"5 Idiots" is an ordinary film based on a weak story and average performances from artistes.
Though the film will be able to bring in a few laughs through its slapstick presentation, its weak plot becomes irritating as the film progresses.
Towards the second half, it becomes clear that director Master Anand has tried every trick to induce some forced laughs from the hapless audience.
Despite the presence of a large number of comedy artistes in its cast, "5 Idiots" ends up as a worn out satire. The film falls apart after creating a little bit of curiosity in the beginning.
Master Anand shows unseemly hurry in ending the script with a bizarre chase sequence which has neither funny nor thrilling elements in it.
The music of the film has lifted a few popular songs from non-Kannada films, including "Ringa Ringa" and "Jingi Thakka" from Telugu film "Arya 2" and "Porunami", respectively.
The "Suvarna" song was composed for the yet-to-be-released film "Kaun Banegaa Kotyaadhipathi" directed by Umakanth and has been used for this film.
All the songs are badly placed and there is a discomfort of watching the songs at the most inappropriate moments.
Many sequences are quite lengthy and contain lots of repetitive dialogues which may be irritating to the audience.
Master Anand, who got some appreciation for directing TV serial "S.S.L.C. Nam Maklu", has directed the film in the same way he directed the show.
Like in the serial, majority of sequences in the film happen in a house. Production values or camera work are mediocre by any standards.
The film starts off well, introducing the five characters.
The first protagonist is a software engineer who loses his job in the recession and wants to save himself from his family problems.
The other four in the group - Anand, Naveen, Petrol and Namratha - also need money after being thrown out of their houses or from their petty jobs.
One girl in the group advises to kidnap a rich businessman's daughter and seek ransom from her father.
The five-member gang kidnaps the rich girl and places her in a forsaken bungalow. The rich girl shows no sense of fear or stress at being kidnapped, but instead advises the gang on certain matters.
The confusion is compounded after a policeman, an insurance agent, a doctor and a female marketing executive make an entry in the house. How this confusion ends in the final reel forms the rest of the plot.
Except for seasoned performers like Naveen Krishna and Harshitha Poonacha, all the other artistes either overacted or did not perform well.
"5 Idiots" is eminently watchable if you can laugh at even illogical and poorly-written lengthier sequences.