Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous

Despite Bullock and King's good performances, the film is frankly predictable and never really gets interesting.

I enjoyed Miss Congeniality, despite the various issues and problematic points I talked about in my review of that film, and I hoped that, at least, this sequel (which is far from being the second part of a bigger film, like Sandra Bullock said she faced all this) would be able to match the original film. Let's be fair, it had everything to achieve this: in addition to keeping the same protagonist and having a script that linked directly to its predecessor, the film kept part of the original crew and cast. Well, I'm sorry, but I feel that those expectations were disappointed: the film is not so bad, but it is below what I expected to find.

The problem starts with the script: it's a very underdeveloped and basic story, despite starting from a promising initial premise. Marc Lawrence, who has worked on the previous film, just couldn't do any better. If the first film was guided by the exaggeration of the story, this one proved to be predictable and has ideas that simply don't work, such as seeing two federal agents, posted outside their area of ​​origin, and who have the luxury of disobeying blatantly to superior orders without this earning them an immediate suspension and the handing over of their weapons and badges. What the movie does is almost make fun of the FBI (well, sometimes they deserve it). Another problem is the melodrama that the protagonist lives after the end of her romance, which started in the previous film. This is irritating enough to prevent us from sympathizing more with the character, who is saved "in extremis" by the baggage of previously acquired sympathy.

Sandra Bullock is, frankly, the best asset present in this film. She was not only the producer but also the protagonist and, once again, she offers us a job well done, full of commitment, charm and charisma. Regina King also does quite well as a tough federal agent w...