Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous (Movie)

Gracie Hart : Sandra Bullock
Sam Fuller : Regina King
Jeff Foreman : Enrique Murciano
Stan Fields : William Shatner
McDonald : Ernie Hudson
Cheryl : Heather Burns
Joel : Diedrich Bader

Why do they make bad sequels?

More important why does an actress the quality of Sandra Bullock get involved in a bad sequel?

I suppose it could be for the money, but I doubt it. She’s had a successful enough career for me to believe that money in not an issue.

I suspect the real reason goes something like this;

Hollywood Executive (Imagine Jon Lovitz at his sleaziest) - Have we got a great idea for a movie!

Sandra - Tell me about it.

Hollywood Executive - You know that movie you were involved in a couple of years ago.. What was it? Oh ya, Miss Congeniality.

Sandra - Ya.

Hollywood Executive - It was a big hit. Made the studio lots of money. Well, we’ve decided to make a sequel.

Sandra - A sequel. OK. Can I see the script?

Hollywood Executive - Ah, ummm… Well we don’t really have a script yet.

Sandra - No script?

Hollywood Executive - Ah… No. But we have some of the greatest writers in Hollywood working on it.

Sandra - Well, OK. What’s the premise of the story.

Hollywood Executive - Ah, ummm… Well we don’t really have a premise yet.

Sandra - No premise?

Hollywood Executive - Ah… No. But we have some of the greatest writers in Hollywood working on it.

Sandra - Well… I don’t know.

Hollywood Executive - Sandy honey. Come on. It’s going to be great. Trust me. Just sign on the dotted line and you’ll be well on your way to an Oscar.

It’s got to be something like this or how else can you explain, Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous. This is a really bad movie and it’s amazing to me that Sandra Bullock would have allowed herself to become involved in it.

Here’s the story…

Gracie Hart, an FBI agent played by Sandra Bullock, has become famous because of the events that took place in the original Miss Congeniality movie. This keeps getting in the way of her performance as an undercover FBI agent because every time she is on a stakeout, people recognize her and crowd around her wanting her autograph.
The FBI decides that she is a liability as an agent, and instead makes use of her celebrity status by putting her in a public relations position. She authors a book and goes on tour with the assistance of a stylist Joel (Diedrich Bader, Oswald from the Drew Carey show) and surly bodyguard Sam Fuller (Regina King).

Gracie , quickly embraces the new glamorous life style, becomes full of herself, and starts to treat those around her with contempt.

While attending a book signing, Gracie learns that her friends beauty queen Cheryl Frasier and promoter, Stan Fields have been kidnapped and are being held for ransom. Gracie heads to Las Vegas, the scene of the crime, and after a complicated series of events, rescues her friends and reverts back to the old sweet, loveable, tomboyish Gracie.

If you think this description is bad, you should see the movie.

The biggest problem with this movie is the script. It’s just not funny. I don’t think that I laughed once during the whole 115 minutes.

They make use of all the standard movie clichés, a gay effeminate stylist, men in drag, work partners that don’t get along, and an uptight cop who is forced to do a Las Vegas stage performance impersonating Tina Turner. None of the clichés work. We’ve seen them all before and this time around they are so poorly executed that they are not in the slightest bit amusing.

Another big problem was that in the original movie, the running joke was that tomboy Gracie was cast in the uncomfortable position of having to pretend to be something she clearly was not; a self centered beauty queen. Sandra Bullock played this part perfectly; probably in part because it mirrors her own personality.
In this sequel, the writers try to turn things around by having Gracie become totally self involved and enthralled with her own appearance. It doesn’t work for a minute. It’s impossible for us to believe that either Gracie, or Sandra for that matter, could ever become this person. It’s just too much of a stretch.
On the positive side, Diedrich Bader does a pretty good job portraying the character of Joel. He’s amusing at times without being too over the top. It’s just too bad they didn’t give him better lines to work with.

And then there’s Sandra Bullock. No matter how bad the movie, it’s impossible not to like her. She’s still looking great and still has that “girl next door” appeal. (I wish she lived next door) I’ve never understood why Julie Roberts has been deemed “Americas Sweetheart”, when clearly this title belongs to Sandra Bullock.
So if you haven’t already seen the original Miss Congeniality, by all means, do so. It’s a terrific movie, with lots of laughs, fun and surprises. On the other hand, Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous is a movie that is best avoided.

3 out of 10 Stars

Posted by Al on 01/11/10 at 05:04 PM in Movies