Peyton and Barber (Ice Cube and Kevin Hart) are about to become brothers-in-law.
Barber is a nervous rookie police officer and Peyton an experienced, hard-nosed detective in Atlanta, Georgia.
When Antonio Pope (Benjamin Bratt), a wealthy Miami businessman begins running drugs and guns with ties in Atlanta, Peyton is sent to Florida to investigate. He reluctantly agrees to take his fledgling and fantastically annoying brother-in-law with him.
We were really hoping this wouldn’t come to Vernon.
TAYLOR: But it did and here we are to report about it. The facts are as follows: if you can turn your brain off and you’re in the mood for Cube and/or Hart, who both have a decidedly one dimensional shtick, then this film is for you. It’s very much like the first one (the review for the original Ride Along is archived at vernonmorningstar.com if you’d care to refresh your memory): Car chases, Hart shrieking, crazy errors that in the real world would have serious consequences, scantily clad women, and grumpy Cube wearing sunglasses.
HOWE: Hart whines. Hart whines a lot. In fact you would probably hear less whining at your local daycare centre. It’s not just in these two movies that he witters on, it’s in all of his roles. It’s all he can do.
Cube also doesn’t seem to have the ability to change his persona. His character in the Jump Street franchise has an uncanny resemblance to his Det. Peyton. Talk about being typecast, or is it just the way they are?
TAYLOR: It’s a shtick. They themselves are the characters of Cube and Hart. It is what happens when marginally talented individuals become known for a particular performance, sound, look or way of being. If a shtick is successful, it’s easy to find money to continue exploiting said shtick.
I thought perhaps at first Ride Along 2 was going to be OK. Barber is a cop now, maybe he could act like a human being in the real world. No, I was let down. He is the same bumbling fool that remains unbelievable. Bumbling cop characters are nothing new, but Barber is also annoying. Other characters point this out as well. He’s supposed to be annoying, I get it. I just don’t want to listen to 90 minutes of it. Thus, I couldn’t possibly care less about Ride Along 2.
HOWE: OK, I’ve expressed my complaints about their acting skills. Is the movie itself funny? In a word, “no.” The first one wasn’t funny. This one is even worse. After 90 minutes, I hadn’t smiled once, let alone laughed, but then again I didn’t expect comedy from the film.
Hart isn’t funny and I am just praying that the Galaxy Cinemas don’t bring in one of his comedy standup films for review. If they do, Mr. Taylor, I am just giving you warning that I’m at the dentist that night.
TAYLOR: I’ll be washing my beard.
–Taylor gives Ride Along Two 1 week filling out paperwork out of 5.
– Howe gives it 0.5 and that’s being kind out of 5.
Reel Reviews with Brian Taylor and Peter Howe appears in The Morning Star every Friday and Sunday.