L2 Empuraan Review

Ashwin Ram

L2: Empuraan is the sequel to the 2019 political action drama flick Lucifer. The film stars Mohanlal in the lead role and it is directed by Prithviraj Sukumaran.

Premise:

Following the events of Lucifer, this mid-piece of the trilogy focuses on Mohanlal’s true identity Khureshi Ab’ram. How his KA cartel deals against drug mafia and the happenings after his brother goes rogue with respect to the local Kerala politics forms the rest.

Writing/ Direction:

Empuraan follows the same Lucifer template of not giving the entire screen space to the hero but showcasing how the character impacts on others. The only difference is that, the first part established the conflicts within the first 30 minutes on a racy note, this one leisurely takes one whole hour. The pacing isn’t the only issue here, the plot-points are not strong enough plus they are presented as lengthy blocks, ending up draining our energy. Even the hero introduction scene is dragged to a huge extent that results being a bummer. There was a powerful want for the hero in the story of Lucifer, it translated to the audience as well, hence the cheer when Vivek Oberoi character was murdered. The factor is totally missing here, the conflict between Abhimanyu Singh and Prithviraj is very generic, the treatment is underwhelming too. The political scenario is also not stitched coherently, despite some efforts with parallel narratives, there is no solid purpose as to why Tovino Thomas is going rogue and the entire Manju Warrier aspect was so clichéd. Likewise, the foreign portions taking place between the global cartels lack substance and none of the characters have any sort of depth. The flow is extremely predictable throughout and the lead to the third part is hurriedly shown without closing the brackets of many already existing subplots. The L metaphor denoting the word 'Lucifer' is used in a full-blown manner. A couple of plot-points work and certain sarcastic dialogues are clap worthy. The hero elevation slow-motion shots are captured perfectly which would be a treat for Mohanlal’s fans in the theatres. Hats-off to director Prithviraj’s grand vision, the film achieves the attempted technical quality and truly feels like a spectacular Hollywood venture. The foreign actors speak their own languages on-screen which does justice to the nativity of the locations across multiple countries.

Performances:

Mohanlal maintains his powerhouse presence of being a silent killer in this outing too. The audience is sure to go crazy for his heroic action stretches. Tovino Thomas and Manju Warrier character writing is weak, hence they are not utilized to their caliber. Suraj Venjaramoodu gets a couple of humour lines to deliver and he does ease out the stiffness in the story. Abhimanyu Singh fits well for the villain role here, but his character’s pointless existence could not create any impact. Many foreign actors have done well, they offer the much-needed punch value during the action sequences.

Technicalities:

It’s definitely a technically sound film, undoubtedly a spectacle Malayalam cinema has produced till date, and it’s solely because of the awestruck cinematography. Shot in exotic locations on an enormous scale and budget, the best part is that the money spent is evident on the big screens. Pitch-perfect camera angles and movements, along with the rightful lenses offer us a rich visual experience. Music is average, the mass elements are already not carrying enough drama to root for, the disappointing background score deteriorates the excitement. Betterment could have been easily done at the edit table, it could have at least been a passable watch if the lags were rectified and the output was half an hour minutes crisper. Sound stage is vast and the department has worked accordingly, even the minute details are implemented. The action choreography fits the commercial bill, the duo fight at the pre-climax is conceived well.

Bottomline

Full marks for the making, sadly the content and the conflicts aren’t half worthy as the first part. Some hero elevations work, but the inconsistent narrative pattern and prolonging several situations for an excessive amount of time leads to the mishap.

L2: Empuraan - All Style and Minimal Substance!

Rating - 2.5/ 5