Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit
3/4
Starring: Whoopi Goldberg, Lauryn Hill, Kathy Najimy, Wendy Makkenna, Mary Wickes, James Coburn, Maggie Smith
Rated PG for Some Mild Language
"Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit" is one of those rare sequels (before today's Hollywood, where franchises are planned before anything else) that is better than the original. Barely, but still superior.
After the events in the first film, Dolores Van Cartier's (Goldberg) singing career is just starting to take off. That's when three of her old friends, energetic Sister Mary Patrick (Najimy), soft-spoken Sister Mary Robert (Makkena) and salty-tounged Sister Mary Lazarus (Wickes), come to Vegas to plea for her help. They're teachers at a school whose pupils are, how do I put this, teenage terrors. The sisters need Dolores to re-don the habit and become Sister Mary Clarence once again. Reluctantly, she agrees. They students are nightmares, but they've met their match with this nun. Unfortunately, they're going to need a miracle to keep the school from closing for good.
Okay, so the plot is nothing special. Frankly, it's almost like an early ancestor to the masterful TV show "Glee." It's not nearly as funny, insightful or toe-tapping as Ryan Murphy's show, but it's decent enough.
Whoopi Goldberg slides back into the role easily. She's tough and sassy, but caring. She may not desperately want to do it, but in the end her heart wins out. Kathy Najimy and Wendy Makkena are also a lot of fun. Ditto for Mary Wickes, who has some of the best lines (improvisation?). Maggie Smith is barely in the film, sadly. James Coburn is always nice to see, although his character is really a writer's construct, and he is unable to bridge the gap.
The film is famous for, if nothing else, counting future record-breaker Lauryn Hill among the cast. Actually, she's the main character of the students. It's a good performance; Hill possesses a low-key charm and a natural talent.
Bill Duke is an effective character actor/director. While he's not Martin Scorcese or Steven Spielberg (and based on his other film that I saw, "Hoodlum," probably won't be), his craftsmanship is effective. Really, that's all that's needed. Directorial flourishes and deep, subtle characters don't really have a place in a movie like this. The one goal of a sequel to "Sister Act" is to get the bellies laughing and the toes tapping. For me, it only did the former (maybe because I'm not an R&B fan). It's a little long at 147 minutes, but whatever.
Starring: Whoopi Goldberg, Lauryn Hill, Kathy Najimy, Wendy Makkenna, Mary Wickes, James Coburn, Maggie Smith
Rated PG for Some Mild Language
"Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit" is one of those rare sequels (before today's Hollywood, where franchises are planned before anything else) that is better than the original. Barely, but still superior.
After the events in the first film, Dolores Van Cartier's (Goldberg) singing career is just starting to take off. That's when three of her old friends, energetic Sister Mary Patrick (Najimy), soft-spoken Sister Mary Robert (Makkena) and salty-tounged Sister Mary Lazarus (Wickes), come to Vegas to plea for her help. They're teachers at a school whose pupils are, how do I put this, teenage terrors. The sisters need Dolores to re-don the habit and become Sister Mary Clarence once again. Reluctantly, she agrees. They students are nightmares, but they've met their match with this nun. Unfortunately, they're going to need a miracle to keep the school from closing for good.
Okay, so the plot is nothing special. Frankly, it's almost like an early ancestor to the masterful TV show "Glee." It's not nearly as funny, insightful or toe-tapping as Ryan Murphy's show, but it's decent enough.
Whoopi Goldberg slides back into the role easily. She's tough and sassy, but caring. She may not desperately want to do it, but in the end her heart wins out. Kathy Najimy and Wendy Makkena are also a lot of fun. Ditto for Mary Wickes, who has some of the best lines (improvisation?). Maggie Smith is barely in the film, sadly. James Coburn is always nice to see, although his character is really a writer's construct, and he is unable to bridge the gap.
The film is famous for, if nothing else, counting future record-breaker Lauryn Hill among the cast. Actually, she's the main character of the students. It's a good performance; Hill possesses a low-key charm and a natural talent.
Bill Duke is an effective character actor/director. While he's not Martin Scorcese or Steven Spielberg (and based on his other film that I saw, "Hoodlum," probably won't be), his craftsmanship is effective. Really, that's all that's needed. Directorial flourishes and deep, subtle characters don't really have a place in a movie like this. The one goal of a sequel to "Sister Act" is to get the bellies laughing and the toes tapping. For me, it only did the former (maybe because I'm not an R&B fan). It's a little long at 147 minutes, but whatever.
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