1986 saw Crocodile Dundee be a surprise hit and gave Aussie actor/writer Paul Hogan a step in the global movie stage.
Two years later, they produced a sequel that proved to be not quite as successful as its predecessor, both in terms of box office and critical reception. Make no mistake; the film still made money, but not as much as the first time around. And as far as the critical reception is concerned, the general consensus is that it’s not quite as funny (or original) as the first film and by the second film, the novelty that made the first film endearing has mostly worn off.
Personally… I liked the film. Sure, there’s going to be that inevitable feeling of rehashing ideas from the first film, but I honestly don’t mind it because one of the ideas behind rehashed is ol’ Mick Dundee himself because Paul Hogan maintains his wonderful charm that makes the character so endearing, as he attempts to settle in New York while keeping up with old habits and there’s a couple funny bits in there. But that eventually gives way to the main plot involving main squeeze Sue being pursued by a drug lord who wants photos she got from her ex, which eventually leads our heroes to stake their ground in Mick’s home turf of Australia’s Northern territory.
This is where the film slides into almost action schlock, with Mick using home advantage (and some local friends) to pick off the drug crew one by one. There’s some chuckles here and there, but going into what is essentially generic action fare with a quirky hero… I can understand if people see this as the train falling off the rails, but I’m personally engaged in seeing how Mick stays ahead of the bad guys. It’s not sophisticated fare, but it doesn’t have to be. You’ve got a likeable enough hero, you want to see him overcome the odds, and save the day. We saw Mick out of his element in the first film; now we see him in it.
If there’s any fault to be found here, it’s really in the overall pace. Sometimes, you really want to get to the next big scene, but the movie takes its time to get there and rarely during these slower moments do you get anything that can’t be just skipped with a fast-forward or two. Croc I didn’t have these moments; that had better pacing and took better advantage of the central character.
Other than that, though, I could think of worse sequels that didn’t quite live up to the original. Crocodile Dundee II might not be the splendid brilliance of its predecessor, but it’s still a perfectly fine follow-up.
dtm666 