A Family

This film (drama)Also known asManam，is aIndiaProducerwomen sex，At2014Released in year 。The dialogue language isTelugu，Current Douban rating7.1(For reference only)。

◆Character RelationshipsThe three male leads in the film are also a family in real life—three generations of the prominent Telugu film family, the Akkineni family: the grandfather, Akkineni Nageswara Rao (a veteran Telugu star born in 1923), the father, Akkineni Nagarjuna (the famous Telugu actor and producer, known as King Nagarjuna), and the grandson, Akkineni Naga Chaitanya (born in 1986, who has just stepped into the film industry and is rumored to star in a remake of the Malayalam film "Bangalore Days" alongside Jr. NTR).Interestingly, in the film "Manam," due to the theme of reincarnation, the identities of the grandfather, father, and grandson in the movie are reversed compared to their real-life roles: the real-world grandfather, Nageswara Rao, becomes his son's (Nagarjuna’s) son in the film. The real-world grandson, Naga Chaitanya, becomes his father (Nagarjuna's) father in the movie.◆Plot:In the first half: A couple with a troubled marriage dies in a car accident while driving to divorce, leaving behind their 6-year-old son. Thirty years later, the son, now a wealthy middle-aged man, meets a young man and a girl, believing they are his reincarnated parents—though the latter are unaware of their past lives. Nevertheless, the now middle-aged son is determined to bring together his much younger "dad and mom" in this life.In the second half: In the 1920s, a loving couple dies in a car accident while driving home, leaving behind their 6-year-old son. Eighty years later, the son is now a 90-year-old man who meets a middle-aged man (the billionaire from the first story) and a nurse, believing they are his reincarnated parents—but again, they are unaware of their past lives. However, the 90-year-old son is determined to unite his much younger "dad and mom" in this life.The son's efforts to matchmake his parents across time and space evoke comparisons to the classic sci-fi film "Back to the Future," and it is indeed reported that the film "Manam" drew inspiration from it.(Quick tip: pay attention to the clock tower that appears each time at the accident scenes, which is also a crucial iconic scene in "Back to the Future.")What's clever is that in the nearly three-hour film "Manam," Telugu writers managed to tell two reincarnation stories about a son matchmaking for his parents across time, seamlessly blending the two narratives together. These two past life stories have subtle parallels: the first story occurs in the 1980s with a couple in an arranged marriage who argue every day, while the couple in the second story is in a love marriage and deeply in love with each other. Yet, whether it's the lack of love in the first story or the deep love in the second, both couples meet their fate in a tragic car accident. Both incidents occur on February 14 (the day after their son's 6th birthday), under a massive clock tower, precisely at 10:20 AM (notice the clock's time). Before both accidents, the son left at home sees ominous signs—before the first accident, the son sees a dead goldfish in the aquarium and traces of oil from a leaking car on the road (which lead to his parents’ car brake failure); before the second accident, he accidentally steps on a broken thermometer dropped by his mother, and a calendar page flies off the wall to reveal the date as February 14. These ominous details remind one of classic scenes in the horror film "Final Destination." In the end, all these ominous signs repeat during the third accident in the present (including the accident's time and location), showcasing the writers' clever construction. However, unlike the previous accidents, the third accident turns out to be benign, and ultimately, the three generations of the family reunite joyfully. (Note that as the three generations embrace joyfully in the middle of the road, an out-of-control truck is rushing towards them—this ending resembles the dark conclusions typical of "Final Destination,” and if the writers were bolder, ending the film there would have worked better, but Telugu audiences might not accept such an ending.) It is worth mentioning that "Manam," released in May 2014 and themed around family bonds, reincarnation, love, and eternity, stands out among many "heroic" Telugu films. Not only did it receive excellent reviews, but it also unexpectedly became a box-office hit, screening in 1,500 theaters globally and grossing a total of 500 million rupees (50 crores), being classified as a blockbuster. Unfortunately, the grandfather, Akkineni Nageswara Rao, passed away in February of this year—just three months before the film's release due to severe illness. In the later stages of filming, he had to lie in a hospital bed while staff brought recording equipment to complete the film's last voice-over work. Just like in the movie's plot, life is so unpredictable that sometimes you don’t know when it will suddenly end. Often, we don’t even get the chance to say goodbye to those we love. Moreover, we all understand, unlike the fantastical events in the film, that in this life, whether through love or hate, we can never encounter each other again in the next life. If such opportunities as in "Manam" really existed, we could only hope to still be a family in the next life. (daddycool)A memorable line: after the billionaire recognizes his former wife (the young girl in this life), he says, "I love you, Krishna. If I ever had a past life, this would be my last words to you before I die. When I first saw you in this life, this should have been my first sentence to you... but I didn’t.”Additionally, the songs from "Manam" are exquisite, and my favorite is "Chinni Chinni Aasalu," sung by Shreya Ghoshal, which appears shortly after the second half begins. (daddycool)