Category
🎥
Short filmTranscript
00:00P.K.Ramdas has left a legacy in this war.
00:03This legacy is for this institution.
00:06I am the Emperor.
00:08Emperor!
00:13Emperor!
00:16Let this show be a blessing to Mishikai.
00:19Hi everyone, this is Manjusha Radhakrishnan.
00:21I am the Entertainment Editor.
00:23This morning at 4.30 am, I was not up for a school run,
00:27but to watch the first day first show of Mohanlal's L2 Empuran.
00:31It's a directorial by actor Prithviraj,
00:34who also plays a very important role in the sequel to Lucifer.
00:38It's out in the UAE cinemas now, it's an Eid release.
00:41Now here is what I really loved about the movie,
00:44when it comes to ambition and scale,
00:46this is one movie that you can watch.
00:48It will make the makers of Mission Impossible,
00:51perhaps even James Bond, sit up and take notice.
00:54Because we are on a globetrotting adventure.
00:57But when a movie opens with an adage which says,
01:00power corrupts, but absolute power corrupts absolutely,
01:04you know you are in for a very pretentious ride.
01:07It doesn't disappoint.
01:08I have to say, the first two hours of the movie were slightly painful,
01:12because you have seen this in Hollywood franchises.
01:15You don't need to go for a Malayalam film,
01:17to watch globetrotting, you know, stylish heroes conquer enemies.
01:23I thought the geopolitics of it all,
01:25and the time it took to set the scene up,
01:28it took way too long,
01:30and by the time, it was really exhausting to go around the world,
01:33and find out more about Stephen Nedumpally,
01:36which is the principal character, played by Mohanlal.
01:40All those who turned up at 4.30am in the morning,
01:43will vouch that they turned up to see Mohanlal turn up the swag in Mundu,
01:47a crisp white linen wrap around, yeah,
01:50and then deliver these punchy one-liners.
01:52What really disappointed me,
01:54is that it took a long time for Stephen Nedumpally,
01:57also known as Qureshi Abraham,
01:59the man behind the myth we are told,
02:02he is a saviour, but he's got a shady past,
02:05he's also a crime lord, a drug lord, etc.
02:08But we don't get much backstory into him,
02:11and it takes forever to set up the scene.
02:13Nearly one hour into the movie, and Mohanlal is still not there,
02:16which kind of is very disappointing and yawn-inducing,
02:19and at 4.30am, remember, I had to actually get toothpicks
02:22to keep my eyes open, it's a true story.
02:25But the second half is what really had my heart,
02:29there was Manju Warrier and Tovino Thomas,
02:32two brilliant actors, in fact they play siblings in this movie,
02:35there is Tovino Thomas, who is now the Chief Minister of Kerala,
02:39and he holds a very powerful position,
02:42he is in top form, the kind of command that he has over the role,
02:46he is truly commendable in his role,
02:49as this very rogue leader gone corrupt.
02:52His firing with his sister, played with quite authority by Manju Warrier,
02:56is brilliant to watch.
02:58In fact, I wish Empuran was more about the Empress, Manju Warrier,
03:02and her brother, rather than Mohanlal himself.
03:05It's not to throw a shade on the actor, he's got swagger,
03:08but by the time it comes around, you have already forgotten the plot.
03:12Another thing is, it's the second half of the movie that redeems this entire movie.
03:16You don't need to watch a Malayalam movie for stunts,
03:19for ambition, scale, etc.
03:21We are known for our realistic storytelling.
03:24And this is one of the movies that plays style over substance.
03:28I mean, there's of course Prithviraj,
03:30we get to see more of him, in Lucifer he had a very small role,
03:34but Prithviraj, who is the director of this movie,
03:37there's an origin story of him,
03:39and this movie takes up a long time establishing who he is.
03:43Why should we know this character, Masood?
03:46The problem is, it's not very riveting.
03:48The first few bits, where Hindi-speaking bits,
03:51make you believe that it's almost a deliberate attempt
03:54to appeal to the pan-India audiences.
03:56It feels very contrived.
03:58I wish they had just stuck to the brief of Mohanlal in Mundu saving the world.
04:04I wish there were more punchy one-liners.
04:06I've gone with 3 out of 5.
04:08Trust me, the 0.5 is given for the grand ambition and the scale
04:12and the globetrotting adventures that he took us on.
04:15But when it comes to emotional depth,
04:17when it comes to a great storyline,
04:19it leaves us disappointed.
04:20It's the second half that I liked.
04:22For my full review, you can always go to gulfnews.com
04:25or visit our website.