Love J Action Review: Sony Liv’s Newest Offering Doesn’t Live Up To The Expectations (Photo Credit: Instagram/sonylivindia)
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Love J Action Review: Star Rating: 2.5/5 Stars (Two and a Half Stars)
A girl about to get married elopes with her lover and sets out from the shackles of an abusive home to a free world. Amid this is the landscape of the goons who don’t buy things but snatch them at gunpoint. Did you find anything new in those three lines? Well, I have seen the show and know there is a bit of newness to it in the execution but is that enough? Well, let’s assess that. Sony Liv’s newest offering Love J Action starring Anud Singh Dhaka has the actor headlining the show seamlessly even when the writing dips down.
A boy from Lucknow (Jackson aka Anud) falls for a girl (Kamya aka Kangan) from a prestigious family at first sight. The twist is that Kamya is already getting married, and Jackson needs to save his love from getting into one more abusive relationship. Well, not that Kamya is as sorted as it looks; she has some different motives too. How that unfolds and what it leads to becomes the plot.
Doesn’t happen many times that I begin this section with performances, but that is what makes Love J Action partly intriguing to sit through. Anud Singh Dhaka, who headlines the show as Jackson, which was earlier the title, is a treat to witness. Having loved him in Taj Mahal 1989, I was prepared for his eccentricity, and he did offer that too. But with a sense of realism. He creates the character one like we all have seen and can connect to.
Puru Chibber becomes the bad guy with ease and so does Kangan, who had to show a range of shades does justice to the job given. The story of the show that promises to be a romantic thriller is not completely new. Even the skeleton so to say is the staple one we have seen. This said, performances hook the audience at least much that they stay for the actors.
Not to forget there are scenes where the thrill increases. For instance, when police interrogate Jackson in the first episode, he breaks down. Or when Jackson saves Kamya. But these are small instalments from a show that demands big investment.
One more plus is the fact that director-creator Saurabh Tewari knows his story is not something that the world has never seen. So he increases his pace when the clichés happen, and that saves one from watching montages we have seen for years. Also, that helps in creating a better part of the intrigue as you don’t stay at a point for too long.
Love J Action Review: Sony Liv’s Newest Offering Doesn’t Live Up To The Expectations
Love J Action Review: What Doesn’t Work:
The predictability of it all. I could literally tell what’s next and who the person is (except the last reveal). To further dismay, even the camera helped me by revealing a lot about the faces it wasn’t supposed to (you will see). So when the plot is one that is already explored and you add predictable notes to it, you know the damage you have done.
The show is men running behind a woman, who is herself working on a different tangent. I understand you are taking cues from films that talk about oppressed women and how they become cunning to get out of that world. For example, Madhuri Dixit’s Dedh Ishqiya. How men there tried to control or get the women while she broke free with her lover (and you know who that is).
But unlike Dedh Ishqiya, Love J Action fails to create depth in the characters that have to be complex. But the complexities never shine; they rather look one tone after a point. Add to that abrupt transitions that become jarring after a point.
Camera work and Music as well doesn’t add much to the experience which it definitely should have considering both the cities the show is set in are picturesque.
Love J Action Review: Last Words:
The show has some earnest acting performances, and they stand out. But what can they do if the base isn’t strong? This one turned out to be the weakest in the Sony Liv library.
