1. Telugucinema.com
Cast: Ram Charan, Kajal, Dev Gil, Srihari, Surya, Sarath Babu, Sunil, Brahmananadam, Hema, Chiranjeevi, Kim Sharma, Mumaith Khan, Subbaraya Sarma, Rao Ramesh, etc
Story: Vijayendra Prasad
Dialogues: M.Ratnam
Music: Keeravani
Sound design: Kalyani Malik
Cinematography: Senthil Kumar
Art Director Ravindar
Editing: Kotagiri Venkateswara Rao
Fights: Ram-Lakshman, Peter Haines
Lyrics: Chandrabose, Bhuvanachandra, M.M. Keeravani
Produced by: Allu Aravind
Directed by: S S Rajamouli
Banner: Geeta Arts
Release date: July 31, 2009
CBFC Rating: U/A
Story:
Magadheera is about rebirth and revenge. Harsha (Ram Charan) is a bike racer. He accidentally touches the hand of a girl Indu (Kajal) that creates sparks in his body. He meets Indu, but she hides her identity and plays pranks with him. Indu’s father (Surya) is fighting to get back their ancestral Udaighad castle. His nephew (Dev Gil) eyes Indu, kills his uncle, and puts the blame on Harsha. From this point on, the story goes back in time 400 years.
Kalabhirava (Ram Charan) acts as a bodyguard to Udaigadh's princess Mitravinda (Kajal) and also trains the king's soldiers. Mitravinda loves Kalabhairava. On the other hand, the king's nephews Billa (Dev Gil) wants to take over the kingdom and marry the princess. In a challenge, Billa gets defeated by Kalabhairava. Meanwhile, a muslim emperor Sher Khan (Srihari) plans to take over the kingdom with the help of Billa. In an epic battle, Kalabhiarava saves the kingdom and also gets killed along with the princess. The rest of the story is about the rebirth of Kalabhairava to take revenge on Billa and win his lady love in this birth.
Analysis:
First things first: Magaheera, in one word, is splendid! It sets new standards in commercial Telugu Cinema. Director Rajamouli went big and achieved it enormously. One needs guts, and a great passion that exceeds that, to make this kind of fantasy period film on a grand scale. Kudos to Rajamouli for translating his vision onto the screen to near-perfection. The soul and strength of Magadheera lies in the 400-years-old episode that occupies about 45 minutes in the second half. This entire episode amazes the audiences. It is not to say that the rest of the scenes are not interesting but this episode is the life of the movie and etches in our mind long after leaving the theatre. That's all good cinema is about, is it not?
Rajamouli's grand vision, great art work, superb visual effects and graphics , top-notch camerawork and performances in this episode alone are worth tons of praises. Both the content and technological finesse gels well. Thematically, technically, and in every aspect of film, Magadheera is much above the standard commercial films. Every segment of audience can enjoy it thoroughly. There are some minor issues too, such as weak comedy, and clichéd climax.
Scenes that really stand out are:
* The very opening scene is very dramatic and it makes you glued to the screen. From writing point of view, it is a master stroke.
* Ram Charan and Dev Gil taking of the challenge and horse-riding sequences shot in Kacch area are excellent.
* Kalabhairava's confrontation scene is too good.
Performances:
With this film, Ram Charan Tej has evolved into a true star. He looks awesome in the period get up of Kalabhairava. His gait, expressions, and horse-riding skills are impeccable. Of course, like his father and like he already proved with his debut, he dances effortlessly. Fans may go crazy for his dance inbangaaru kODipeTTa... Ram charan Taj is definitely "star material", he proved with this film beyond doubt!
Kajal is perfect fit to the role of a charming princess. She is so cute in her looks and her chemistry with Ram Charan works greatly on the screen. Kajal will be going to top league with this film.
Srihari as Sher Khan brings life to the move. His role is brief but instrumental to the story, and it would remain one of the best roles he played in his career.
