Nikhil K
This film truly won me over. The screenplay was excellent, complemented by a fantastic soundtrack. The casting choices were spot-on, and the script was well-crafted. In my opinion, it's a prime example of a romantic comedy done right.
Rated 5/5 Stars •
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
08/07/24
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Audience Member
Even though it's time for the release of the Telugu remake, according to whatever intel the Telugu trailer has given us, it would be better to watch the more sensible and technically brilliant Malayalam original.
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
01/23/23
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Audience Member
One of the best realistic romantic movies in recent times. Excellent music, Nice direction, nice cast, mediocre story, mediocre camera work. Premam is thats all. My Rating - 6.5/10
Rated 3.5/5 Stars •
Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars
02/14/23
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While being about not much, Premam succeeds by surprising the audience with a genre-defying style, and through the sheer force of Nivin Pauly's brilliant acting. Some good songs as well.
Rated 3/5 Stars •
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
01/22/23
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Audience Member
For all non- Keraliites, here's a little perspective :).
Premam (Love) is a 2015 coming-of-age romantic- comedy drama directed by Alphonse Puthren, starring Nivin Pauly and a trio of female leads (Anupama Parameshwaran, Sai Pallavi and Madonna Sebastian). The movie was an instant hit, with the songs and dialogue being lapped up by the public. Armed with unanimous critical acclaim,the movie went on to break all box office records and became the highest-grossing Malayalam film of all time.Cinemas were booked beyond capacity, and people were enthralled by the chemistry between the leads. The Hindu reported that Premam was on the expressway of becoming a cult
Now, ever since I had been home, my mother had literallybeen hounding me to watch Premam. She, like all ordinary Malayalees, was intrigued by the hula surrounding the movie and wanted to find what it was all about. Now, I wasn't all that excited, because the poster, and even the name, suggested that it was a normal cheesy romance, with all the cliches attached with a Mollywood film. Finally, despite my misgivings, I gave in. And after three weeks and numerous attempts, I was finally able to book tickets for my family at a nearby multiplex.
Now, along with all the praise, there were many negative opinions. People found the movie unworthy of all the attention it was receiving.
Now, Puthren is a two film old director. His first flick, the 2013 bilingual Neram, was an unconventional comedy. with Premam, he takes the oldest story in the world and gives it a unique flavor. Premam is George's (Nivin) story, who is an affable, unassuming Kochiite. The movie follows his love- life in the three the stages of his life - as a 16 year old, a 20 year old and a 30 year old. Nothing new here. But what makes Premam special is its treatment. From the picturesque cinematography to the natural dialogues, Premam has an air of originality surrounding it. It has genuine moments of humor, which blends to the storyline and contributes to the narrative. There were numerous moments in the film which gave me a feeling of deja vu, as though it were taken out of my life. For example, a scene shows lecturer of Computer Science in George's college, attempting to teach Java, when it is apparent he doesn't understand it himself. Along with evoking laughter, I was reminded of my own teachers(no offence intended!).
The screenplay is slick, there are no moments of boredom, and the direction is both confident and crisp. But what makes the movie tick is the performances. There are about 17 debutantes in the film and the fresh faces do contribute to the feel it carries. Especially, Shabareesh Varma As Shambu does an excellent job as George's friend. Madonna Sebastian and Anupama Parameshwaran does'n have a huge role to play, and do what they are required to do without any qualms. But it is Sai Pallavi, who plays Malar, the surprise package. She brings an inexpiable earthiness to her role. With her pimpled face devoid of make-up and ordinary attire, she has broken the mold on how a female lead of a romantic movie should look on screen. She has charm and makes the character of Malar her own. It's easy to see why George fell for her! :P.
However, all said and done, it is Nivin Pauly who runs the show. Playing the three stages of George's life, has has displayed amazing maturity and has quietly gone about his job.You won't Nivin Pauly on screen, you see George, and his life. He oozes charm, and no matter what, you feel for his plight.
Premam was marketed with the the tagline,
"The second film in the history of world cinema with nothing new."
There cannot be a better way to describe the movie. If you go watch the flick, expecting a masterpiece, you will be disappointed; however, if you go without any preconceptions, you will have a good time. That said, it is not hard to see why the movie has attained a cult status. Rarely has there been a Malayalam movie that felt so fresh and real. Add to that the chemistry between the leads, it's hard not to like. OOOOhhh.... and that song! Malareeee.... It sticks with you. Beautifully composed; and sung eloquently by Vijay Yesudas, it is an ode to all Malayalee romantics.
Yes, It has nothing new. Yes, it sticks to the traditional cliches and stereotypes. Yes, it is not perfect. But it is still worth a watch due to the performances and the treatment, which gives us a movie that is both enjoyable and entertaining.
