Speaking as a light fan of the first movie I was stunned to learn that a sequel was being made, hell to be embarassingly honest I've been so out of the loop on new movies coming out this hit my radar about 2 weeks before release. Don't get old kids. But I'm kinda speechless to say I enjoyed this movie far far more than the first, maybe it was the familiarity with the characters or the emphasis on the family unit but this hit all the right buttons for me from the word 'Go'. And it's not much more complicated than the first, Hutch has been working so much he's been neglecting the family so he decides to take them on a vacation where he gets embroiled in this crime boss' affairs, because of course he does, and now papa's gotta take care of business. The first thing I really gotta say is despite the lack of action, the real stranglehold grip this movie had on me was you get to spend a lot of time with Hutch's wife and kids and while indeed the element was there and was quite good in the first, I just gravitated to it so strongly here. Connie you fucking gem of a woman, I'm honestly jealous as shit she's married in this movie because I would kiss the ground that mama bear walks on, and I do appreciate they give Becca a bit more edge here. The kids are pretty good too with Gage Munroe as Brady taking on his dad's violent urges despite Hutch wanting him to be a better man than he ever was, and Paisley Cadorath as Sammy who is the sweetest most cutest girl ever and boy did my protective side leap out at a certain scene involving her. Like I fully understood the urge to just whip someone's ass if they laid a finger on my daughter, no scratch that I would spill someone's guts onto the floor if they touched my daughter so papa Hutch is a man after my own heart. And yeah Bob is probably on even better form here truth be told, both as a character and as an action man with plenty of time going to both, showcasing his hard edged fighting style but also his wish and happiness to give his kids memories to look back on. It's not overt, it's more subtle but that's why it works so damn good. In terms of action I can count every major setpiece on one hand but each is different and impactful, they still very much like using random bits of the environment during the fights in true Jackie Chan style which I actually feel is harder and more gratifying to write than if it was a straight up gun/fist fight but it was solid stuff! I very very much enjoyed this movie and while I felt the sheer idea of a sequel seemed tenative I was pleasantly surprised and wouldn't mind a potential third entry if all the planets align. I'm sure the first was more of a sleeper hit and I'm hopeful this one will do even better, it is worth seeing in theaters I can tell you that much. So full 4 stars from me, 8/10, and next week we're shifting gears big time going back not only to 3 reviews for the week but allllll the way back to the golden age of cinema with some movies I've always wanted to talk about.
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