Dev Gil as villan gives tough competition to the current villains of Telugu cinema. In the film, he seems a perfect opponent for Ram Charan.
Among other cast, it is Rao Ramesh as Ghora scores with good performance. The Megastar Chiranjeevi himself appears in a brief scene to cheers the fans.
Technical Performances:
This film needs special mention for its technical crew. Every technical member has excelled in one's own right. Rajamouli should be mentioned first for his vision, for his perfection, and for his directorial capablilites. He has now become the master of commercial movies. There is no other director in Telugu to understand the pulse of the so-called mass audiences. He once again proved that none can beat him in elevating the heroism, picturizing fantasy or period films. He always had a vision, no doubt, but this time, he executes with perfection. He tried to the same with Yamadonga but could not achieve it completely then. The formula is still the same - a simple first half, 30 minutes of fantasy elements in the second half and revenge drama in the finale - as in the format for Yamadonga. Rajamouli has done it this time on larger scale and with better finish.
Rajamouli is ably aided by his long-time cameraman Senthil Kumar. After Yamadonga and Arudhathi, Senthil does it again! In Magadheera, his work is on par with international films! The scenes he shot in Kacch area in Gujarath and the scenes in the second half are outstanding examples of his prowess. The creative work from his camera can be seen in the picturization of dheera dheera... and panchadaara...songs too. Camera tilting up slowly over the two pillars of Uday Gadh fort's entrance and sweeping pan of the fort are awesome. Cameraman Senthil needs all the praise for these just two shots.
The next person that should be commended is music director M.M. Keeravaani. His songs are well in tune with theme of the film, with especially dheera dheera... and panchadaara... songs standing out as being catchy. Like always, the veteran music director elevates the mood of the film with his rerecording. This time, his cousin Kalyani Mallik also helps him in sound designing. Together they made the film aurally rich.
Art director Ravinder's work is really commendable. The Udaigadh set is almost real! The film looks grand, all because of this art director! Special effects and graphics are also superb if you look at it with Indian film standards in mind.
Rama Rajamouli's costumes for Ram Charan and Kajal for both periods are perfectly suitable. Peter Haines' action episodes are good. Editing is neat. Prem Rakshit's choreography is good too. Producer Allu Aravind should be praised for pumping money extravagantly into the film with confidence on the project. His expenditure is visible on the screen.
Bottom line:
Magadheera is spell-binding and very excellent. It could be the best bet for entertainment in this season. The second half of the film is the soul and strength and when you leave the theatre, that happy feeling remains in your mind! Director Rajamouli made this good entertainer that can be enjoyed by all section of audiences. Go for it!
TC Rating: 4/5
2. Idlebran.com
Jeevi rating: 3.5/5
Punchline: grand film
Genre: Romance/Action
Type: Straight
Banner: Geeta Arts
Cast: Ram Charan Teja, Kajal Agarwal, Srihari, Sunil, Brahmanandam, Sarath Babu, Rao Ramesh, Surya, Mumaith Khan, Sameer, Sekhar, Kim Sharma, Saloni & Hema
Music: MM Keeravani
Sound suvervision: Kalyani Malik
Cinematography: Senthil Kumar
Dialogues: Ratnam
Art: Ravinder
Editing: Kotagiri Venkateswara Rao
Fights: Peter Hynes & Ram Lakshman
Styling: Rama Rajamouli
Co-producer: Bhogavally Prasad
Story: Vijayendra Prasad
Screenplay, & Direction: SS Rajamouli
Producer: Allu Arvind
Release date: 30 July 2009
Review
Story 
The story happens in the year 1609. Kala Bhairava (Ram Charan Teja) is the protector/cheif guard of Udayghad kingdom. Mitra (Kajal Agarwal) – the heir princess is in love with him. But there is a bad relative of the king who wants to marry her. Sher Khan (Srihari) plans to invade Udayghad. In the process ensued, all of them die. These four people take rebirth after 400 years in the contemporary era. Harsha (Ram Charan Teja) is a race biker. He falls in love with Indu (Kajal Agarwal). And a bad guy called Raghuveer is after her. The rest of the story is all about how they trace themselves back to the past and settle the unfinished business.
