REELGUY'S DVD REVIEWS:
"Boondock Saints 2: All Saints Day" 2 little, 2 late
Maine Connection: Maine humorist Bob Marley co-stars in this picture as a Boston cop, returning to his role from the first movie.
Are long-awaited sequels ever a good idea? There are plenty of detractors of "The Godfather Part III" and the "Star Wars" prequels, among other lesser known series, that would firmly state "no!" Other film fans are not so hasty and usually enjoy re-connecting with a story and its characters, that they didn't get enough of the first time around. The detractors gain further ammunition against the long-gestating sequel with Troy Duffy's "Boondock Saints: All Saints Day." Whatever magic the first-time director captured in the original picture is gone ten years later. The violent, self-aware, fraternal energy that fueled the first action flick feels tastelessly over-the-top and mentally draining in its sequel. Even with most of the original cast returning, "All Saints Day" is a pale imitation of its predecessor.
The MacManus brothers, who went on a vengeance spree against the mafia a decade ago, retired to Ireland with their long-lost Poppa (Billy Connelly; "X-Files: I Want to Believe"). However, word reaches them that their hometown Boston priest was ritually killed. Believing they are being "called out" by the remnants of the mob they fought before, Connor and Murphy put their trench coats back on and get their trigger fingers ready. Along the way, they meet a new collaborator called Romeo and a fresh Investigator named Eunice (Julie Benz; "Rambo"), who also happens to be FBI agent Smecker’s protégé.
There are some staged shoot 'em ups with the brothers and a few recreated crime scenes with the investigator, but none of these scenes pop like in the first movie. The boys just never seem to be in any real trouble; the jeopardy feels cartoonish instead of gritty and realistic. While Benz's performance as the smart-talking southern agent is believable, it lacks the energy or the originality of Willem Dafoe's Smecker. The new guy, Romeo, doesn't have the unpredictability factor that the brothers' last ally had, making him a relatively useless addition to the cast. "Boondock Saints 2" feels like its stuck on a trolley rail, following the most predictable possible course. The villains are overexaggerated to make up for the lack of a back story, leaving the brothers with no real competition. There are a few obligatory deaths during the course of the film, but only one has any emotional impact. Stars Sean Patrick Flannery and Norman Reedus manage to recreate the camaraderie of the brothers McManus, but the dialogue and direction aren't worthy of their effort. Only at the very end, does a glimmer of the passion that drove the first movie show on-screen. Too little, too late.
In a world after the release of the critically successful, restrained street thrillers like "The Departed" and "The Dark Knight," viewers just can't go back to the simpler days where the story and execution of "The Boondock Saints" could still work. Society has moved on without the Saints and trying to recapture that last sliver of fandom makes the sequel feel sadly outdated. Hopefully, "Tron: Legacy" can bring balance back to the debate for and against the long-awaited sequel.
Rated R for bloody violence, language and some nudity.
