Unnecessary sequel or sought after return? Almost ten years on from 'Anchorman: The Legend Of Ron Burgundy', Will Ferrell and writer-director Adam McKay bring everyone's favourite idiotic newscaster back to the big screen. 'Anchorman 2' may not hit the heights of its predecessor but does fulfil its purpose as a comedy - from the bang-on satire of the gaudy nature of contemporary news reporting to simple physical japery, there are laughs to be had.
Ron Burgundy (Ferrell) and Veronica Corningstone (Christina Applegate) are now married, with a young child, working together as co-anchors. Things rapidly fall apart thanks to Ron's stubbornness and stupidity, but he is later approached to join a new 24 hour news channel. Ron re-unites his old team including Champ Kind (David Koechner), Brian Fantana (Paul Rudd), and Brick Tamland (Steve Carell) as he tries to once again reclaim his place as a prime-time news anchor. Cue shenanigans.
'Anchorman 2' starts strongly, with a string of laugh-out-loud jokes, and one of numerous cameos - this time featuring Harrison Ford. Unfortunately, it loses its way as the narrative meanders before moving in a predictable manner, taking in uninspiring sub-plots along the way such as a romance for the ever-confused Brick with a wasted Kristin Wiig. Carell's Brick, in particular, can be accused of being a poor re-enactment of his 2004 character - one of his only restrained moments is in a post-credits scene that offers fairly little.
In fact, each of the main characters seem to suffer in comparison to their previous incarnation, perhaps suffering from a more heightened focus than in the original, and unmatched by a disappointing supporting cast. There are several excellent (albeit brief!) cameos toward the end however, and while 'Anchorman 2' is not quite as quotable or loveable as its previous incarnation, it is these consistent moments of amusement that just about sustain this sequel as an object of interest.
★★★
(6/10)
(6/10)
'Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues' is out in UK cinemas, through .
We're a collaborative British music, film and TV blog. "Trying to find the perfect match between pretentious and pop."