Artists Performance
Ram Charan Teja: Ram Charan’s performance in his debut film Chiruta is like a show reel of what he is capable of doing. In this movie, he gets an opportunity to do some real good performance and he performs them convincingly with effortless ease. And he had gone through tremendous physical toil in this film as it involves horse riding, sword fighting, dances and many more. His dance in Bangaru Kodipetta after the completion of Chiranjeevi’s appearance is stunning. He is gifted with a good voice and he should fine tune it further to come up with pristine Telugu diction.
Kajal Agarwal: Kajal Agarwal is the surprise pack of this movie. She never looked so gorgeous and lovely in her earlier movies. She is overwhelming in this movie. Soumya who dubbed her voice came up with fabulous job in the first half where heroine’s naughty and is in love. However, she needs to come up with better dubbing for emotional scenes and serious episodes..
Others: Chiranjeevi did a special appearance in Bangaru Kodi Petta remix song. Srihari has relatively small screen presence. But his role is extremely powerful. He is excellent as Share Khan and his get-up and dialogue delivery is superb. And his Srikakulam dialect in the second half is very nice. The guy who did the role of villain has sharp features and he is adequate. Rao Ramesh is excellent in the role of Aghora. His voice and body language is wonderful. Sameer is good as the deputy of Srihari. Sunil and Brahmanandam are adequate. Mumaith Khan danced with Ram Charan Teja in Bangaru Kodi Petta. Kim Sharma did another item song. One wonders what Saloni is doing in this movie?
Technical departments
Story - screenplay - directon: Story of the movie is about rebirths. Rajamouli opened the movie by revealing the story right in the first episode. The challenge lies in Rajamouli’s handling of telling the story interestingly to the audiences though audiences know what he is going to narrate. Screenplay of the movie is good and the Rajamouli trade mark commercial paybacks are nicely inserted at regular intervals. Rajamouli who made a self-confession in the past that he is weak at narrating love stories makes a nice effort to come up with a convincing love story that penetrates eras and generations.
The following three episodes are visually extraordinary
1. The opening sequence.
2. The shot where hero and heroine go to Bhairava to perform poojas.
3. The shot involving of elevating camera on top angle between two pillars in flashback episode.
The following commercial payoffs will work big time
1. White Chunni thread (just like the thread of medal in Yamadonga film)
2. Picking up four important characters from the past and get them closer in the current time.
3. Ending the movie from where it started in the opening episode (usage of same weapons, location, sentiment etc)
4. Aghora tells villain how to recognize the hero. And the same symptoms occur during helicopter fight before interval.
The following scenes will create an impact:
1. The horse coming back to help the sinking hero.
2. Kill 100 people episode (inspired by 300 movie killing style where killing is shown more like poetry than a gore element). The opening credits have the counting of 100 as the backdrop and we realise the importance of it only after watching the last fight of the flashback.
The following scenes are mediocre:
1. The basis of heroine misunderstanding hero is too flimsy.
2. Srihari’s car colliding with chopper looks comical in the serious fight of climax. .
Other departments: Rajamouli should be appreciated for giving due credit to all his technicians by dedicating a full-song to them during the end titles of the movie. Watching that was fun. Songs scored by MM Keeravani are little disappointing when you listen to them on the stereo. But they are good on screen with visuals. Background music is excellent. Cinematography by Senthil Kumar is very good. It is extremely difficult to recreate the era of 400 years old and art direction by Ravinder is splendid. Fights composed by Peter Hynes are excellent. Dialogues by Ratnam are good. Styling by Rama Rajamouli is very good and you can see chic colors in the costumes worn by the lead pair in abroad song. Editing is good. Visual effects are nice. So is digital intermediate. But at the same time, there seem to be inconsistency in visuals throughout the movie. Some of the visuals are excellent and some of the visuals are good and some other are mediocre. Visuals are the results of combined effort of cinematographer, art director, visual effects department, DI team and film processing lab. One can see inconsistency in the postproduction of the movie. Production values of Geeta Arts are impressive and it is one of the biggest spent movie of Telugu film industry.
