'Coming 2 America' Review — Slightly Disappointing

To answer the question on your mind, yes, the barbershop guys are back. I have no idea how they're still alive after 33 years, but it's great to see them again.

Craig Brewer directs Coming 2 America, the long-awaited comedy sequel to the 1988 film, Coming to America. This film once again stars Eddie Murphy as King Akeem Joffer, years after he has married Lisa. He now has three daughters, and he must find his illegitimate son, Lavelle (Jermaine Fowler), as he is heir to the throne and train him to be the new prince.

When sequels to classic comedies come out many years after the original, they tend to be at the wrath of critics (e.g., Dumb and Dumber To, Zoolander 2). It's difficult to pinpoint where critics will land on this film, given how there are many great ideas here, but there is also a lot that doesn't work.

This movie relies very heavily on nostalgia. It contains many hilarious callbacks to the original, and there are scenes and jokes designed to please long-time viewers of the first film. Many of the actors come back for this movie, and it can put smiles on all our faces.

Eddie Murphy and Arsenio Hall are once again magnificent. Like with the first film, they portray many characters and do a fantastic job with them. With these two charming, likable actors on screen, it's hard not to have fun even if the film can sometimes feel like a radio station replaying the hits.

Unfortunately, while the film has its fun moments and celebrity cameos, this sequel has a few missteps. For one, the comedy isn't nearly as funny as the first. There are a few amusing moments, but overall, it doesn't induce the first film's belly laughs.

Part of this may result from the film's PG-13 rating as opposed to the original's R rating. The humor in this movie feels much safer than the first, and not all of it lands as well as the writers may have wanted it to.

For example, the story follows Akeem as he must train his son, Lavelle, born and raised in Queens, to be a suitable prince. There are messages here about how Lavelle is unaccustomed to this way of life and how he can't be who his father wants him to be.

There is a good conflict here, but the film misses many comedy opportunities with this fish-out-of-water story. There is a scene where Lavelle gets chased by a lion which is nowhere near as funny as it may have sounded on the page.

Moreover, the characters in the film are a weak spot. The reason why Coming to America works is because of how lovable Akeem is and how he's mopping floors at a fast-food restaurant with a wide grin on his face. The antics with Akeem and Semmi are also quite funny.

However, Akeem and Semmi feel sidelined in their own movie this time. They are missing for large chunks of the film while we instead follow the journey of Lavelle. Lavelle has one scene to set up his character, and his plotline has compelling moments but ends up not working because he lacks the humor and likability of Akeem.

Akeem also loses much of his charm in this movie. While Murphy still portrays the character well, the character of Akeem can feel like King Jaffe Joffer's character from the first.

The reason Akeem must find his son is that the throne of Zamunda requires a male heir. Akeem refuses to put his daughter on the throne because it would break centuries of tradition. However, the first film's entire premise is that Akeem doesn't care for tradition and wants to find his own wife instead of an arranged marriage.

As a result, Akeem feels very far removed from the likable innocent character of the first, and his values in this film can contradict the values that gave him his wife and daughters.

We also have Leslie Jones and Tracy Morgan in supporting roles, but they offer little humor that lands. The story can also feel like it's balancing too many things at once, with Wesley Snipes appearing in a subplot that feels entirely throwaway and a romance that feels set up too fast.

We have a cliché scene preceding the final act where Lavelle overhears an exchange he wasn't supposed to hear, gets upset, and makes a bad decision. The story feels messy instead of the charming simplicity of the first, and it doesn't have enough humor to balance out the flaws.

Although this film has good scenes and the occasional funny line, it is ultimately a mixed bag due to the story's missteps and characterization. It's not a difficult film to watch, and fans of the original may still enjoy it. However, it's a slightly disappointing sequel that doesn't reach its full potential.

Grade: ★★✬☆☆ [5/10, C]

Coming 2 America arrives on Amazon Prime Video on March 5, 2021.

Rating: PG-13 for crude and sexual content, language, and drug content