The one thing this movie has going for it is chemistry and both Smith and Jones work extremely well together onscreen, forming one of those rare action-comedy partnerships that work.
Men in Black II (2002)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:186
Fresh:71
Rotten:115
Average Rating:5.2/10
Consensus: Lacking the freshness of the first movie, MIB 2 recycles elements from its predecessor with mixed results.
Runtime: 88 mins
Genre: Science-Fiction/Fantasy
US Box Office: $190,418,803
Synopsis: Reuniting director Barry Sonnenfeld with most of the original hit film's cast, MEN IN BLACK II picks up with alien-monitoring secret agent Jay (Will Smith) in a rut. Weary of the isolated life of... Reuniting director Barry Sonnenfeld with most of the original hit film's cast, MEN IN BLACK II picks up with alien-monitoring secret agent Jay (Will Smith) in a rut. Weary of the isolated life of an MiB operative, Jay continually fires new partners until MiB director Zed (Rip Torn) teams him up with the talkative pug, Frank (voiced by Tim Blaney). Together they investigate an "alien-on-alien" murder witnessed by the lovely Rita (Rosario Dawson), who Jay immediately falls for. The case eventually leads Jay and Frank to track down agent Kay (Tommy Lee Jones), who now works at a rural post office, completely unaware of his former life. Unfortunately, it's what Kay can't remember that may save the world from destruction at the hands of the shape-shifting alien Serleena (Lara Flynn Boyle). As Jay attempts to jog the memory of the reluctant Kay, Serleena takes over MiB headquarters, building up to a big New York City showdown. A fast-paced follow-up to the 1997 sci-fi comedy, MEN IN BLACK II sticks to its guns, offering up more action, aliens, and intergalactic weirdness. This time around Smith and characters such as Frank and the wisecracking worms are the focus, although Jones makes the most out of his screen time with his deadpan persona thoroughly intact. And, as with the first movie, MIB II features plenty of enjoyable scenes, including an underground romp involving a subway-sized alien and Frank the Dog's head-out-of-the-car-window rendition of "I Will Survive." [More]
Starring: Will Smith, Tommy Lee Jones, Rosario Dawson, Lara Flynn Boyle
Starring: Will Smith, Tommy Lee Jones, Rosario Dawson, Lara Flynn Boyle, Johnny Knoxville, Rip Torn, Patrick Warburton, Tony Shalhoub, David Cross, Tim Blaney
Director: Barry Sonnenfeld
Director: Barry Sonnenfeld
Screenwriter: Robert Gordon, Barry Fanaro
Producer: Walter F. Parkes, Laurie MacDonald
Composer: Danny Elfman
Studio: Columbia Pictures
Reviews for Men in Black II
Like a comic book on speed, it’s easy to be seduced by the exuberant energy and frivolous folly… it’s 88 minutes of unadulterated, enjoyable nonsense. But the one thing the writers and director forget about is to tell a coherent story
...falls prey to the syndrome that affects many sequels: the apparently irresistible desire to replicate the formula from the first film.
The down-home satire of how we cope with cultural difference has evaporated, replaced by jazzy effects that wear out their welcome by the halfway mark.
Men in Black II could care less whether you believe in it or not, or frankly, whether you bought the ticket and spent your time on the concession line trying to buy Goobers.
The acting is good, the direction is good, the special effects are great, only the jokes are a little flat and far between and nothing very original is offered up here.
This film is so full of special effects that it seems as if there are only about seven minutes of actual story-telling from which to decipher a plot.
We watch and think, 'Yeah. So? What else can they do?' It's not that it's dull so much as that it's familiar.
Men in Black II doesn't replicate the blithely funny and hip attitude of the original.
Like a lot of the movie, the special effects are ‘been there, done that.’
With MIB2, [Sonnenfeld] triumphs yet again in giving us a quick -- albeit silly -- cinematic fix.
A textbook example of a redundant, middle-of-the-road summer sequel tailored to please the most easily entertained of moviegoers.
The problem with the sequel is that Jones is missing from the action for too long.
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