When asked about R.I.P.D., Jeff Bridges said he was “a little underwhelmed” after finally watching the 2013 movie. “The studio made some, uh, choices that I wouldn’t have made,” he added. Bridges’ colorful performance was praised, but that was as much positivity critics could muster about this misfire of a comic-book adaptation. Adding insult to injury was the box-office report; Robert Schwentke’s action-comedy cost Universal $130 million and failed to break even. Despite the first movie’s failings, Universal went ahead with a sequel. Nine years later. It’s standard to dust off, kick around and spruce up old IPs these days, but surely no one was expecting another go at the Dark Horse comic book, much less one worse than the first attempt.
Like in the first movie, R.I.P.D. 2: Rise of the Damned follows the otherworldly misadventures of two officers from the Rest in Peace Department. The most remarkable change here, however, is the setting. While Bridges and Ryan Reynolds’ characters wrangled escaped souls in modern Boston, Jeffrey Donovan (Villains) and Penelope Mitchell (Hellboy) are chasing Deados in the wild, wild west circa 1876.
Rise of the Damned is designed to be both a prequel and a reboot. It also features an origin story for the previous movie’s most standout character, Roycephus “Roy” Pulsipher. Although this time around, his character is played with half the oomph. Donovan sports a vaguely similar accent, but he dials down the distinguishing attitude and energy that made Bridges’ portrayal so notable. Reynolds’ character is obviously nowhere to be found, but in his place is the French and sword-wielding warrior Jeanne (Mitchell). Or as Roy sometimes calls her: “Joan” or “Jane.”
After getting killed in a shootout days before his daughter’s wedding, Roy joins the Rest in Peace Department. Rather than solely avenging his murder, though, Roy and Jeanne are out to prevent the deaths of many others. The pair is sent to Red Creek, Utah after their bosses detected a “hellish discharge” (one of the movie’s many awful jokes is uttered during this exposition, by the way). Someone dug a little too deep in the mines, and now a gateway to Hell is set to burst open. Heading up this infernal jailbreak is Richard Brake (Barbarian), who delivers a solid performance as archvillain Otis Clairborne.
It seemed likely that Universal wanted R.I.P.D. to be the next Ghostbusters or Men in Black, yet it never quite nailed the blend of comedy and action that makes those movies charming, timeless and, most importantly, enjoyable. Nevertheless, the attempt at humor in R.I.P.D. 2 is much less convincing and often embarrassing. The jokes are awkward and painfully unwitty. The prequel’s idea of funny is Donovan’s Roy repeating the same tired gag to pass the time; he shoots Jake Choi’s undead character repeatedly whenever he acts out or speaks up. Or they have Roy say things like, “My best friend is Black.” Roy also lands in an outhouse when he’s dispatched to Earth after dying. Paul Leyden and Andrew Klein’s script is littered with this kind of dated and graceless humor.
A choice action moment or two might have helped lessen the blow, or at the very least keep you awake. But an evidently restrained budget keeps R.I.P.D. 2 down in the dirt. The visuals are unstyled and flat, and the lighting choices make this movie more unattractive than it already was. Don’t expect any wide shots; it’s all unflattering close-ups and clumsily done compositions. These sort of production values aren’t even fit for television these days.
Anyone familiar with Universal 1440 Entertainment’s history knows exactly what they’re getting into when watching one of their slapdash sequels. As for fans of the R.I.P.D. comics, they will have to keep waiting for a proper adaptation. Maybe a TV series would work better at this point. If Rise of the Damned does anything right, though, it makes the 2013 movie look better by comparison.
R.I.P.D. 2: Rise of the Damned is available on DVD/Blu-ray as well as for Digital rental and purchase starting on November 15.
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