By It’s been 16 years since Broken Lizard exploded onto the scene with their stoner-comedy Super Troopers. Ever since then, they have had ups and downs in terms of their movies but for the most part, their comedy has always tickled me in just the right parts where I’ll always go back and enjoy their work for years to come.
When the sequel was announced through IndieGogo three years ago, I wondered if it was too late for a proper sequel. I also feared that a sequel would suffer the same fate of many other late comedy follow-ups, relying too heavily on the previous movie for its majority of laughs. I can gladly say Broken Lizard had the foresight to avoid going full-on referential humor while still paying respect to the movie that brought them to the game.
Super Troopers 2
Director: Jay Chandrasekhar
Rated: R
Release Date: April 20, 2018
Much like the first Super Troopers, 2 begins with a bang that did not disappoint. Picking up a few years after the boys have been fired for an accident involving a well-known beloved child actor, the movie begins with exposition that is relayed so fast and bluntly that it’s very obviously used to a comedic degree. It works and that’s a good thing as that sort of self-knowing writing remains present through the rest of the movie.
To spoil any of the opening would ruin the experience though and, let’s face it, we aren’t here for the story. Which is good because at an hour and 40-minute runtime there’s not much time to focus on anything other than the laughs. What little story there is involves the down and out troopers getting a job patrolling an area of Canada that is about to be absorbed into America due to some border change explained in the opening act. The story is, by all accounts, useless and outside of a few mentions here and there throughout the first two acts it kinda slipped my mind there even was a story.
The comedy, while still relying lightly on the previous movie, makes enough strides to separate itself from being too derivative. The sad thing is the referential humor kinda falls flat in comparison to the original jokes and hijinks. That’s not to say that the movie isn’t funny from top to bottom, it’s just the callbacks feel tired and are there only to placate the fans.
I will say that instead of relying strictly on callback jokes, the majority of referential humor plays off the established characters and their interactions with each other. Some of the stereotypical jokes about the difference between Canadian and American culture feel a bit outdated and unnecessary but it’s nothing to break out the pitchforks over.
Character-wise, not much has changed for any of the returning crew, but really would you have it any other way? Brian Cox once again steals the show with his portrayal as the Captain forced to deal with a terrible police force. The supporting cast is mostly made up of French-Canadian actors who make the setting feel more believable but can also be a bit too stereotypical for my liking.
Super Troopers 2 isn’t going to break the world apart with its comedy but it did manage to make me laugh audibly throughout the entire movie. I can say that if you were a fan of Broken Lizard’s previous works outside of The Slammin’ Salmon, or you enjoy humor akin to Jackass or other prank shows, then I think you will enjoy this as well. But if you’re looking for high brow humor then you should look elsewhere.
