Siddhu Jonnalagadda made a mark with films like Tillu (DJ Tillu) and Tillu Square, and returns in Jack, a film directed by Bhaskar (Jack), which contrasts with his usual image. While the teaser generated a lot of interest, the trailer raised some doubts. So how is the movie? Did Siddhu Jonnalagadda score a hat trick? Did Bhaskar make a successful comeback as a director? Let’s find out.
Story: Pablo Neruda, aka Jack (Siddhu Jonnalagadda), lands a job with India’s RAW agency due to an incident from his childhood—though it wasn’t something harmful to the country. Determined to serve his country, Jack goes to great lengths in pursuit of that goal. RAW chief Manoj (Prakash Raj) and his team grow suspicious of Jack’s activities. At the same time, Bhanumati, also known as Afsan (Vaishnavi Chaitanya), is trying to uncover what Jack is really up to. Who is Jack, and what are Manoj and his team trying to find out? What kind of problems does Jack face? The answers to these questions form the plot of Jack.
Performances: In the role of Jack, Siddu Jonnalagadda holds himself back a little. There’s not much humor here—aside from the Urdu mix and a few Hindi phrases. As a result, the kind of entertainment regular Sidhu fans expect is missing. Vaishnavi Chaitanya worked hard to portray a Muslim girl and to adopt a Telangana accent. She looked good in a few scenes, but overall her character didn’t evolve much. The lack of a proper character arc and unclear motivations weakened her role.
While the idea of injecting comedy into the RAW Chief’s character (played by Prakash Raj) was good, the illogical screenplay undermined it significantly. Rahul Dev delivered a strong performance, doing full justice to his role. Naresh, Ravi, Brahmaji, and others made efforts to leave a mark.
Technical Aspects: Sam C.S.’s background music didn’t enhance the film. Even though it’s a comedy, the serious undertones needed stronger musical support, which was missing. The song “Kiss” by Suresh Bobbili was both melodious and visually appealing. However, Pablo Neruda’s title song failed to communicate the film’s theme to the audience and ended up feeling dull. Vijay K Chakravarthy’s cinematography also fell short.
Analysis: There have been many spy thrillers made in a parody format—and some succeed because they’re clearly and sincerely framed as such. But Jack tries to blend comedy with a serious spy narrative involving the RAW agency, and that disconnect is its biggest flaw.
Director Bhaskar struggled to entertain as both a storyteller and filmmaker. Spy thrillers need emotional depth, sharp screenwriting, and especially logical investigation scenes—all of which were missing here. Apart from Sidhu’s sporadic comedy, Jack lacked a strong, engaging element or an exciting theme, making it a dull experience overall.
The CG and green screen work looked cheap. While the scenes at Charminar were impressive, the CG used in the train sequence at the end was of poor quality. The AI-generated visuals at the beginning of the film weren’t properly synced either. Production design and art direction also took a hit due to apparent budget constraints.
Verdict: Overall, Jack is a disappointing film. Siddhu Jonnalagadda’s comedy is the only silver lining, but even that might not be enough to carry a 136-minute film. It takes a bit of patience to sit through the whole runtime just for those moments.
Rating: 2/5
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