A lot of jokes fell flat, felt overlong, predictable

Rating: 5/10 (11 June 2014)

I really enjoyed 21 Jump Street, but this one just felt off to me. The highlight of the film was at the very beginning, with the Mexican cartel impressions. A lot of the jokes were really dragged out, particularly the end credits scene and the scene were Channing Tatum reacts to the news of who Schmidt had been having sex with. It wasn't really funny to begin with, and then it just dragged on and on. A lot of the jokes were just slapstick crap. I remember 21 jump street felt quite fresh, and I can't tell whether this film has lost that charm or perhaps I've grown up a bit and I wouldn't find the original as funny any more as well. I mean, how funny is it for Ice Cube to throw his food around in a hissy fit. Yeah I get it, the character has anger problems...ha ha ha. A lot of it is just stupid 'look at the man make a funny face' type stuff.
Oh, and is anyone else tired of sequels that constantly make reference to the fact that its a sequel? I see it used so often now that its just clichÃ©d and predictable. It was clever 5 or 6 years ago, but I'd like to see sequels that try to stand on their own ground without constant winking reference to the fact that 'its not as good as the first'.
All in all, I did laugh a few times, but I was restless in the last hour and couldn't wait for it to end. The opposite of my feelings toward the first. Some people in the cinema did enjoy it though, so perhaps go see it for yourself.