Long awaited Van Wilder Sequel continues the tradition

Rating: 6/10 (16 May 2016)

Snarky, sarcastic, inappropriate, mildly racist Van Wilder is back and he's able to regenerate body parts (it's unclear whether he's immortal - would he eventually die of old age?). In this super rough, hard-R, cape-and-tights comic saga, the implausible combination of pretty and muscular Ryan Reynolds kills 90 people (by his count) and yet somehow is the titular hero. By comparison, Ajax (the name "Mr. Clean" was copyrighted), the main baddie only tortures people (who did, after all, come to him) and puts damsels in distress. The movie mixes ranch comedy with torture porn and Reservoir Dogs type violence into a volatile concoction that will have many of the millions who bought tickets leaving the theater early. While clever at times - particularly any time T.J. Miller is on the screen - the movie has only a nominal plot centered around Deadpool's mostly uninteresting and unlikely origin story (couldn't the techniques be refined to produce mutants with superheroes on an industrial scale; sure the process is painful but so is cosmetic surgery and people line up for that?) . Ryan - presumably stepping in for a part written for Jim Carey - presents another major issue mostly around the fact that his handsomeness is so overwhelming that the latex mask he wears still leaves him more attractive than your high school prom date. Also, note to the special effects team, ever time Reynolds turned his head right or left, the mask bunched and gaped like a 60's creature feature. In short, a mess but an entertaining and sometimes witty one.