Murder Mystery 2 Movie Review
Nathan Swank
March 30th, 2023
Adam Sandler is a lovable guy. His longevity is quite impressive. But for as much as he can be a super generous, funny person and surprisingly good actor at times, he makes some bad movies. We can all agree, right? I don’t mean this as an insult by any means. He is having fun, supporting friends, raising a family, while making movies. He’s living the dream. Who cares what critics have to say about some of his work. MURDER MYSTERY 2 is not meant for people like me. I don’t consider it very good by the way. But who cares? Sandler is getting paid, getting his friends paid, and having fun doing it, while entertaining a specific audience.
Full-time detective couple Nick (Adam Sandler) and Audrey (Jennifer Anniston) return in another wacky who-dunnit comedy. Struggling to get their private eye agency off the ground, the two are invited to their ultra wealthy friend, Maharajah’s excessively luxurious wedding. But after a murder and the kidnapping of Maharaja, Nick and Audrey find themselves at the center of an international ransom. Many colorful characters make up the suspects in a silly espionage fashion that is synonymous with Sandler comedic style.
To be fair, there are a few semi-funny jokes and the energy that the leads and supporting characters bring is slightly contagious. But this isn’t some kind of audience involved guessing’ the answer KNIVES OUT style type of high brow mystery. Of course, Sandler is always likable and comfortable doing comedy, but like many, I’ve enjoyed his recent dramatic/funny turns even moreso. Jennifer Anniston has a true comedic talent that feels so natural, which is nice to see displayed. Mark Strong is always solid and the production level is on point. But the jokes themselves are mostly predictable and sophomoric in a tiresome way rather than laugh-out-loud.
The first MURDER MYSTERY was surprisingly light and fun in the least amount of memorable way possible. Seriously, I almost forgot all about it. However, I remember thinking, well that wasn’t completely horrible. And that probably mostly fits to MURDER MYSTERY 2, although it is a lesser a film.
Netflix has stumbled onto a clever little Murder Mystery franchise here though. As I believe superstars, Aniston and Sandler will always be game to venture to another exotic location to solve a mystery. MURDER MYSTERY 2 may not be my cup of tea, but there are enough good things to warrant many more Murder Mystery sequels.
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