Ambitious endeavour, disappointing result / Slow-moving sci-fi thriller / Good idea, mediocre execution, missed opportunity A low-budget movie called 7:11 PM has attracted attention with its promotional material. Saahas Pagadala and Deepika Reddy play the main characters. It was helmed by Chaitu Madala, and it debuted today.
Story : The story takes place in Andhra Pradesh’s Hamsaladeevi in 1999. An IPS hopeful named Ravi Prasad (Saahas Pagadala) is madly in love with Vimala (Deepika Reddy), the rural belle. A small group of extraterrestrial people arrives in the town on a mission. At the same time, a significant mutual fund swindle in Hamsaladeevi is going to come to light. The group led by Ravi Prasad makes every effort to expose the fraud. The film is about how a little incident alters the lives of locals and extraterrestrial humans.
Performances : Even though it had a limited budget, the filmmakers managed it look expensive without sacrificing the quality. The majority of the story takes place in Melbourne and Hamsaladeevi, which is wonderfully highlighted. The design team for the production did an excellent job.
As a boy from a tiny town, Saahas Pagadala delivered a polished and heartfelt performance. The entire narrative centers on him, and the young actor did a great job. In the part she was given, Deepika Reddy performed admirably. Interesting scenes occur before the interval and climax. Saahas Pagadala receives some wonderful backing from Tess Walsh. Dr. Bharat Reddy, Charan Kurugonda, and other people pass muster, including Raghu Karumanchi. With his comic timing, Rising Raju offers solace during the conclusion.
Technicalities: The production values were high, and the sights were pleasing to the eye. Local and foreign places were beautifully caught by Siva Shankar and Fabio Capodivento’s lens. Gyaani produces decent music. The first half’s editing is excellent, while the second half’s editing falls short. Regarding the filmmaker, Chaitu Maidala, he chose an intriguing idea but failed to make it enjoyable to watch. Even the suspenseful elements are boring. Because of the flaws in the screenplay, it is difficult to understand what is happening in real-time.
Analysis: Without a doubt, 7:11 PM is a big project, but most of the time it fails. The primary flaw, though, is the screenplay’s drab tone, which doesn’t get up until the very end. Science fiction thrillers require a solid setup since that’s when the payoff will be good. Because of the poor setup in 7:11 PM, the conclusion doesn’t feel satisfying.
It’s a common theme in science fiction films like Play Back and Indru Netru Nalai that altering a few prior occurrences by traveling back in time will ultimately alter the fate of another event. The time 7:11 PM belongs to the same group. The way this has been handled has been poor, and the proceedings are boring. Things occur consuming the screen time at a leisurely rate.
The film’s plot is also not explained clearly. The audience is familiar with the conclusion because previous similar films on this subject have been released. Therefore, the middle sections must be really exciting to keep viewers’ attention. Sadly, that didn’t happen because the middle sections are uninteresting and a little boring. Logic is another area where science fiction films can never fail, however, 7:11 PM significantly fails in this area. For a movie set in 1999, we get to see QR code payment scanners in physical establishments.
Verdict : Despite being a fascinating endeavour, 7:11 falls short due to a number of issues.
