The State vs Jolly LLB 2: A jolly good entertainer

Movie: The State vs Jolly LLB 2

Genre: Drama, Comedy

Run Time: 2 hours 20 minutes

Director: Subhash Kapoor

Cast: Akshay Kumar, Huma Qureshi, Annu Kapoor, Saurabh Shukla

Rating: 7.5/10

The State vs Jolly LLB 2 is one of Akshay Kumar's best family entertainers, also providing a hidden insight to our justice system.

Plot:

Jagdish Mishra aka Jolly(Akshay Kumar) is a lawyer residing in Lucknow and is an assistant to a senior and reputable lawyer in the Lucknow Sessions court. After being unhappy with being an assistant, Jolly decides to arrange for money to get an office of his own and be looked up to as a successful lawyer. Hina Siddiqui(Sayani Gupta) is a widowed pregnant wife of deceased Iqbal Qasim(Manav Kaul) who was murdered by Suryaveer Singh(Kumud Mishra) after being paid to let wanted terrorist Iqbal Qadri go. As Hina looks to Jolly for justice, he scams her of her money and Hina commits suicide after finding out about him and losing all hope. This turns out to be an eye opener for Jolly and he decides to take Iqbal's murder case into his own hands and fight for Iqbal's innocence and justice. From that point on, it's several chapters of Akshay Kumar fighting the corrupt police force and judicial system, and winning the case after overcoming several obstacles and standing strong in the face of corruption.

What's to like:

Akshay Kumar's experimentation with different kinds of roles continues, and he delivers a well deserved family entertainer and lives up to all expectations of him. The director-actor pairing works on so many levels in the movie, and it shows evidently and brilliantly. Akshay Kumar's comic timing is wonderful and it only seems to be getting better over time. The story is not unnecessarily complicated or 'trying-too-hard', with there being several moments that connect with the audience on an emotional level. Annu Kapoor playing the role of Kantilal Mathur delivers a stand-up performance as the defense lawyer, providing a brilliant on-screen dynamic between Akshay Kumar and him. Saurabh Shukla's role as Judge Tripathy is the icing on the cake, and the the comical dialogue exchanges between Saurabh-Akshay and Saurabh-Annu are sure to give you the giggles. There is no unnecessary action or out-of-turn hero-giri happening in the movie, which shows that simplicity always delivers if done right. The conventional way of the protagonist party providing you a 'happy ending' isn't made too obvious, with Akshay Kumar hitting several substantial hurdles on his way to winning the case, which in turn keeps the suspense alive.

What's not to like:

The role of the leading actress(Huma Qureshi) is quite unnecessary in the movie, and the only impression the audience has of hers is of a mild alcoholic who isn't sympathetic or empathetic in nature. A few dialogues seem overdone every now and then, with the actors not seeming very comfortable while saying it. Akshay Kumar looks slightly superficial in one or two scenes in the first half of the movie, but delivers a good all-round performance nevertheless.

Why you should watch it:

If you're looking to catch a fun family entertainer over the weekend, Jolly LLB 2 is the movie to go for. It promises laughter and good comic timing, with no cheap, unhealthy or sexist jokes, and sticking to its simplicity. The movie also provides a good look into what our judicial system is from the inside, and what it lacks and needs as well. Saurabh Shukla's monologue at the end of the movie makes you aware of why our system is the way it is, but why people should and do trust in it anyway. All in all, the movie holds a promise of entertainment, but also leaves you walking out of the theatre having taken something substantial from it.