Premam Poojyam Movie Review : Prem excels in this excessively long romantic drama

Prem completes his landmark 25th film with Premam Poojyam. The actor is best loved for his romantic roles, which earned him the title Lovely Star. There were massive expectations from this romantic drama. What stuns  most about Premam Poojyam is its cinematography. The film has been shot in picturesque locales, which make each frame look gorgeous. While we have a beautiful looking film, the narrative unfolds over nearly three hours, which could have been alright, given that this is a story spanning over 20 years in a person's life. Unfortunately, the screenplay and editing are a setback to this otherwise sweet tale that has been kept clean and free from most commercial staples such as fights, expletives and loud dialogues.

Yet, given the landmark film that this is, there is a passive aggressive heroism. The story of Dr Sri Hari and his love for his angel, Sherlyn Pinto, who is his batchmate, does cause some fatigue as it unfolds. And while the love can be claimed as pure and selfless on one side, one wonders if this borders on being toxic on the other.

The film has 12 songs, which are like major speed-breakers in the narrative. While some of them are nice, there isn't that one stand-out track that one usually finds in a Prem love story. Prem excels in this excessively long romantic drama and he gets to be in almost the entire duration of the film, entertaining throughout by giving his all.

Newbie Brinda Acharya, who has been introduced as Sandalwood's Angel in the film, shows some promise. While Master Anand and Sadhu Kokila entertain, sometimes their comic track seems unnecessary. And Aindrita Ray and Anu Prabhakar seem to be wasted in roles that are not worthy enough to be deemed as cameos.

if you're a Prem fan, as he gives his everything for his 25th film, you can watch this film once. one wishes there could have been a tighter story, as the plot did have ample promise.