Jolly LLB 2
Year: 2017
Director: Subhash Kapoor
Cast: Akshay Kumar, Saurabh Shukla, Annu Kapoor, Huma Qureshi, Sayani Gupta

Over the last few years, Akshay Kumar has discovered a magic formula at the box office, which has enabled him take on the mighty Khans and establish as perhaps the most bankable star in Bollywood. While he still keeps dishing out his action films and corny comedies, which brought him the initial success; he is now regularly coming up with more meaningful cinema. So the serious Akshay in films such as Special 26, Baby, Airlift and Rustom is way different from the Akshay playing to the gallery in films like House Full and Rowdy Rathore. Jolly LLB 2 is a film that brings for us yet another serious Akshay.

The original Jolly LLB (2013) was a sleeper hit and this second coming, while keeping the same director Subhash Kapoor, rather unfairly dumps the original leading man Arshad Warsi. The template remains the same. So we get a small-time small town lawyer taking on a famous city lawyer shielding a high-placed corrupt client, a script inspired by real life newspaper headlines and lots of insights into inadequacies of Indian legal system.

What’s the plot?

A wannabe lawyer (Akshay Kumar), working as a handyman for a leading barrister, is harboring dreams of practicing in his own chamber. To buy that chamber, he ends up duping a desperate client, a widow (Sayani Gupta) who is looking to bring the killers of her husband to justice. The con leads to the lady committing suicide. The shamed and shaken lawyer now decides to atone for his sins. He files a PIL (Public Interest Litigation) to reopen investigation into the contentious death- a fake encounter staged by a much-decorated police officer. A ruthless top lawyer (Annu Kapoor) is defending the accused cop and he will go to any extent to make sure that the idealist novice won’t succeed. A quirky judge (Saurabh Shukla) will decide their fate!

What’s hot?

·        Just like the original Jolly LLB, this film too exposes the idiosyncrasies and inadequacies of Indian legal system.

·        Using plot-lines from various recent newspaper headlines, Jolly LLB 2 makes a good case as an interesting intriguing court drama.

·        The film raises some sensitive points about the rogue cops, staged encounters and manipulation-prone legal system.

·        The electric chemistry between the judge and the opposing counsels is the highlight of the movie. All three main protagonists are excellent in their portrayals.

What’s not?

·        The reality-inspired story takes many unrealistic and melodramatic turns.

·        The film falls short on fun-quotient.

·        The music is ordinary.

Verdict

The second helping of Jolly LLB is entertaining but is short on the fun, wit and heart of the first film and a lot of that is due to the decision to change the leading man. Akshay Kumar no doubt brings his much greater star presence and helps the film in reaching bigger masses and raking in more moolah. The film just reconfirms his astute box-office sense but his rather predictable, straightforward, unsmiling, moustached Jolly lacks the warmth and charm of Arshad Warsi’s original Jolly!

Subhash Kapoor has got a good franchise going on here! Bring on the third part!

Rating

3 stars