In the first 5 minutes into the movie, I already sensed that something was off. Scenes jump from one to another without a seamless transition. The narrative was not as thought-provoking or intuitive. And the dialogue did not create that glee in me as a geek. Yes, that sinking feeling that this sequel would not out-do the first one has surfaced almost immediately.
As I recalled what Kick-Ass had and compared that to Kick-Ass 2, it was mostly in the direction. I don't know why Matthew Vaughn would choose to not direct this movie, or even write it. Those duties were passed on to Jeff Wadlow, and did he fumble.
Now, I'm guessing that Wadlow's writing duties were to adapt from the Kick-Ass 2 comics written by Mark Millar (I haven't read any of the comics but because this was such a let-down that I have decided to purchase them online). I don't think this was an original write because I saw so much potential in the story that was screaming to get out but couldn't and didn't.
Chloe Grace Moretz who was one of the main pull-factor in the first one was reduced to a mere side-kick. Even that typical cheerleader played by Claudia Lee outshone her when they shared screen time. Wadlow could not direct Moretz and that was a total shame. And one that Vaughn unfortunately was responsible for in the end.
The highschool scenes that were supposed to be funny were not. Hit-Girl's slumber party and cheerleader audition were painful to watch.
The action sequences were also a ho-hum affair. While the first movie mixed martial arts, choreography and music in a kick-ass blend, this one had none. And while the first movie had Mark Strong as an awesomely evil and magnetic, and sometimes very funny antagonist, in this one we had Christopher Mintz-Plasse promoted to that position which he unfortunately wasn't enough to carry by himself.
And even though he didn't, as he had John Leguizamo carrying out his bidding, however Leguizamo's character wasn't written in properly to give much of an effect.
Also notice how Lyndsy Fonseca and Sophie Wu were written out quickly. The very funny Evan Peters didn't make it back for this sequel; which was good for him since his character was very lousily written. Omari Hardwick was also replaced by Morris Chestnut. More than one major replacement often spells doom.
What this movie had, fortunately, was another great performance by Aaron Taylor-Johnson who has buffed up even more to produce a superhero body. And like the first movie that reminded the audience why Nicolas Cage is a great actor, likewise here, Jim Carrey had many moments to shine. (If only he would get off his high horse or keep his mouth shut in the promotional stages, whether it's a marketing stunt or not.)
But as Cage's Big Daddy was burned to death in the first movie that will forever etched into my mind as one of the greatest and saddest moments in movies, Carrey's death didn't reach the same level. Under Vaughn's direction however, I believe it would have came close.
And finally, as mentioned before, there was a great story hidden in here about two individuals getting to terms with who they were, what they stood for and finding themselves through their own loss. But all these were totally camouflaged by all the unnecessary violence and blood splatters.
Kick-Ass 2 was supposed to be great. And it pains me that it's not.
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