Ride Along 2 Ride Along 2
RIDE ALONG 2
DIRECTOR: Tim Story
CAST: Ice Cube, Kevin Hart, Benjamin Bratt, Ken Jeong, Olivia Munn, Tika Sumpter
CLASSIFICATION: 13V
RUNNING TIME: 103 minutes
RATING: 2 stars (out of 5)
Frank Scheck
Ride Along 2 reunites Ice Cube and Kevin Hart as the mismatched cop duo who somehow manage to solve cases while constantly bickering. Showcasing Cube’s trademark scowl and Hart’s goofiness to crowd-pleasing, if not exactly scintillating, comic effect, this sequel, arriving two years after the original, should enjoy equally robust box office returns.
The plot is essentially the same as before. Veteran Atlanta detective James Payton (Cube) reluctantly agrees to let the bumbling Ben Barber (Hart), now a beat cop and soon to be his brother-in-law, ride along on a case. It involves a road trip to Miami, with the two men eventually tangling with Antonio Pope (Bratt), a crooked businessman and smuggler of all things illicit.
Also figuring in the proceedings is Jeong as AJ, a computer hacker who serves as the comic relief, and Munn as Maya, a no-nonsense Miami detective who is insanely hot. The film provides many opportunities for Munn to show off the latter attribute, since her character is the sort of cop who shows up at a crime scene wearing yoga pants and a halter top and who, when going undercover, rocks a cleavage-baring dress.
Depending almost entirely on the chemistry of its two leads, the pic consists of a series of their Abbott and Costello-style routines punctuated by the occasional car chase or shootout.
The action sequences are perfunctorily staged, with the exception of a lengthy car chase that amusingly incorporates video game-style computer graphics.
Ultimately, Ride Along 2 is little more than a rehash of the original. Cube still glowers, while uttering sardonic wisecracks, and Hart throws himself into every bit of raucous physical comedy as if his life depended on it. Munn holds her own in the action department; and Bratt proves a suave, if overly verbose, villain. Tyrese Gibson shows up, as if he happened to wander over from the set of a Fast and Furious movie.
The Miami setting provides the impetus for the requisite shots of sexy girls in bikinis and for Hart to wear a series of garish outfits that render him a walking sight gag. – The Hollywood Reporter
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