I had an absolute blast with Nobody when it was released. The fact that I haven't rushed to rewatch it in the intervening years is just a sad reminder of how packed my viewing schedule is for the foreseeable few decades (at the very least). I couldn't bring myself to rush to the cinema to see Nobody 2, but I knew I'd want to give it a whirl when it came to home viewing platforms.
All of the main characters are back, with the main plot concerning Hutch Mansell (Bob Odenkirk) trying to enjoy some family holiday time with his wife, Becca (Connie Nielsen), and children (Brady, played by Gage Munroe, and Sammy, played by Paisley Cadorath). The holiday is soon soured, unfortunately, when Hutch stumbles into the middle of the best-laid plans of the dodgy Sheriff Abel (Colin Hanks), who does a lot of dirty work for the powerful and ruthless Lendina (Sharon Stone). As Hutch tries to keep his family safe and aims for a showdown, he once again has to utilise the talents of a couple of family members (played by Christopher Lloyd and RZA).
With all of the main players returning in front of the camera, it's comforting to see that Derek Kolstad has also returned for the writing duties (joined this time by Aaron Rabin). The only main change is Timo Tjahjanto taking over the directorial duties, and that feels like a big plus, considering the fantastic and savage action that he's delivered throughout his career.
Let's start with the good stuff. Odenkirk and co. are all still great in their roles, and the film feels better for keeping the family all in the loop this time around. RZA and Lloyd still get to shine in third act moments that super-charge their presence, but Nielsen must have been very happy to see that the screenplay made her capable of handling the unexpected pressure, as well as a gun. Hanks is a pretty good villain, John Ortiz is a middle man who could go either way, depending on who he trusts to protect him and his son (played by Lucious Hoyos), and Stone is enjoyably willing to chew some scenery in her few scenes. It's just a shame that she isn't in the film for longer. I would have liked more of her, even if that meant just watching the growing shadow of her character looming over everything from the earliest scenes.
There are decent fights throughout, and the runtime is a zippy 89 minutes. I also quite liked the humour, largely tied to the exasperation of Odenkirk's character when forced to do what he does best.
That's about it for the good stuff though. Tjahjanto really falters when it comes to the fights, disappointing with repeated moves and numerous coincidences ensuring that our lead survives until the big final battle. It also doesn't help that, despite the family holiday premise, Kolstad and Rabin are happy to have written a screenplay that comes very close to just rehashing everything from the first movie. The wrong people get upset, assets are destroyed, and the third act is full of booby traps, even more overwhelming odds, and some vital support from other experienced killers.
I could watch this again, Odenkirk almost ensures that I could rewatch pretty much anything he's involved with, but I doubt I would ever pick it if it was sitting right alongside the original. That's a much better film, and this suffers in comparison to it. It should have been much better, and it's easy to see where improvements should have been made (giving Stone more screentime, making better use of the amusement park, varying the fights more). There's still some fun to be had with it though.
6/10
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