With Love review: A familiar romance that struggles to truly connect
With Love review by Kausalya Rachavelpula
With Love sets out to be a gentle romantic drama rooted in nostalgia and emotional reflection, but the film struggles to build genuine engagement. While it has a clear intent and a few pleasant moments, the overall experience feels uneven, with pacing issues and emotions that rarely feel organic.
The most immediate challenge comes in the first half, which moves at a sluggish pace. Scenes linger far longer than necessary, often repeating the same emotional beats without adding new insight into the characters. Instead of drawing the audience into the world of the film, this stretched setup creates distance. The narrative appears hesitant to establish a compelling conflict early on, resulting in a viewing experience that feels tedious rather than immersive.
The second half does show some improvement. The story begins to focus more clearly on relationships and unresolved emotions, and there is a visible attempt to bring emotional clarity to the narrative. However, even here, the connection remains largely surface-level. The emotions feel manufactured rather than lived-in, as though the film is signalling what the audience should feel instead of allowing those feelings to develop naturally. While the storytelling becomes more coherent, it never fully manages to create a lasting emotional pull.
Performances play a significant role in this disconnect. Abishan Jeevinth delivers a reasonably sincere performance, bringing a relatable, understated presence to his role. He appears comfortable on screen and handles lighter moments well, though he occasionally struggles in scenes that demand deeper emotional intensity. His effort is evident, but the material rarely allows him to explore the character beyond a limited emotional range.
Aishwarya Rajan’s performance, however, stands out for the wrong reasons. Her acting lacks emotional conviction, making it difficult to connect with her character or invest in her arc. Key scenes that require vulnerability or expressive depth feel flat, reducing the impact of moments that should have carried emotional weight. Rather than enriching the narrative, her under-inspired performance contributes to the film’s overall emotional distance, reinforcing the sense that the relationships exist more on paper than on screen.
The chemistry between the leads is inconsistent, and this further weakens the film’s emotional credibility. While there are isolated moments of warmth, they are not strong enough to sustain long-term engagement. The supporting characters are functional but underwritten, serving mainly as narrative tools rather than fully realised individuals.
On the technical front, With Love is competently made. The cinematography favours warm tones and soft framing, which suit the film’s nostalgic ambitions. The music complements the mood and occasionally elevates scenes, though it often feels like an attempt to compensate for emotional gaps rather than enhance already strong moments. Visually and aurally, the film maintains a pleasant surface, but it cannot mask the lack of emotional depth beneath. The Telugu dubbing suffers from poorly rendered songs, and the sound mix is uneven, with the audio often feeling unnecessarily loud.
With Love review: Ultimately, With Love is a film that improves structurally in its latter half but never becomes truly engaging. Its biggest flaw lies in its inability to foster a genuine emotional connection, leaving the audience aware of the intended feelings without actually experiencing them. While it may appeal to viewers who enjoy slow-paced romances with a nostalgic tone, those seeking a heartfelt or emotionally resonant love story are likely to find the experience underwhelming and artificial.
Fridaywall rating: 1.75/5
