Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues, 2013.
Directed by Adam McKay.
Starring Will Ferrell, Christina Applegate, Steve Carell, Paul Rudd, David Koechner, Fred Willard, Chris Parnell, Vince Vaughn, Harrison Ford, Kristen Wiig, Dylan Baker, Greg Kinnear, and Meagan Good.
SYNOPSIS:
With the 70s behind him, San Diego’s top rated newsman, Ron Burgundy, returns to take New York’s first 24-hour news channel by storm.
Lightning in a bottle it was called. A comedy film that shouldn’t have worked, but somehow made its way into popular culture in a way that no-one could have anticipated. Essentially a film that was made by friends with friends, goofing around, Anchorman was a modest success in 2004, barely scraping $80 million in the US, before the storm broke, and the lightning struck.
9 long years later, after various false starts, the 2000’s undoubted comedy gem is back; bigger, bolder and crazier than before, Anchorman 2 sees the action moving to New York (well, Atlanta), and in a similar-ish move akin to say The Dark Knight, the creative duo of Will Ferrell and director Adam McKay have broadened their horizons here, utilizing their invaluable experience with both Step Brothers and The Other Guys to great effect. Set in the 1980s, the clothes, colours and feel of the film is much more expansive, giving the film a fresher look. But would the brushstrokes match the canvas? Definitely yes, and while Anchorman 2 isn’t quite up the levels of the first, it comes mightily close.
Our loveable anchorman Ron Burgundy (Ferrell) and his world-famous news team (Rudd, Carell and Koechner) are thrust into the high-powered and high-paced world of 24-hour news, the first of its kind, and the head-honchos (including the great Dylan Baker) believe they hold the key to its success. Trouble is, Burgundy hasn’t seen his news team for some time; with kitty photography, a questionable chicken shop and death keeping them apart these last few years (will let you be the judge of which one applies to whom.) But soon enough, the band is back together, and as quickly as you can shout “By the hymen of Olivia Newton-John”, they are thrust into battle with both their new boss, Linda (Meagan Good) and James Marsden’s striking prime-time anchor Jack Lime.
The stakes were of course sky high for the sequel, and many feared that this, coupled with the time between films would see Anchorman 2 flounder.
The original was so full of unrequited frivolity and absurdity, most it out of the stars ability to riff and improvise so effortlessly with each other, that many wondered if it could ever be replicated. But the makers and cast have made a worthy successor by simply making as fun as movie as they could.
So graceful together are they, so well matched, that their infectious humour and earnest connections remove any doubt that the film would fail under the weight of expectations, and succeed in making such a worthy, and funny sequel.
Its not perfect mind; not all the jokes fly, and the quote-factor, while still higher than most comedies, is largely omitted within its broader strokes. Biggest of all though is the films length; at almost two hours it certainly could have some trimming, not least the mid-section subplot or Kristen Wiig’s fun but underwritten role as Brick’s love interest. That said, the final 20 minutes are glorious and well worth the wait.
But its Ferrell front and centre again, and just like putting on that turtleneck, it’s an effortless and affluent task that he performs wonderfully. Running the risk of caricature, Burgundy like the film, feels bigger and fresher than before, and while he still knows just how to ruin every moment (the dinner scene with Linda’s family is superb, if borderline inappropriate), his enduring smile and winning personality, not to mention his jazz flute riffs, continues to reaffirm him as one of comedy’s greatest creations.
While not scaling the heights of the original, nor indeed the heights of Step Brothers in some respects, Anchorman 2 is as close to sequel nirvana as you can realistically get. Uproariously funny, utterly ridiculous and entirely bonkers in equal measure, it is this year’s most cheerful cinema experience, and reaffirms Ferrell and McKay as the premier comedy purveyors.
Flickering Myth Rating – Film ★ ★ ★ ★ / Movie ★ ★ ★ ★
Scott Davis
Originally published December 16, 2013. Updated April 11, 2018.
