... i listen to this song almost daily ...even to this day (almost 6 months after the songs are released) .. great lyrics by Viswa ... good beats .. also a visual treat ... now waiting for the DVD . i'm gonna grab one as soon as they are out .. ;)