Baahubali 2 Reviews and Box Office Report - Page 3

Baahubali 2 Movie Review: SS Rajamouli's epic drama evokes a sense of wonder

Soon after watching SS Rajamouli's epic drama Baahubali 2: The Conclusion, when you sit back to recount what you went through while watching the film, you're likely to ask yourself a fundamental question " why did we forget to be in awe of things around us? In an age of instant gratification and momentary pleasures, is it even possible that a work of art (a film in this case) could remind us of what we've long forgotten? Over the years, we've built fences in our minds and now, we tend to look at every story with some sort of skepticism. We try to be as rational and want to quantify everything because the lack of it scares us. But how do you even quantify a sense of wonder? That's what makes Baahubali 2: The Conclusion what it is. It's the sheer magic of terrific storytelling combined with a visual grandeur rarely seen in Indian cinema that turns it into an experience that'll be hard to forget anytime soon.

Like everyone else, I went to watch why Kattappa killed Baahubali, but there's lot more to the film than just that. Rajamouli takes us on a roller coaster ride which makes the burning question a footnote in the larger picture. Yes, everything in the film leads up to that moment, but the strength of Baahubali 2 lies in its characters and how far they can go for what they believe in.

We have Amarendra Baahubali (Prabhas) who is willing to take on anyone because he believes that dharma is bigger than any individual, then there is Devasena (Anushka Shetty) who'll stand up for what's right. We also discover that the mighty Sivagami (Ramyakrishna) is, after all, human and is susceptible to fallacies of human nature. Bijjaladeva (Nassar) turns out to be far more cunning that we thought he was in Baahubali: The Beginning, and in his thirst for power Bhallaladeva (Rana Daggubati) turns into a personification of evil who plays mind-games to get what he wants.

All this and the conflict between the characters makes Baahubali 2 a spectacle which will hook you right from the word go. Talking about 'spectacle', SS Rajamouli treats every frame with so much attention and care that I didn't want to blink my eyes, many-a-times, for the fear of losing out on a jaw-dropping moment in the story. In one particular sequence, Baahubali teaches Devasena the art of archery and it's so poetic that it makes you want to scream with joy. Rajamouli takes the visual treatment of the film a notch higher in 'Hamsa Nava' song, which is surreal to say the least. And the interval twist in itself is bang for the buck. Oh, boy! There's so much to love about the film, even though your mind tells you that you've already come across stories like this in the past. Its beauty lies in the way the story is told and Rajamouli knocks it out of the park yet again. If Baahubali : The Beginning gave us a glimpse of Mahishmathi, the second part focuses on exploring psyche of its characters and how clash of ideologies can lead to devastating results. Every expression, even if it's a tear drop, is highlighted and the camera holds still to make us sympathise with the characters even more.

Truth be told, it's hard to translate the experience of watching Baahubali: The Conclusion into words. We could talk about everything that we loved and didn't like about the film in great detail, but still not come close to the effect film has on us. The film makes us want to be part of its world. Period!

Amarendra Baahubali is easily the role of a lifetime for Prabhas and the actor brings a lot of panache to essay the lead character. And Rajamouli elevates Prabhas to a level where it's hard not to root for him throughout the film. Rana Daggubati is terrific as the tyrant king Bhallaladeva. The film explores sibling rivalry in great detail and Rana's confrontation with Prabhas is a delight to watch. Perhaps, the biggest revelation in the film is Anushka, who delivers one of the best performances of her career as a rebellious, warrior princess Devasena. Her face-off with Ramyakrishna's Sivagami gives a high and rarely has there been a film where two female characters steal the thunder from the men around them every single time they come face to face. The others " Ramyakrishna, Sathyaraj and Nasser " live their roles to an extent that the next time you meet them in person, you're more likely to address them with their onscreen names in Baahubali than their real names.

Baahubali 2: The Conclusion is also a film where you can rave about single out every aspect " be it cinematography, VFX, production design, costumes " and still fall short of words. Yes, there are certain portions in the film's climax that could have looked better visually and the VFX more refined, but it's so fast-paced and well designed that it doesn't really matter in the end.

In his attempt to make India's biggest motion picture, Rajamouli has also given the audience a reason to be in awe of films, or rather his films. For that matter, no review would come close to explaining the high that one will experience throughout the film. It has to be experienced to be believed. There's a dialogue in Inception which goes like: "It doesn't hurt to dream big." Maybe that's what Rajamouli told himself before making the film. And after watching it, we couldn't help but be on the same page. Two big thumbs up for this epic drama. But did it really have to end? Because it clearly leaves you wanting more by the time the end credits roll.

'Furious 8' Will Threepeat, 'Baahubali 2' Looks Strong & 'Guardians 2' Debuts Overseas

The Fate of the Furious will repeat at the top of the box office one more time this weekend while STX's The Circle should deliver the largest opening among the crop of new releases. One of those new releases, however, is looking like it just might deliver some fireworks, that being the release of Baahubali 2: The Conclusion, the sequel to the breakout 2015 hit which is debuting in nearly double the number of theaters in North America compared to the original, which opened with $3.6 million. Additionally, Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 gets its start internationally this weekend in approximately 58% of the international marketplace ahead of its domestic debut next weekend.

