THE OLD GUARD 2
Starring: Charlize Theron, KiKi Layne, Matthias Schoenaerts, Marwan Kenzari, Luca Marinelli, Veronica Ngô, Henry Golding, Uma Thurman, and Chiwetel Ejioforr
Director: Victoria Mahoney
ADRIANO
I watched The Old Guard for the first time shortly before seeing this, and that movie isn’t that good. But even with that low bar, what a colossal downgrade. The Old Guard 2 feels like a deliberate attempt to worsen everything people liked about the first one. It's one thing that the script is a narrative and character misfire in every way, but the action doesn’t even work. It’s far too choppy, and Charlize Theron being a badass saves nothing. Just a purely irredeemable sequel that guarantees I will not be watching the third film that they set up.
AMARÚ
When I learned that Gina Prince-Bythewood wasn’t directing the Old Guard sequel, I was worried. Then I watched said sequel’s first scene and got more worried. The rest of the film did nothing to quell that apprehension. Even with its formulaic elements, the original had a grittiness that held my interest. This one treats immortality like a glossy Saturday morning cartoon with unserious physical gags and stilted dialogue continuously reminding us of the so-called stakes. It's a damn shame too, because there’s some cool world-building concepts here that would’ve been exciting if executed with any sort of gravitas.