Analysis: Opening episode of the movie is superb. First half of the movie is nice and second half is decent. The tempo goes down right after the flashback episode as it’s everybody’s guess that what follows is a predictable climax. The plus points of the movie are Ram Charan Teja, novel subject of rebirth, flashback episode, grandeur and commercial pay offs. On the flipside, there is tremendous scope for improvement in the second half. On a whole, Magadheera might not be a great film. But it is a good entertainer with nicely packed commercial elements and grandeur. Go and watch it in a theatre near you with nice projection and good sound system.
Tailpiece: There is uncanny resemblance to Arundhati and Magadheera stories. Both these films are about incarnations. Both these movies have aghora episodes. And villain lusts heroine and that forms the central conflict point in both these movies.
3. Greatandhra.com
'Magadheera' Review: It’s Not A Movie-But Historical Wonder!!
Film: Magadheera
Rating: 4/5
Banner: Geetha Arts
Cast: Ram Charan, Kajal, Dev Gil, Srihari, Surya, Sarath Babu, Sunil, Brahmananadam, Hema, Chiranjeevi, Kim Sharma, Mumaith Khan, Subbaraya Sharma, Rao Ramesh etc
Editing: Kotagiri Venkateswara Rao
Music: Keeravani
Cinematography: Senthil Kumar
Fights: Ram Laxman and Peter Heins
Lyrics: Chandrabose, Keeravani and Bhuvanachandra
Story: V Vijayendra Prasad
Dialogues: M Rathnam
Producer: Allu Aravind
Director: SS Rajamouli
Released On: 31st July 2009
The much awaited ‘Magadheera’ has arrived. It has created huge expectations by the virtue of its posters, trailers and above all the music. Finally let us see if it has reached those expectations.
Story:
Harsha (Ram Charan) is a young man who earns money on bike races and bets. He loves such adventures on two wheelers. He happens to touch the hand of a young girl Indu (Kajal) accidentally and that ‘soul touch’ connects his present to the past.
What’s the past?
That’s 1609 AD when Kalabhaiarava (Ram Charan) was the warrior in Udaigarh who trains the soldiers. The Senadhipathi Randheer (Dev Gil) lusts on Yuvarani Mitravinda (Kajal) but the latter loves Kalabhirava. That results in a huge battle between Randheer and Kalabhairava which puts end for their lives. Sher Khan (Sri Hari), the Muslim invader witnesses the valor and love of Kalabhairava and salutes to him.
They take rebirth as Harsha and Indu. And many characters from the past also come to present with the soul connectivity. But where? What happens to them? How the past life matters for them in present life?
That has to be watched on big screen to experience the marvelous treat along with unleashing those queries.
Performances:
Ram Charan:
He stood as an icon of macho look. He portrayed the 1609 AD role, Kalabhaiarava, with right bearing and voice modulation. Chiranjeevi’s yester year’s voice echoed in the ears of audiences with that modulation of Ram Charan for that character. His dances are spellbinding, especially in ‘Bangaru Kodi petta..’.
Kajal:
She is the right choice and perfect blend. Her elegance is amazing in queen’s role.
Sri Hari:
His portrayal as Muslim warrior Sher Khan is quite wonderful. He added value to the movie on a whole.
Dev Gill:
This Bollywood villain has shared screen in the main antagonist role. He proved perfect particularly in ‘past birth role’.
Others:
Sarath Babu is ok in the role of old king, the father of Yuva Rani Mitravinda.
