ANCHORMAN 2: THE LEGEND CONTINUES (2013)

Genre: Comedy
Director: Adam McKay
Cast: Will Ferrell, Steve Carell, Paul Rudd, David Koechner, James Marsden, Christina Applegate, Kristen Wiig, Vince Vaughn, Harrison Ford, Josh Lawson, Greg Kinnear, Kirsten Dunst, Meagan Good, Dylan Baker
RunTime: 1 hr 53 mins
Rating: NC-16 (Sexual References and Drug Use)
Released By: UIP
Official Website: http://www.anchormanmovie.com/intl/splashpage/

Opening Day: 20 February 2014

Synopsis: With the '70s behind him, San Diego's top rated newsman, Ron Burgundy (Will Ferrell), returns to the news desk in "Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues." Also back for more are Ron's co-anchor and wife, Veronica Corningstone (Christina Applegate), weather man Brick Tamland (Steve Carell), man on the street Brian Fantana (Paul Rudd) and sports guy Champ Kind (David Koechner) - all of whom won't make it easy to stay classy ... while taking New York's first 24-hour news channel by storm.

Movie Review:

This writer was telling his colleague how he is looking forward to the sequel of Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, and the response was: “Err, how is that kind of humour funny?” This got him a little worried, because it has been, after all, a good 10 years since he laughed his butt off at the world’s silliest news broadcaster in the comedy movie directed by Adam McKay, produced by Judd Apatow, starring Will Ferrell, and written by McKay and Ferrell.

For a movie that’s ranked 113 on Empire’s 500 Greatest Movies of All Time to release a sequel 10 years on, it surely must be good stuff, right? Has age caught up with this reviewer? Will he remain straight faced throughout the movie that promises to be bigger and better? Will “lame” be the perpetual word in his mind as people around him roared in laughter?

Thankfully, he walked out of the cinema thinking to himself, Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues is worth the wait.

McKay and Ferrell’s script has Ron Burgundy (Ferrell in a role that has launched countless memes online) leaving the 70s behind him, taking New Yorkin its first 24 hour news channel by storm. That’s really all you need to know about the plot, because story developments of how Ron and his wife Veronica Corningstone (Christina Applegate) are almost calling it quits, how Ron gets his old team of Champ Kind (David Koechner), Brian Fantana (Paul Rudd) and Brick Tamland (Steve Carell) together, and how Ron has to face competition in the form of the dashing Jack Lime (James Marsden) are not really that important. Audiences want to laugh their asses off with this McKay and Ferrell’s brand of humour, and that’s what they are getting.

If you are a fan of the first movie back in 2004, chances are that you have been looking forward to this one, and that you will love it to bits. The gags are as random as ever, but with a bigger budget (there are special effects in the movie!), you can expect some really funny moments. Like its predecessor, not all the jokes are spot on, but they are so erratically hilarious, you’d find yourself howling in laughter every now and then throughout the 113 minute runtime.

Greg Kinnear, Meagan Good and Kristen Wigg join the ensemble in this sequel and although they don’t portray instant classic characters, they seem to be having lots of fun portraying the supporting characters, so we’re assuming that’s all that matters. There's also a part of us wishing the humour could be ruder and cruder, but with box office in mind, that's probably a business consideration the filmmakers and investors had in mind. 

There are some repeated gags which fans of the first movie would appreciate. Without spoiling the fun, let’s just say audiences can look out for the return of a silvery musical instrument and a black animal shaped cologne.

Ah, don’t even get us started on the cameos. Because of how the movie making business has changed (and also how Ferrell and his team has gotten a lot more famous over the years), the climatic news team showdown (another nod to the much talked about scene in the first movie) towards the end of the movie is a hoot. In the mix are talk show hosts, Oscar winners (and nominees!) and A listers – all who seem like they had a hell of a time goofing around with Ferrell and his team.

Movie Rating:

(Again, this is kind of a big deal, really)

Review by John Li