The Old Guard 2: Delivers A Pointless Sequel

The Old Guard 2 is the sequel to the surprise 2020 Netflix hit that sees the return of most of its original cast and TV director Victoria Mahoney taking the place of the director of the original film, Gina Prince-Bythewood. This sequel features Andy (Theron) and her team of immortal warriors continuing their mission to protect humanity though this time around, they must face off against a formidable new foe in Discord (Uma Thurman), a figure who threatens the very fabric of the Old Guard. Meanwhile, she and her team also faced the return of the immortal Quynh (Veronica Ngo), who was thought to be long lost. Coming off of the original, this new film marks an unfortunate step down from what was a solid predecessor resulting in a dull effort that merely serves as a stepping stone for a supposed third film in the franchise.

Like the original film, the action remains the highlight of this sequel and its main selling point. From its variety of shootouts, hand-to-hand combat scenes, or sword/axe play, these sequences are a lot of fun to watch. Propelled by strong fight choreography, it is certainly not shy in terms of brutality, maintaining the R-rating of its predecessor. Theron once again carries this film, retaining her status as a consummate badass as Andy, the most interesting character and the one given the most compelling arc. Ngo, on the other hand, holds her own as Quynh, whose scenes with Theron’s Andy are among the film’s highlights. Schoenaerts, as Booker, is another standout as his character is given a fair shake, as opposed to the original film, in the form of a much improved character arc. When it comes to most of the returning cast, they are simply wasted and forgettable. As the villain, Thurman’s Discord makes for a serviceable antagonist, but she is given very little to do. A squandered opportunity, even the highly-anticipated inevitable climatic fight between her and Theron’s Andy feels rushed and unsatisfying.

A franchise that was never known for its story, the original’s story was far from its strongest element, but it was good enough to get by. However, this time around, the sequel delivers a story that is on the convoluted side and is a bit of a mess. As a whole, there is simply too much going on here, making for an overstuffed product that leaves a lot of characters, and their accompanying subplots, shortchanged or without the appropriate closure. Similarly, the film’s attempt to expand upon the lore of the franchise was not nearly as interesting as it could have been, leaning heavily on exposition dumps through dialogue between its characters. The third act fails to provide audiences any sense of closure by making very little effort to wrap anything thing up. While ending on a cliffhanger may not be the worst idea to set up a future film, the one employed here is entirely unsatisfying as a result of the rushed lead up to it. In the end, all of it amounts to what is merely a stepping stone to get to a potential third film where audiences will get the supposed payoff.

The Old Guard 2 may not be as big of a disaster as this review may suggest but as it stands, the film feels pointless as a whole and fails to provide much in the way of engagement whenever there isn’t action taking place. Boasting as strong of a cast and action as its predecessor, essentially everything else about it falls far short. Gina Prince-Bythewood’s talents were sorely missed.

still courtesy of Netflix

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Connor Carey

www.connorsmoviereviews.com/