Tamil horror movie "Ra" has got mixed response from critics.
The Prabhu Yuvaraj-directed film starring Aditi Chengappa, Ashraf Baby, Yuvina, Geetha Babu, Jayanth, JP Jay, Lawrence Ramu, Ravi Prakasham and Redhika was released on 5 December.
The story of the film revolves around Ajay (played by Ashraf) and Ranya (played by Aditi) who elope from their homes and get married with the help of friends. However, under mysterious circumstances, Ranya is found dead on the morning after their marriage. Heartbroken, Ajay seeks the help of a psychic to help him get in touch with Ranya's ghost.
But soon, frightening things begin to happen at their house, typical of horror films. The door refusing to open, chair rising in the air, his bedsheet is pulled away while he is sleeping, and so on. However, the sub-plots do not join to the main plot, say critics. "It's a bit like a dull student copying parts of the same answer from several classmates," says one critic.
Most of them felt the film has an interesting first half, which fails to carry on in the second half. They opined that the effort by the film's makers to make it different did not reflect in the narration as well as in the script that is filled with clichés of a horror movie.
On the upside, the film scores in cinematography, colouring and editing, as also the background music by Raj Aryan, according to other critics.
Here are the reviews of "Ra":
"In their apparent eagerness to step away from the usual, the makers end up providing unsatisfactory answers. There's the omniscient 'scientist' (usually a priest in horror films), acting as a deus ex machina, and there's the mandatory twist at the end... but all of this only complicates things further. There's no one main plot that unifies all the sub-plots."
M Sugathan, The Times of India
"Finally, it looks like horror films in Tamil are coming of age. Ra is essentially a haunted house thriller but the writers Ashraf and Prabu Yuvaraj (the hero and the director of the film respectively) introduce an element of fantasy that gives it a different colour. And, their treatment isn't kitschy in the least bit and the director whips up a genuine sense of dread (Hollywood horror films 'Insidious', 'Stir Of Echoes' and 'Dead Silenceare' listed in the titles under filmography.")
"Technically 'Ra' stands out and it won't be an exaggeration to say that the cinematography and music in Ra is in par with some of the so called big budget films which are made in Tamil cinema. Saravanan's angle selection and colour tone are fabulous while debutant Raj Aryan has given a stunning background score and hummable tunes just like a veteran composer's work."
"Performances are pretty decent. Hero Ashraf although appears a little 'un'heroic in initial shots, we get used to him slowly and he is fairly convincing in most frames. Aditi Chengappa looks ravishing and fresh but sadly she does not have much screen time for the audience to revel in her beauty. Friend Lawrence Ramu who is also doubling up as the lyricist of the film has done his part well."
