Why IS this car crash so popular?
RAPPER Ice Cube and comedian Kevin Hart have been in London this week, promoting this movie.
with two black stars and a black director (Tim Story), compounded by an astounding performance so far at the U.S. box office — where it has knocked Star wars off its perch and is filling more seats than The Revenant — the film further bolsters the argument that the oscars in particular, and the movie industry in general, are too white-skinned by half. or, to be accurate, rather more than half.
But the problem with Ride Along 2 being wielded as a weapon in this debate is that, notwithstanding the tens of millions of dollars it is raking in, it is miserably unfunny and lazily plotted, with a reliance on bikini- clad babes that evokes the Saturday evening heyday of Baywatch. Frankly, it’s been a while since I liked a film less.
The original Ride Along was unremittingly silly, but it had charisma, energy and soul. Not this time. As in the original, Hart is accident-prone, loudmouth Ben, future brother-in-law to grumpy James (Ice Cube) and now a rookie cop, desperate to join James as a detective in the Atlanta Police Department. This time, though, they wind up in Miami, on the trail of a ruthless drugs overlord who doubles as one of the city’s most respected philanthropists (Benjamin Bratt). The plot is pure Miami Vice, circa 1988 — it looked jaded even back then. And the Keystone Kops routine palls after about ten minutes.
Also, while I might not get much of a hearing in all those U.S. multiplex queues, I find that a little of Hart goes a very long way. only here there’s a great deal of him.
See it if you must, or if you want to know what all the fuss is about. But don’t say I didn’t warn you.