Malayalam movie "Haram", which hit theatres on 20 February, has opened to below-average reviews. The movie, starring Fahadh Faasil and Radhika Apte in the lead, has reportedly failed to meet the expectations of both audience and critics.
The movie reportedly has a decent first half but most of the critics say the film goes haywire in the second half, because of its loose script and shallow characters. The movie apparently loses its grip when the characters became too dramatic, unlike in the first half.
The story of "Haram' is metro-centric and talks about Balu (Fahadh Faasil) and Isha (Radhika Apte). They meet and fall in love, eventually move in together and get married later. But they realise in a short time that they have nothing in common.
In their review, critics say that the film then deals with the shallowness of their married life and how they deal with their incompatibility.
The performances of the actors and cinematography of the movie are seen as highlights, while the slow pace and some irrelevant sequences spoil the narration.
"Haram" is directed by Vinod Sukumaran and cinematography is by Satheesh Kurup.
Here are the reviews of "Haram" by critics:
When a tale with no novelty is narrated there should be arresting elements in the script which which would kindle interest. A film can hold your attention with invigorating visuals as well, but it should not be the only saving grace as well. 'Haram' by Vinod Sukumaran is a story of our times, when marital discords have become more a norm than an exception. But the principal problem with the movie is that it simply doesn't bring anything new to the plate. A love story for sure but not one that is moving or which strikes an emotional chord.
Fahadh is good like always while Radhika's Malayalam debut is charming enough to give her a thumbs up. Although the plot seems promising at the beginning, the writer fails to sustain the interest of the audience due to weak screenplay and slow pace of the story. A few scenes could have been avoided to ensure the main story wasn't diluted. Cinematography is good so is the BGM.
Realistic approach has been adopted by the director to tell us this urban story. The problem I found was with the constrained script that just focuses on its target audience (which is a small number) and doesn't even try to invite other viewers to say their sensible perspective about the problem. When I finally found out about the Charity Vinod Sukumaran was mentioning, the question in my mind was whether this was the right way to narrate that "it is over move on" idea. Some of the intellectual dialogues about modern day love were quite interesting. Cinematography was good. I liked the Kanal kaatte song. The other songs may have suited the mood of the movie, but as the mood of the movie at those points were so unappealing, the music also sounded annoying.
The ineffective script makes movie the dull and sluggish. The movie, which narrates a relevant theme, fails to engage the audience. Haram, runs through a slow pace from the beginning to climax. Some unwanted elements were added to the plot, which makes the main story-line even more boring. Especially, the sub-plot and some particular scenes looks totally irrelevant and out of place.
Fahadh Faasil; the young talent of M-Town, once again proved his versatality to enounter any roles coming on his way. The actor executed the role of the hero with a sheer brilliance; delivering the character in full depth. Radhika Aapte, on the other hand, stands as yet another positive factor for the movie; with her elegant acting skills. The actress proved her talent in M-Town; promising that she will suit to any language films. The talents including Sreekumar, Sagarika and Rajasree Deshpande has also done their job with a sheer brilliance; with perfectly delivered acting skill along with the other characters portrayed by Ranji Panicker, Thara Kalyan, Madhupal, Binoy, etc.
