We all know sequels are usually not as good as the original. But this is especially true when it comes to comedy sequels. A joke just isn't as funny the second time you hear it. Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues, proves the exception to the rule.
While the first film began as a send-up of local TV news in the '70s (and broadened out from there to include surreal battles with grizzly bears), the second installment starts as a parody of the early days of cable news. It picks up where the 2004 original left off, with Ron Burgundy (Will Ferrell) and wife Veronica Corningstone (Christina Applegate) anchoring a network newscast. When he's suddenly fired, and his wife is simultaneously promoted, Ron goes into a tailspin and lands back in San Diego as the emcee at a Sea World-like attraction. An offer from a start-up 24-hour news channel prompts him to get back in the news business, and he sets out to reassemble his old team: reporter Brian Fantana (Paul Rudd), sports anchor Champ Kind (David Koechner) and weatherman Brick Tamland (Steve Carell).
Ferrell and his co-writer (and frequent collaborator) Adam McKay -- who also directs the movie -- don't just recycle old jokes from the first film. Instead, they explore new comedic territory. We get to see how Ron behaves as a father as he tries to reconnect with his son following his split from Veronica. (Hint: it doesn't go smoothly.) There's also a great subplot this time around for Carell, as his dimwitted character finds love with an equally brainless co-worker (Kristen Wiig).
Ferrell and McKay also find much to parody when it comes to Ron's new medium. In one sequence, Burgundy – in a single hour-long newscast – invents every bad cable news cliché. Like the original, however, Anchorman 2 is not merely a news satire. It spends most of its time going off in several funny, unpredictable directions. I won't spoil any of the laughs or surprises, but two-thirds of the way through there's a twist that's not just out of left field, it's out of the parking lot behind the bleachers. You won't see it coming.
Anchorman 2 is one of the finest examples of absurdist comedy since, well, the first Anchorman movie. There are moments so hilariously bizarre, they would make the Monty Python troupe proud. It took nine years to bring this sequel to the screen. It was definitely worth the wait.
While the first film began as a send-up of local TV news in the '70s (and broadened out from there to include surreal battles with grizzly bears), the second installment starts as a parody of the early days of cable news. It picks up where the 2004 original left off, with Ron Burgundy (Will Ferrell) and wife Veronica Corningstone (Christina Applegate) anchoring a network newscast. When he's suddenly fired, and his wife is simultaneously promoted, Ron goes into a tailspin and lands back in San Diego as the emcee at a Sea World-like attraction. An offer from a start-up 24-hour news channel prompts him to get back in the news business, and he sets out to reassemble his old team: reporter Brian Fantana (Paul Rudd), sports anchor Champ Kind (David Koechner) and weatherman Brick Tamland (Steve Carell).
Ferrell and his co-writer (and frequent collaborator) Adam McKay -- who also directs the movie -- don't just recycle old jokes from the first film. Instead, they explore new comedic territory. We get to see how Ron behaves as a father as he tries to reconnect with his son following his split from Veronica. (Hint: it doesn't go smoothly.) There's also a great subplot this time around for Carell, as his dimwitted character finds love with an equally brainless co-worker (Kristen Wiig).
Ferrell and McKay also find much to parody when it comes to Ron's new medium. In one sequence, Burgundy – in a single hour-long newscast – invents every bad cable news cliché. Like the original, however, Anchorman 2 is not merely a news satire. It spends most of its time going off in several funny, unpredictable directions. I won't spoil any of the laughs or surprises, but two-thirds of the way through there's a twist that's not just out of left field, it's out of the parking lot behind the bleachers. You won't see it coming.
Anchorman 2 is one of the finest examples of absurdist comedy since, well, the first Anchorman movie. There are moments so hilariously bizarre, they would make the Monty Python troupe proud. It took nine years to bring this sequel to the screen. It was definitely worth the wait.