I did miss the group gatherings that were throughout the first film, because it really allowed us to see where some of the jokes originated and how these friends interact, and honestly, I think it hurt this film. The friendships were there, it was obvious, but it just didn't come through the television as predominately as the first. Also, they were all trying new material this outing. You could tell, because the comfort level was a bit off. It was as if they were wondering to themselves if the joke would work, or if people were applauding because of who they were not what they were saying. Maybe this second film was rushed due to the overwhelming popularity of the original, but it wasn't the same.
One keen observation that can be made about this second film was the audience seemed to be whiter collar than redneck. Half the fun of the original was seeing the audience reacting and laughing at the people that just looked like these comedians were taking a moment of their life and speaking it on stage. While that may seem mean and morbid, I found that it worked well with the comedians. A bit of irony if you don't mind, here we have comedians making fun of the people that are laughing at them. What a strange, continuously circling world we live in. In this film, the audience seemed more glamorized and you could tell that they were laughing at the people, not so much the jokes. This can been seen because Foxworthy didn't do any of his patented "redneck" jokes, it was as if he modified the joke into the "married/gay" routine just for this audience
as well as what I was saying about new material.
Overall, I thought that this was a decent outing, just not quite containing the same insanity as the first. I especially did not enjoy the fact that it ended in a very similar fashion as the first. I just thought that originality and creativity were forgotten about just to capitalize yet again on the popularity of the original. I wouldn't mind seeing these guys in concert live, but it may make me hesitate for a moment to consider renting another one of their films. I, sigh, cannot wait to see more of Larry the Cable Guy and with him doing a voice in the next Pixar film Cars, I know that he is going to be the breakout star of the entire endeavor. If you liked the first film, I don't think it would be unwise to see this film, just be prepared for not as much hilarity as the first provided.
Grade: *** out of *****
