It'd be easy to dismiss "Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous," for the cardinal sequel sins. There's the new setting - it should probably be called "Miss Congeniality's Vegas Vacation." And the too few original cast members - Benjamin Bratt must have been busy with that other cinematic masterpiece "Catwoman." And of course the repetitive, tired gags and lines - there's no beauty pageant, but "world peace" remains a concern.
The laws of sequels mean it's either a hit or miss, and these things can all be forgiven if it's a hit - but this Miss a miss. In a more congenial light, the film attempts something almost daring in that the story centers on the bad cop/good cop dynamic of Sandra Bullock and Regina King, forgoing the tried-and-true romantic interest focus, which makes this sequel to a romantic comedy... just a comedy?
If only. From spectacular clumsiness to spectacularly ridiculous costumes to spectacularly implausible situations, it's been done. And even done surprisingly well in "Miss Congeniality" (2000). In real time, it's been five years since Gracie Lou Freebush (Bullock) won Miss Congeniality. In sequel time, it's only been three weeks since the pageant, and Agent Grace Hart is trying (unsuccessfully) to return to the field.
Audiences will remember the botched bust that began the first film, and its successor follows suit. Agent Hart and her compatriots are undercover, attempting to catch suburban housewife bank robbers, when a bank patron spots the famed Miss New Jersey, asks for her autograph, and blows her cover. There's some shooting and wounds and angst, and again Agent Hart is a disappointment to the bureau. Her superiors want her to make up for it by donning couture and becoming FBI Barbie. Sound familiar?
Gracie's given a Government Issue personal stylist, hairdresser, and makeup artist, and then the film jumps ten months, presenting an entirely different agent whose lackluster character gives audiences no reason to care that she exists.
In Gracie's latest adventure, she is assigned to public relations work in Las Vegas on the kidnapping of her dear friend Cheryl (Heather Burns), Miss America, and pageant emcee Stan Fields (William Shatner.) Meanwhile, after the loss of her former partner and love interest Agent Matthews (Bratt,) Gracie is shackled with a bodyguard who is the id version of her former self, the overly aggressive, unpleasant, masculine-shoes shod Agent Sam Fuller (King). So Gracie's back, in more Prada.
The formula worked once, but then it had charm, some amount of originality, and a far more stable plot. The story lurches along with little regard to reality. Each plot twist is a leap; a few murky, brief scenes attempt to provide context for the kidnapper's existence but fail. A random crime boss is dangled off a bridge.
The charm of the first was the perfect balance Bullock struck between tomboy and bombshell; even in evening wear, Gracie Lou packed a punch and a piece. Likewise, audiences watched the transformation and became invested in the character as she made inordinately subtle leaps of logic in seconds that no other member of the Federal Bureau of Investigation could have fathomed after months of work. And, that's okay. That plucky FBI agent could save the day any way she liked.
Now more "fabulous" for most of the film, Gracie is all but lost somewhere in a more grating, unlikeable, scarily coiffed, and accessorized Stepford wife version of herself. Amidst the large gap this lack of a likeable protagonist leaves, none of the supporting characters steal the show.
Without the talent of a Michael Caine and Benjamin Bratt, and with former cast members relegated to peripheral hostage scenes for much of the movie (more Shatner, please), Miss Congeniality has new friends that depend on stereotypes rather than character development. Stylist Joel (an overeager Diedrich Baker) is one finger snap away from the most glaringly clich?©d gay man fashionista in the genre. FBI boss Collins (an unremarkable Treat Williams) is gruff, tough, and bland.
A few bright spots come in surprisingly clever lines. Agent Hart is complimented on her dress, which she quips actually belonged to J. Edgar Hoover. Miss America, forced to video tape her ransom note and beg money for her life, instead asks that the police ignore the tape because she can't allow them to provide ransom and give in to terrorism as representative of her great nation.
Unfortunately, the film doesn't do justice to its predecessor. It's a greater act of congeniality to forego the sequel, and let the surprisingly pleasant "Miss Congeniality" stand alone.
