U Turn movie review: Samantha Akkineni’s fine act makes this an edge-of-seat thriller

U Turn
Director and writer: Pawan Kumar
Cast: Samantha Akkineni, Aadhi Pinisetty, Bhumika
Rating: 3.5/5 

Butterfly Effect -- part of chaos theory which says a small change, however small, can change the course of universe – forms the crux of Samantha Akkineni’s U Turn. One simple act can wreck havoc in the life of many and as the title suggests, it all starts with a U Turn.

Samantha plays the role of Rachna, an intern at a reputed newspaper. She is like any other millennial today – she wants to make her own destiny. Her mother wants her marry someone with a green card as soon as possible, but all that she wants to do is a meaningful story. It is this newsbreak that will put her life at risk.

The film is like a well-modulated symphony, like well-written poetry. It thrills you and just when you think you have it all figured out, it throws you a curveball. While the twists are not novel in the genre, the way they are introduced in U-Turn leave you shocked.

There are moments in the film that stay with you. When Rachna breaks down, overwhelmed with everything happening around her, you empathise with her. Samantha delivers the performance of a lifetime and there is beauty even in the dark moments thanks to her performance.

Rachna’s equation with Aadhi, who plays a cop Nayak, and Rahul Ravindran, who essays the character of her love interest Adithya, complete the film. When Rachna lies to Adithya about her mood plummeting because of work stress, he knows that she is not telling the truth and yet gives her space. Such small things add a lot of punch to the film, which is less drama and more brains.

When it comes the background score, one has to mention the fine job done by Poorna Chandra Tejaswi. The scene where the two friends are locked up in prison, the desperation of Rachna and the police officers is presented so well that it is simply electric.

Bhumika and Narain play husband and wife in the film and their roles are pivotal to the premise. Bhumika as Maya is impressive even with a short screen time, only proving that the strength of a character lies in how well it is written. Pawan, who also wrote the film has succeeded in telling a story with interesting characters.

The most impressive thing about this film is the fact that it is a remake, and yet has succeeded in adapting to bigger audience. Pawan has challenged himself by reworking the climax of the film, which makes it interesting to the audience who have already watched his original U Turn in Kannada.

U Turn is beautifully written and stunningly performed. Nobody has made a stronger case for embracing the chaos till now.

Author tweets @Priyanka_S_MCC
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