Vacation Friends 2 – A Largely Inferior Comedy Sequel

The original Vacation Friends released in August 2021 on Hulu and Disney Plus, proving to be a bit of a hit for the former, raking in the highest watched 3-day opening weekend for an original movie on the streamer. That, paired with decent enough reviews and a great cast, made greenlighting a sequel probably an easy choice for executives. Now less than 2 years later, the sequel is here. Vacation Friends 2 picks up a few years after the events of the first film, after Marcus (Howery) lands an all-expenses-paid trip to a Caribbean resort, he and his wife, Emily (Orji), invite their unhinged and permanently bonded best friends, Ron (Cena), and Kyla (Hagner). But when Kyla’s incarcerated father Reese (Steve Buscemi) is released from San Quentin and shows up, things quickly get out of control.

The original Vacation Friends was a surprisingly fun and breezily enjoyable experience albeit a completely forgettable and disposable comedy that didn’t set up for or feel like it warranted much of a sequel although one didn’t seem out of the realm of possibility. All the filmmakers really needed to do was reunite this cast and drop them in a new location for more laughs and hijinks but unfortunately, Vacation Friends 2 only provides the bear minimum of entertainment and fits the very definition of an inferior sequel that shouldn’t have been made. While a completely inoffensive and harmless comedy, there have been far worse released this year but it is still extremely frustrating to watch because outside of its dynamite cast, it feels like there was very little passion or energy brought to it.

As a film, it is essentially more of the same, and unfortunately, it’s not nearly as effective or enjoyable as it was the first time around. The original wasn’t a consistently laugh out loud experience or anything remotely close to that, but it was funny and there were some good laughs in it. There are only maybe a few big laughs in here that were mostly in the first act though for the most part, the most it will elicit out of audiences is a few light chuckles if even that. The film feels like the filmmakers went out of their way to make it as unfunny as possible as so many jokes fall flat and feel lazy or recycled. Meanwhile, it also joins the recent trend of turning into an action comedy in its third act. However, this turn is arguably one of the worst ones and doesn’t work at all. The first two acts are at least watchable, however, that third act simply drives itself off a cliff and will likely have audiences wondering what happened and what they are watching.

The film would easily be in consideration for one of the worst films of the year if not for its cast who are thankfully the film’s only real saving grace. Despite given some absolutely terrible material to work with, they come out completely unharmed and makes it much more watchable than it would be without them. Like the first film, Howery and Cena are given the most to do as Marcus and Ron and are responsible for most of the laughs. Both remain fully committed and share strong chemistry and a nice budding friendship that’s as enjoyable to watch grow as it was in the first. Orji and Hagner are also solid as Emily and Kyla and play off Howery and Cena quite well. And any film that has Steve Buscemi in the cast gets bonus points, and although he’s given probably the worst material and storyline to work with, he is as always, a major delight. The film does have a few chuckles and despite feeling like a bit of a retread of the start of the first film, the first act is decent enough, but it quickly goes downhill from there.

In the end, Vacation Friends 2 isn’t a dreadful experience as big fans of the first film may get some enjoyment out of it but that being said, it’s an unnecessary sequel that never justifies its existence and is yet another inferior comedy sequel. Though its cast keeps it from being terrible, it is a sequel audiences can probably skip or if they don’t, it will likely be completely forgotten not long after the credits roll.

still courtesy of 20th Century Studios

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Connor Carey

www.connorsmoviereviews.com/