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The Freelancer 2 Review: Neeraj Pandey and team grip you into the rescue mission with Mohit Raina
Planning to watch the Neeraj Pandey credited The Freelancer 2 over the weekend? Read Pinkvilla's review and let us help you decide.
Name: The Freelancer The Conclusion
Cast: Anupam Kher,Mohit Raina
Earlier in the year, Neeraj Pandey and Disney+Hotstar dropped the first part of their espionage thriller, The Freelancer, with a promise of returning in 3 months with the concluding episodes. Does this Mohit Raina-led thriller live up to the expectations? Let’s find out!
Plot of The Freelancer 2:
The first part of The Freelancer sets up the conflict of how Aliya (Kashmira Pardeshi) is tricked by her own family to get trapped in the war zone – Syria. The second part of the series is basically based on a rescue mission undertaken by an ex-cop turned mercenary, Avinash Kamath (Mohit Raina), who happens to be the uncle of Aliya. Avinash activates his network of mercenaries and also seeks the help of global intelligence agencies to execute the mission. Does he succeed? Watch Freelancer 2 to know more!
What works for The Freelancer 2?
The core conflict of The Freelancer has the elements to keep you on the edge of your seat. The creator, Neeraj Pandey, along with director Dhav Dhulia and fellow Writers Ritesh Shah and Shirish Thorat, have strong source material that makes you root for the victory of characters. There are moments, which keep you on the edge of your seat, especially in the final episode.
The series lives up to the expectations created by the cliffhanger of the first part. The performances are nuanced and the narrative is fast-paced. The makers don’t drag the conflict for too long and stay true to the genre. The final 30 minutes are nail-biting, whereas there are elements in all the episodes that create the thrilling moments. The BGM is solid and elevates the impact of the narrative. In-fact, it’s placed at the right moments to spike curiosity.
There are enough elements in The Freelancer 2 to make for a perfect cinematic feature presentation too, in-fact, it could have been an ideal subject for Baby 2 with Akshay Kumar. The series has a voice of its own, that's distinct from other espionage content on the digital world like Special Ops and The Family Man.
What doesn’t work for The Freelancer 2?
The biggest issue with The Freelancer 2 is the idea of geniuses to split a single-season series into a two-parter. A mission-based thriller is all about getting invested in the world, and it’s unfair on anyone’s part two purposely split it in two parts for commercial reasons. As a viewer, it always gets difficult to rebuild the emotional conflict and root for the characters all over again. The impact will always be higher when espionage is told in one go.
The logistical part aside, The Freelancer 2 does take a lot of creative liberties and one needs to be invested in the characters to ignore the logical loopholes in some instances. There is an entire sub-track that takes heavy reference from the Tiger Franchise, and it’s hard to ignore the similarities. The production values could have been better.
Performances in The Freelancer 2
Mohit Raina as Avinash Kamath delivers a credible performance and has an aura and body language that makes you believe in his capability to successfully undertake the rescue mission. Anupam Kher as Dr. Arif has a cameo who mentors Avinash at key junctures of the journey. Kashmira Pardeshi is solid and seems to be a talent to watch out for. Manjari Fadnnis does well in her brief appearance. Navneet Malik has the calm as one of the antagonists and lets the emotion flow off his eyes. The entire series is cast to perfection by the makers.
Verdict of The Freelancer 2
Overall, The Freelancer 2 is a well-made espionage thriller that rides on edge-of-the-seat moments, a credible performance, and a well-written story. While suspension of disbelief is needed to delve into this world, the emotions are strong enough for you to root for the protagonist’s journey. It’s another winner from Neeraj Pandey and Team.
3.5 Stars
ALSO READ: The Freelancer Review: Neeraj Pandey delivers another winner, this time with Mohit Raina
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