As sequels go, My Wife is a Gangster 2: Return of the Legend does a decent job of paying homage to its predecessor, while also attempting to improve several aspects over the original. The second film conveniently uses the “amnesia” excuse to solve the issue of “where do we go from here.” At the end of the first film, Mantis began another fight, this time with her husband following right behind her and taking part in proceedings.
The second film drops the husband (though I’m sure he plays the character of the mad photographer), and Mantis has lost her memory due to a fall from a building. The opening is quite interesting, as at first I thought it was a parody to Trinity’s fall in Matrix 2. It isn’t, as you’ve probably seen in countless movies, the fall from a building and camera following has been done forever in films.
In any case, Mantis has lost her memory from a fall. She is found by a wandering drunk who takes her in and takes care of her. Fast forward two years, and she is working for the guy as a delivery girl, who lives with his adopted daughter. Mantis is liked by all, and has a fond friendship with the man.
White Shark, who everyone thought was dead from the blaze created by Mantis’s husband, returns in part-comical form with longer hair, a bit more stupid, and with a voice box with three settings, including the voice of a little girl. The assassin sent by White Shark, who Mantis turned into a Eunuch hires the services of his brother to kill Mantis once he discovers she is alive, and suffering from amnesia.
The plot is rather convoluted, and implausible, but somehow it manages to trick you into accepting it. The writing and direction of both films were done by different people, and this shows in both the production and pace of the film. The original was a lot glossier, and seemed to have more money spent on it in terms of production values. The sequel seems to show elements of “home made” or “on the cheap” harking to old school Hong Kong films with shaky cameras and snap action movement. It provides a different feel for the second movie, and it works well, but disrupts the continuity of the series.
As a sequel it fails to deliver, and just cannot stand up to the original in shape or form
MWiaG2 also has a less structured feel to it. There is no cohesiveness in the film itself, and Mantis’s character has lost the edge of what made Mantis and turned into something befitting a drama film. Indeed, much of the film plays out like a drama, but something just doesn’t quite sit with the viewing, and it’s less believable than the previous film.
The fight scenes are more plentiful, but they seem to have lost their edge, and feel rather fake. Much of the film’s originality in direction and writing seems to have been misplaced, and left this sequel in a state of limbo. That is, where exactly does it fit. I guess they wanted to cash-in on the decent success of the original, but the sequel did not make as much in Korea, and was given average to good reviews in general. It didn’t live up to the original overall, however.
There is no significance of most scenes in the film, as they don’t really link much. It’s really a remake of the orignal rather than a direct sequel, and it’s disappointing to think they even felt the need for a sequel with such a poor way of justifying the sequel. I expect most of the budget went on the 10 second cameo by Zhang Ziyi in stunning form as ever, during a flashback which wasn’t even in the first film. It’s rumoured she will be in taking over the lead role in a possible third film (MwisG is now a franchise), to bring the franchise to a wider audience (the flashback is supposedly a glimpse of the furture for the series). A better script writer, director and more money would also assist, and although I like Ziyi (and look forward to her performance in 2046, although Gong Li much more), I don’t know if she would fit such a role – she can be a bitch, but can she demonstrate empathy?
The opening is quite interesting, as at first I thought it was a parody to Trinity’s fall in Matrix 2
The comedy is still there, the action still exists, and many scenes simply recreate scenes from the original in different situations. Most of the actors from the original are back, although the disappearance of the husband is never explained, nor the rest of the gang from the original (or maybe I had forgotten their faces). However, it just doesn’t gel as well as the original. Not to say that this is a bad film at all, there have been much worse, and it is above average. What the sequel doesn’t do is exceed or even match expectations, originality or the quality of the original, and it’s perhaps another reason for not creating sequels to certain films that have open ends (The Matrix, as poor as it is, is another example or sequelitis-money-over-reason).
On its own merits, as a stand alone film, MWiaG2 is average entertainment that will make you laugh and entertain to you as it is an enjoyable film for the majority. You are hooked at some points, and you will laugh at some of the absurdities, it is by no means a perfect film, but it works. As a sequel it fails to deliver, and just cannot stand up to the original in shape or form. It tries, but ultimately fails.
Queen Latifah was originally pitched for the remake of the original, but I understand this has now changed due to several reasons, one of which is that they don’t actually have a cast or intention to create the remake as early as indicated. You can expect the remake to move the location to some ghetto, with the martial arts being replaced with guns and wrestling moves possibly. But then it will probably end up as something we’ve already seen, ah well.
Verdict: Decent standalone, not a bad sequel, full of brainless fun.