GOOD LUCK JERRY rests on a well-written script, strong performances and good humour.

Good Luck Jerry Review {3.0/5} & Review Rating

GOOD LUCK JERRY is the story of a girl who is forced to enter the world of crime. Jaya Kumari aka Jerry (Janhvi Kapoor) lives with her sister Chhaya Kumari aka Cherry and her mother Sharbati (Mita Vashisht) in Punjab. They are originally from Bihar where Jerry’s father died some time ago in a road accident. Sharbati earns her living by preparing dumplings. Jerry works in a massage parlour, much against the wishes of Sharbati though she has assured her mother that she doesn’t do anything that she should be ashamed of.

The family do not earn much but are happy in their lives. One day, they find out that Sharbati is suffering from stage 2 of lung cancer. The treatment costs nearly Rs. 20 lakhs. Jerry tries to raise funds, but her attempts are futile. One day, she unintentionally helps the police catch a drug peddler in a busy market. The drug peddler’s boss, Timmy (Jaswant Singh Dalal) and his associates, Daddu and Jigri realize that their man got nabbed due to Jerry. On a desolate street, they hold Cherry hostage and compel Jerry to enter the market and find out the place where the peddler had hidden the drugs. Once she gets the drugs for them, they’ll allow Jerry and Cherry to walk free.

Now, Jerry has no choice but to accept their demand. She smartly enters the market and secures the drugs. The policemen are frisking everyone here. Jerry, hence, hides the packet of drugs in a tiffin box below the noodles in such a way that no one can spot it. Impressed by her work, they release the sisters. Jigri drops his wallet on the spot and Cherry picks it up. It mentions their address. Jerry goes to their hideout to return the wallet and also insists that she wants to work with them. She tells Timmy that since she’s a girl, the cops won’t suspect her. Timmy at first refuses but then gives in when he realizes that she has a point and also because he falls for her. She is given the job of picking up the drugs from Timmy’s restaurant and then delivering them to a man named Malik (Saurabh Sachdeva).

Like always, she hides the drugs in the tiffin box. Inspector Lal (Rajender Sethi) wants to eliminate the drug business. He rounds up several suspects, all male, but fails to find any information or narcotics substance from them. He’s perplexed and wondering how the drug lords are carrying on with their business and who is helping them. One day, someone from Timmy’s gang calls Lal and tips him off about Jerry’s presence and the bus in which she’s travelling with the drugs. The cops hold a nakabandi and stop the bus. Jerry gets scared and realizes that she is about to get arrested. What happens next forms the rest of the film.

GOOD LUCK JERRY is the official remake of the Tamil film KOLAMAAVU KOKILA [2018; written and directed by Nelson]. Pankaj Matta’s story is promising and kind of novel. Pankaj Matta’s screenplay is engaging. The characters are well fleshed out and the narrative is peppered with humour and drama at regular intervals. There have been several films where the protagonist takes up the path of crime for the sake of the family. But here, the protagonist happens to be female. Moreover, her family angle gives a nice touch to the overall proceedings. Pankaj Matta’s dialogues are one of the strengths of the film. The impact in several scenes gets enhanced thanks to the one-liners.

Siddharth Sen’s direction is supreme, especially considering that this is his debut directorial venture. He brings alive the Punjab setting and one can see that a lot of effort and hard work has gone into depicting the authenticity. He doesn’t do a scene-by-scene remake of the original film and adds his touch. An impact is made, and the characters do seem ferocious. He also treats the comic portions very well. Despite it having violent characters, he doesn’t let the film become disturbing.

Good Luck Jerry Official Trailer | Janhvi Kapoor, Deepak Dobriyal

On the flipside, the second half gets stretched. The scene where Malik’s henchmen hold Jerry, and her family hostage is interesting on paper. But the film drops at this point, especially since the scene before that was too funny and this one doesn’t reach that level. Also, in a few places, the film is quite rushed. For example, one doesn’t fully understand how things unfolded when Jerry is told to give Timmy a massage.

GOOD LUCK JERRY starts with very creative opening credits, with ‘Jhand Ba’ playing in the background. The initial scenes are okay. The film picks up once Jerry encounters the drug dealers. How she manages to find the drugs in the loo is a fine scene. The way Jerry persuades Timmy to enlist her in his gang and the scene where she meets Malik for the first time adds to the fun. The intermission point is wicked and hilarious.

Post interval, the scene where Jerry must transport 100 kgs of drugs under the nose of the police brings the house down. The film drops again and then picks up in the climax fight. It is a bit convenient and unconvincing. However, humour saves the day.

Speaking of performances, Janhvi Kapoor is in top form. She excels in portraying the right kind of innocence required for this part. She has also understood the art of delivering a scene full of humour, but with a serious face. Deepak Dobriyal (Rinku) is the soul of the film. His performance is first-rate and the madness he brings to the table has to be seen to be believed. He has delivered several outstanding performances in the past and this one is among his best. Mita Vashisht is lovely and it’s good to see her in such a significant role. Jaswant Singh Dalal leaves a huge mark. Saurabh Sachdeva is over the top. His character’s actions in the pre-climax are questionable. Nevertheless, he is likeable. Sushant Singh is decent although one fails to understand why the makers had to show him taking the dump and add fart sounds needlessly. Rajender Sethi is dependable. The same goes for Neeraj Sood (Anil Uncle). The actors playing Cherry, Jigri and the momo seller are decent.

Parag Chhabra’s music is well-tuned. Sadly, none of the songs is of chartbuster variety. ‘Jhand Ba’ is impressive followed by ‘Jogan’ and ‘Paracetamol’. ‘Mor Mor’ and ‘Cutie Cutie’ are okay. Aman Pant’s background score is in sync with the film’s theme.

Rangarajan Ramabadran’s cinematography is neat. Madhur Madhavan and Swapnil Bhalerao’s production design is realistic, especially the set of Jerry’s house. Rushi Sharma, Manoshi Nath and Bhagyashree D Rajurkar’s costumes are straight out of life. Manohar Verma’s action is sans gore. Prakash Chandra Sahoo and Zubin Sheikh’s editing is fine but drags in the second half.

On the whole GOOD LUCK JERRY rests on a well-written script, the humour quotient and strong performances by Janhvi Kapoor and Deepak Dobriyal.