UME

Sometimes great filmmakers make bad films, and sometimes bad filmmakers make great ones. Only recently we saw the failure of Francis Ford Coppola’s ‘Megalopolis’, whilst there have been plenty of duds even from the likes of Spielberg, Scorsese and Scott. Whilst the filmmakers behind ‘Ume’ may not yet be great, there is nonetheless skill and craftsmanship behind the film that suggests of a bright future one day. It is, however, a terrible shame that this film is not the best spotlight for that talent.

Directed by Karthik Prakki, ‘Ume’ is a tragic love story, following the plight of two young lovers, doomed to tragedy from the outset. It would be a beautifully sad romance, breaking hearts of all those that watched it, were it written with greater wit, but simultaneously greater whimsy. The two lovers, as played by Karthik Prakki and Divya Reddy never feel truly compatible, and that is a result of the poor writing between them. Neither character is particularly palatable by themselves, and as a couple they become even less so.

Love should be able to find its way over any language barrier, and yet in ‘Ume’ that is an issue that holds it back. It doesn’t translate to English from Hindi at all well, not through subtitles nor visually through the performances. Great love stories the language is never a problem, unfortunately with ‘Ume’ it is one of its most significant.

Whilst director Karthik Prakki brings a visual flair and energy to the directing, with each shot perfectly framed and well lit, creating a compelling visual image, the film is ultimately nothing more than that. A shallow, if beautiful, visual spectacle, with a story that never develops or hits the emotions that it intends to, and musical set pieces that never click. The lack of spark behind the musical choices is not helped by the way in which the sound is mixed and edited together with the rest of the film, often coming in too suddenly or fading too quickly. It disrupts the overall rhythm of the film and detracts from otherwise fun scenes.

‘Ume’ lacks the spark that should be front and centre in a romance story, and that missing spark is indicative of the whole film, which lacks much beyond surface level quality and talent behind the camera. There’s a good film in ‘Ume’, and Karthik Prakki will go on to make great films, but this is one best forgotten quickly.