darrellpirkey

I really enjoyed the original movie. I enjoyed this sequel too, but it's different. Not better or worse, just different. I will admit despite the opening scene launching you into the story, it took me a minute to get into this movie. Once the brothers get together, the story really picks up. Affleck and Bernthal are great together and it's nice they show Affleck's Chris attempting to move out of his comfort zone and have a little more character. The movie opens up the universe a bit more and leaves you excited for a reported 3rd movie. Action sequences are well done and feel grounded, there's not a lot of flash like you'll see in other series.

I understand it's been 30 years since the original, so maybe folks thought it was time for a reboot, but we can't do better than this? The stars have zero chemistry and I didn't care about their characters or their love story. Movie has been in development hell since 2008 with multiple directors and actors attached. Too many cooks in the kitchen and it shows. There's very little character development for our hero or our villain. The film drags and you feel like you keep waiting for the good part. The one decent action scene is great if unnecessarily violent. Save yourself some time and find the opera house scene on YouTube, skip the rest of this mess.

The original is a masterpiece and everything about this feels like a lesser version. The performances are adequate, but pale in comparison to those in the original film. The action scenes are good, but even though they feel bigger, they're not necessarily better. The story is ok, but doesn't have the same emotional punch as the first film. Even the presence of a heavyweight like Denzel Washington feels wasted. This just feels like a movie that didn't need to be made. It's worth a watch if you've got a few hours to kill, but I've watched the first movie dozens of times. This is a one and done I don't think I'll have any reason to revisit.