Rao Ramesh perfectly grooved in the role of Aghora Sadhu with apt gait and voice modulation
Brahmanandam and Hema got wasted
Sunil’s comedy is ok to large extent
Technical departments:
The movie deserves right mention for music, sound effects, graphics, 3D effects, Cinematography and Choreography. What not! Every technical faculty has rightly worked on this film. Director Rajamouli should be appreciated for his guts to bring such a massive film on Telugu screen.
Allu Aravind should be esteemed for his wonderful production values.
Music And Lyrics:
Keeravani and Chandrabose have created wonder with music and lyrics. Every word has aptly grooved into the situation in finest musical form.
Jorse Jorse is like a sheer poetry drawn on a canvass
Naakosom Juttu Peekkunte (written by Keeravani) is hilarious and entertaining
Panchadaara Bomma will be one of lifetime melody hits in Ram Charan’s filmography
Bangaru Kodi petta (penned by Bhuvanachandra) surpassed the older one in choreography
Dheera Dheera is the song that was ever pictured on Indian screen so far
Magadheera…(rolling title song) is innovative and interesting with the dances of Allu Aravind, Keeravani, Rajamouli, Rama Rajamouli, Ali, Sunil, Brahmanandam, Kajal, Kim Sharma, Mumaith Khan, Saloni, BA Raju and every technician worked in the movie
Above all the background music stood as backbone for the movie
Highlights:
- Marvelous art work carried to portray Udaigadh city of 1609AD
- Battle between Kalabhairava and 100 soldiers of Sher Khan
- Wonderful picturization of Dheera Dheera song
- Lord Shiva’s statue that brings hysterical feeling
- Helicopter and bike stunts of Ram Charan
Disappointments:
- Brahmanandam-Hema comedy
- Chiranjeevi’s episode
- Dialogues in first 44 minutes
Analysis:
“This is our movie-our Telugu movie. This is our pride. This is the creation happened with the cognizance of our Telugu director”…would be the feel of every Telugu film lover while watching this film.
Words wouldn’t suffice to explain the experience of technical extravaganza depicted in this film. It’s just spellbinding. The range of Telugu film has gone to a higher plane with this film. The maker Rajamouli and producer Aravind should be appreciated unconditionally. And kudos would go to the technical team that has kept its brilliance to make this movie a wonder.
Keeping the first 44 minutes away the rest of the movie arrests the audiences completely. The first 44 minutes would literally keep the pulse of audiences down and confused. Pale dialogues, insipid scenes between Brahmanandam and Hema, weak portrayal of Chiranjeevi in a senseless scene would let down the audiences.
The real tempo starts as soon as the completion of the song ‘Naakosam nuvvu juttu peekkunte baagundi..’ The momentum develops with the first horse riding scene of Ram Charan chasing a bus. The interval scene hooks the audiences with lot of enthusiasm for sure. And the audiences can never turn their head and blink eye lid from then till climax.
And the audiences come out from theatre with the experience of a rollercoaster ride, with the sound reverberating in hearts, with a heavy hangover of watching a new facet of Telugu cinema.
The film proves to a historical one with respect to patronage of audiences of all classes.
Rating Judgment: The movie scores 4/5 by the virtue of technical values and adventurous attempt. It would have scored bigger if the first 44 minutes were also dealt well with sensible comedy and treatment.
Verdict: It’s good to watch the film as soon as possible
4. Cinegoers.com
Magadheera Review - Entertaining Rebirth Saga
August 02, 2009 Anjali
Rating - ***.5
Cast: Ramcharan, Srihari, Kajal, Mumait Khan, Sharath Babu, Rao Ramesh, Brahmanandam, Suneel, Surya, Sameer, Sekhar, Kim Sharma, Saloni, Hema and others.
Action: Peter Hein & Ram-Laxman.
Art: Ravinder.
Banner: Geetha Arts.
Cinematography: KK Senthil Kumar.
Dialogues: M. Ratnam.
Editing: Kotagiri Venkateswara Rao.
