Game Changer review: Ram Charan-Shankar film is an expensive masterclass on electoral politics

Ram Nandan (Ram Charan) is an IPS-turned-IAS officer who suffers from anger issues but has integrity coursing through his blood. He wants to run a corruption-free Vizag and serve the people to the best of his ability. Elsewhere, Andhra Pradesh CM Satyamurthy (Srikanth) has a change of heart when his misdeeds catch up on him in old age. Irked by both is a corrupt politician and Satyamurthy’s son Mopidevi (Suryah), who wants to gain power at any cost. What happens when Ram and Mopidevi face off against each other?

Despite Ram proclaiming he’s ‘unpredictable’, Shankar’s film is anything but that. Because this is commercial cinema, you know the hero will win no matter what. And because this is also Shankar’s cinema, you know you’re in for a tutorial that’ll leave you wiser in whatever subject he’s tackling (even if he takes ample cinematic liberties). Game Changer is a success on both fronts, all while entertaining you for the most part. Where it lacks is making you feel enough for Ram to root for him. Because more than halfway through the film, there’s another character that steals the show.

Shankar banks on a small portion of Game Changer to function as its beating heart. Ram plays Appanna, an activist fighting for the downtrodden, while Anjali plays his wife, Parvathy, who is also an activist and a Tappeta Gullu artist. The portion featuring these two does all the heavy lifting the rest of the film lacks. Both the actors bring a tender vulnerability to their characters in a limited time, making you invested in their outcome. Srikanth also shines in these portions, lending his character depth it otherwise lacked.