If 2004's Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy had been twice the length (and thus interminable), this might have been its second half. They're identical films in many respects, which means that Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues lacks the vibrancy of helping #1 of Ron Burgundy, but is still a successful comedy. A cash-in this may be, but the cast and writers have been generous with their skills, and respectful toward their characters. That the well of ideas is drying up doesn't matter very much. A thorough narrative and stylistic retread of the first film would have been pretty awful no matter how many laughs they could generate, so it's thankful that Will Ferrell and Adam McKay don't linger over material that has little new to add. New is the offensive quotient, less absurd than the first film's quaint sexism, at times disarmingly brutal, almost too brutal for the Anchorman brand. It is tremendously funny, though the general absence of said absurdity contributes to a loss of character for the film. A particularly strong sequence as Ron experiences the requisite plunge into despair following a wondrous high in the second act thrives off its more ridiculous elements, however. The naughty jab at the state of contemporary broadcast journalism in the US is perhaps stressed a bit too heavily, but then when was Anchorman ever supposed to be subtle? An elephantine ensemble of comics and other actors (mainly in cameos) is here for novelty value, but it's dang good value too; on the other hand, Kristen Wiig's scenes must surely, on reflection, have been last-minute additions, and they're sometimes lacking in zest. The film's leading men mostly don't see their roles expand much on last time, except David Koechner's Champ, hilariously portrayed here as an aggressive, frustrated, latent gay man.
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