No, it's not a masterpiece. Hell, it's not even a great film. A good, fun film - that's what it is!
Rated 3/5 Stars •
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
02/07/23
Full Review
Audience Member
Premam - Film Review
By Vince Augustine
The day before yesterday I was trying to understand acting; I was reading a book by the legendary John Gielgud, about acting Shakespeare. It made no sense to me.
Yesterday I watched Rainer Werner Fassbinder's "The Marriage of Eva Braun." In my opinion, the film almost touches Greatness. But the acting (Maria Zhygulla) was what really blew the roof.
Today I set foot in a cinema hall after a very long time. I was accompanying a college friend who was going to be watching Premam, a second time around. He had earlier called me one midnight after just having watched Premam. He was excited, breathless and quite wordless too! What I managed to decipher was that he wanted me to watch it. And that he would be there too.... to drink and sup in the revelry of pure motion picture bliss!
The only bribe I coaxed from him was the few remaining drops in a Pan Tadeusz Vodka bottle.
After the movie my friend asks me for my opinion. I tell him to read my review in tomorrow's papers. He thinks this is my first review. It is actually my third. And hopefully I have learnt to write a review in the interim.
I should thank my friend and the makers of Premam for inspiring me to write again. So here goes....
Let's deconstruct first...
Cafe Agape is the setting for the final act in Premam. Agape is an often used term in the Bible, referring to the highest form of Love, and symbolized by Jesus' sacrifice.
Director Alphonse Puthren uses the name and the motif (the decor and architecture in the cafe) to crown the protagonist's experiences of love in this last act. But sadly it doesn't hold. The last act is the weakest link the movie.
By the last act George (played by Nivin Pauly) has grown into this surly if successful cafe owner: the acting and writing choices here are very awkward tonal shifts from the first two acts.
The second act is unevenly longer but the strongest of the three. It furthers some threads from the first act rather believably: from boys to men to boys again. There are a few nice surprising touches: the sober teacher character Malar (Sai Pallavi) suddenly breaking into a dance, Shambhu and the episode with the Silk Smitha magazine. But some travesties are also committed: George's family angle is given a scene chewing episode (Renji Panicker) but not furthered at all. The college gang episodes seem like afterthoughts added by the screenwriters to balance out the college perspective. The whole professor sidetrack is caricaturish and gratingly unfunny due to some overtly enthusiastic ponging by the actors Vinay Fort and Soubin Shahir.
The first act is intended to be light but turns out to be surprisingly lightweight. It is nothing but a series of unimaginative and repeated set pieces involving suitors being chased down and beaten up by the father of the local beauty Mary (played by Anupama Parameshwaran).
So isn't Premam all about love?
It is ....
about the love for Nivin Pauly's by now familiar Boy-Man alter ego
about the strange love for shooting frogs, sparrows, butterflies, moss, thickets, and groves in
random fashion
about the love for milking Blockbuster tropes that have helped generations of mediocre films turn
Into cult blockbusters
about the love for shamelessly serenading a Goddess called Entertainment at the cost of Cinematic
Truth
about the love for Trending and not for writing a coherent story
I get it.... I am getting carried away. So let's get back to our simple conversation.....
The acting is uniformly good...
Nivin Pauly can't go wrong with a character like this. Wait! He can. And he does in the final act.
The girls are all good. Anupama Parameshwaran has quite a presence but her role as Mary is fluffed over for the most part. Sai Pallavi is an easy on the performer and gets the juiciest part. Madonna Sebastian has the charisma of a movie star but gets the weakest of the three female parts.
Krishna Shanker and Shabareesh Varma are enthusiastic enough despite half baked roles.
There is some patchy framing and unnecessary handheld camera work that offset the effect of otherwise competent cinematography.
One of the major plusses for the film is the almost syncretic balance between the soundtrack and the choreography.
Ok we get it. Premam is about love. But where's the story ?
It is actually about an ordinary teenage boy role playing Christ's passion in his pursuit of love. This Christ some cardboard disciples (disguised as friends in the movie) whose main purpose is to interact with Christ's fringe world. The fringe world connects these characters to their surrounding environment and also to the audience reading their story.
Into the sanctum of Christ's life enter three women ..... and Christ's life is lead to its meaning.
The Kerala New Metro Wave's (post 2005; as I'd like to call it) calling card is Premam. Nivin Pauly has a claim on this wave and God Forbid if Alphonse Puthran initially conceived Premam while watching the Last Temptation of Christ.
Rated 1.5/5 Stars •
Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars
01/14/23
Full Review
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