After dipping 61% last weekend, Fate of the Furious is looking at yet another easy #1 finish as we expect it to drop around 40%, finishing around $23 million for the weekend as its domestic cume should be just shy of $200 million by end of day Sunday. Internationally the film has racked up $794.2 million so far and debuts in Japan this weekend as it will soon top $1 billion worldwide.

Looking to finish second is STX's first release in their three-year deal with EuropaCorp, the near-future thriller The Circle starring Emma Watson, Tom Hanks and John Boyega. Directed by James Ponsoldt, the film is based on the novel by Dave Eggers and will debut in 3,163 theaters where it's expected to deliver a double digit opening. All the signals we're seeing are pointing in that direction as well as our forecast is for an opening right around $15 million, plus-minus a million or so on either side.

The next new release isn't going "wide" per se, but it's definitely going to have an impact on the box office as Great India Films releases Baahubali 2: The Conclusion into ~450 North American theaters of which 45 or so will be showing the film in IMAX and about 50 will show the film on large format screens. This is nearly double the number of screens Baahubali: The Beginning opened on in 2015 when it debuted with $3.6 million and we're told early expectations for the sequel are around $7-8 million. However, those expectations could prove conservative given some of the reporting around this film, which has reportedly brought in over $3 million in pre-sales, much of which are for Thursday night showings alone.

Next is Lionsgate's release of Pantelion's How to be a Latin Lover starring Eugenio Derbez and Salma Hayek. Expectations for the film, which is debuting in 1,118 theaters, are tough to nail down as the industry range is currently $4-7 million for what is Pantelion's widest release yet. Previously, Instructions Not Included, which also starred Derbez, opened with $7.8 million from just 348 theaters over the three-day Labor Day weekend in 2013. Given Latin Lover is debuting in more than triple the number of theaters what does that mean for the film's chances? Given what we're looking at when taking similar titles into consideration, and even attempting to weigh Latin Lover's IMDb page view performance against Instructions despite the theater count difference, we're anticipating an opening around $5.8-6.2 million.

A couple of holdover titles are also worth keeping an eye on beginning with Fox Searchlight's Gifted, which didn't exactly get off to a blazing start during its limited debut earlier this month, but has shown some signs of life since. Last weekend it found its way into the top ten as it expanded into nearly 2,000 theaters and delivered $4.6 million. This weekend it crosses that 2,000 theater threshold, adding another 229 locations and we're expecting it to hold strong and deliver around $4 million or so this weekend.

It will also be interesting to see how Bleecker's The Lost City of Z holds up. Last week it found its way into the top ten with $2.1 million from 614 locations. This weekend it expands to 866 locations and while we're expecting it to fall short of the top ten, bringing in around $2 million or so, we wouldn't be surprised to see it finish a little higher.

The last new release of the weekend could also find itself challenging for a spot in the top ten is BH Tilt's Sleight, which is debuting in 565 theaters. BH Tilt, along with WWE Studios, acquired the film out of Sundance 2016 for what was reported to be a low seven figure deal. The film was reportedly made on a $250,000 budget and BH Tilt has implemented a targeted marketing scheme, hoping to lure 17-34 year-olds into the theater. Hopes are for an opening in the $1.5-2 million range given the smaller theater count and targeted marketing spend, but we're having a hard time anticipating anything over $1.2 million right now.

Of course, this weekend's pre-release conversation doesn't end with the domestic box office as Guardians of the Galaxy 2 is already in the midst of its international roll-out in which it will debut in 58% of the overseas markets. This includes openings in Australia, Italy, France, Sweden, Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand, Germany, Brazil, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, Spain, UK and Mexico. Next weekend Guardians 2 will arrive in ~4,200 theaters domestically with early tracking suggesting a $130-150 million opening. Opening day-and-date with the domestic release are additional markets such as Korea, Russia, Argentina, China and India.

This weekend's forecast is directly below. This post will be updated on Friday morning with Thursday night preview results followed by Friday estimates on Saturday morning, and a complete weekend recap on Sunday morning.

• The Fate of the Furious (4,076 theaters) - $22.6 M
• The Circle (3,163 theaters) - $14.5 M
• The Boss Baby (3,739 theaters) - $10.0 M
• Baahubali 2: The Conclusion (425 theaters) - $9.5 M
• Beauty and the Beast (3,155 theaters) - $6.8 M
• How to be a Latin Lover (1,118 theaters) - $6.0 M
• Gifted (2,215 theaters) - $4.1 M
• Born in China (1,508 theaters) - $3.7 M
• Unforgettable (2,417 theaters) - $3.3 M
• Going in Style (2,761 theaters) - $3.1 M