Music: MM Keeravani.
Story: V. Vijayendra Prasad.
Styles: Rama Rajamouli.
Presenter: Padmasri Allu Ramalingaiah.
Co-Producer: BVSN Prasad.
Producer: Allu Aravind.
Screenplay, & Director: SS Rajamouli.
Release Date: July 31, 2009 
The focus should be on fiction rather than cultural, historical or physical elements. Otherwise your concentration wavers to gravity-defying falls (people cannot meet mid-way if fallen at different moments), culture (400 years ago princesses in Rajasthan did not sit in a gathering with their heads uncovered and did not practice bow-n-arrow with the commander-in-chief (that happens in Troy) and reminisces of Jodhaa Akbar and 300. But then again, the moments make up the movie. The magic is in the details.
Magadheera is perhaps the most-awaited Telugu flick of the year and the hype is phenomenal. There is half a century of legacy and at least 35 years of hard work by various family members of the main lead and the maker. And keeping in mind recent political news-making events, everyone is curious. On top of that, the maker has never really disappointed the audience in terms of the entertainment quotient.
Bhairava is from the warrior clan and protector of the army and princess Mitra Vinda. Rana Billa is Mitra's cousin and wants to marry her and be the King. A contest between Bhairava and Rana Billa ensues that Bhairava wins, but the King requests him to reject the princess' hand as the warrior clan does not lead a long life, dedicating their lives to protect the kingdom. Mitra is heartbroken.
Sher Khan with the help of Rana Billa invades the kingdom, but sees Bhairava's courage and skill where he kills a 100 people single-handedly to protect the princess and is won over. But Rana Billa kills her and Bhairava jumps with her, dejected at not having told her his true feelings before their death.
In the present Harsha is a bike racer who falls for Indu with a single touch and not even seeing her face. A roller-coaster romance later, Ranadeep, her cousin, intrudes and whisks her away to his fort. Indu thinks Harsha killed her father and Ranadeep knows of his past life through a sorcerer. Harsha remembers everything and proceeds to save Indu, and is helped by a fisherman, Solomon who was Sher Khan in his past life.
The movie moves fast, never really slacking in pace. The scale and magnitude of the movie, it being a big-budget part-period and part-present magnum opus should ideally have experienced actors. But the protagonists are mainly newbies, with Ram Charan taking on such a role in his second film and Kajal also just a few films old and Dev Gill as Rana Billa/Ranadeep, no idea.
The look is flawless, even though history is defied. Costumes are good, aesthetics are actually Rajamouli's best yet, getting a right balance this time. Their looks or the rest of the characters in the period part, the set work and cinematography, background music and stunts are all without glitches. 
Performance-wise, the kids (yes, kids) are raw but the director cleverly manages to create auras around them and keep dialogues to minimum. There are races, fights, tears, blood and heartbreak. In the first half, which is the present, similar patterns follow. It's difficult to carry off complex roles and Ram Charan just about manages. Kajal does a better job playing girl-next-door but looks the part of a princess.
Dev Gill performs to his capacity, but he does not have the presence Rajamouli's villains usually inflict. Srihari as Sher Khan looks his part, but plays Solomon to perfection. Chiranjeevi does a cameo after the Bangaru Kodi Petta song, where he says something lost in whistles and covered in papers, but a younger Chiranjeevi comes and does his 'break dance' (forgot how funny that was) drill. Last time it was Senior NTR recreated in Yama Donga, this time Chiranjeevi.
Coming to music, not great. Two songs-the first remix where the choreography is pretty good and the Dheera Dheera number in the period drama stand out. The final rolling tracks song is fun, and Om Shanti Om type all cast and crew coming and waving and even doing a little step with the lead pair. Rajamouli's focus was on delivering an entertaining flick and he has succeeded again. There is little comedy and the climax looks like they were hurrying it up in the editing room, and the music is not Kreem's best but otherwise the movie is watchable and breezy overall
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