The Bad Guys 2 review: 'slapstick gags aplenty'
This sequel to 2022’s Ocean’s Eleven-inspired animated hit The Bad Guys kicks the action up a ridiculous notch or two, writes Alistair Harkness
The Bad Guys 2 (PG) ★★★★
2022’s The Bad Guys was one of the funnier animated movies of recent years. A family friendly heist movie about a crew of lovable rogues, it smartly used all the tricks of a good con artist movie to serve up an amusing message about not judging books by their covers.
Set a few years on, The Bad Guys 2 recaptures that vibe, picking up the action as Mr Wolf (Sam Rockwell), Tarantula (Awkwafina), Shark (Craig Robinson) and Snake (Marc Maron) wrestle with the down-to-earth tedium of now being the Good Guys in a world that’s reluctant to give them a second chance.
Struggling to find work and bored with a life devoid of car chases and danger, they soon find themselves framed for a series of robberies and decide to use their criminal expertise to prove their innocence and catch the real crooks.
Where the first film took its breezy stylistic cues from Ocean’s Eleven, the new one kicks the action up a ridiculous notch or two with some old school Bond-style villainy involving rockets to space and obligatory pops at the tech oligarchy. It also makes room for some husky-voiced hilarity from the ubiquitous Natasha Lyonne, cast here as the ominously named Doom, the not-quite-what-she-seems avian romantic interest for Snake who also just happens to be part of an all-female-crew of criminals trying to lure the Bad Guys out of retirement.
It all skips along briskly enough with slapstick gags aplenty and plot twists that are pleasingly silly. Richard Ayoade also makes a brief return as Professor Marmalade, the first film’s malevolent guinea pig villain.
Comments
Want to join the conversation? Please or to comment on this article.