Movie Review: Sharknado 2: The Second One

I liked this one more than the first, which may be because I had adjusted back into my B-movie zone for this one; I’ll probably do a few more of these before moving on to a different shark movie. This one had a cast of thousands… of cameos. Including a few that did not age well at all: Jared from Subway, Matt Lauer, and Andy Dick (who am I kidding, Andy Dick appearances have the staying power of a flower put through a paper shredder).

Often, people complain that sequels are worse. In this case they’d be wrong: this movie is better than the first one. I think some of the benefit is that they’ve hit their exact mark on what sort of movie they’re making, and embracing the absurdity. A tornado full of sharks hits Manhattan. There are a lot of puns. A lot of stuff was over the top impossible.

But unlike a lot of mid-rate stuff, they don’t try to hide it, or explain away inconsistencies. No, check your bullshit logic at the door. This is a movie about a tornado full of sharks. It’s entertainment. It’s hilarious. It’s got insane moments (like a guy riding a shark in a tornado).

There have been worse shark movies made. I know, I’ve seen them.

I liked the references made to just about anything they could cram in, and most of the cameos were well done. I enjoyed this movie thoroughly, and I can’t wait to see if they manage to keep the pace and humor in the third one, or if they drop the ball as a lot of series’ do.

Report Card:
Running Time: An hour and a half.
Shark Death Total: I counted at least twenty-one shark deaths, though in a few scenes it was hard to tell how many people actually died. Also, the statue of liberty killed two people.
Acting: It is a B-Movie. The average is better than the last movie, but there are still some stinkers.
Shark Effects: Very CGI, but a little better.
Gun Use: No issues, but I would like to use this spot to complain about the misuse of power tools.
Gore: Kind-of.
Creepy? Not even a little.
Funny? It’s called “Sharknado 2.” They found their humor a little more than the first one.
Nudity: No.
Pacing: They hit their stride.