A down on his luck Happy Gilmore must get back on the golf course so he can give his daughter the chance to go to a top dance school in Paris, and maybe, just maybe, save the sport he once despised from someone looking to destroy it with a new and very different league.
Happy Gilmore’s return to both the screen and the golf course is a mixed bag. There’s no denying the joy and amusement of catching up with the world’s unlikeliest golfing legend. As much as it is disappointing to see this long awaited sequel go down the clichéd route of Happy losing everything, there is fun to be had in watching him pick himself up. Not to mention the fact that he is now fighting for the very sport he once despised and rebelled against. Despite his circumstances, Happy is still the loveable rogue that charmed audiences, it’s just too bad that charm didn’t extend to the rest of the movie.
Happy Gilmore 2 lacks pretty much everything that made the first movie such a beloved classic. It is your typical legacy sequel. In that it spends the entire runtime reminding you of the first movie, while constantly – and unsuccessfully – trying to out do it. This includes many poorly rehashed jokes, and an almost overwhelming number of cameos, only a handful of which are actually funny. The sequel is also half an hour longer than the original, mainly thanks to the many clips of the first movie that are unnecessarily included – significant moments that fans are unlikely to need reminding of. After all, much like this rather unnecessary sequel, Happy Gilmore is available on Netflix.
Happy’s first time back on the golf course is without a doubt the funniest point in the movie. Also, his ability to stash alcohol in some rather ingeniously covert containers proves rather amusing – just when you think he’s out of hiding places, several more appear. But Happy Gilmore wouldn’t be nothing without his nemesis. Who would even want a Happy Gilmore movie without the legendary Shooter McGavin? Well thankfully for us, Christopher McDonald isn’t one of them, because he’s also back, and on fine form. If anything, Shooter has had it a lot harder than Happy these past few years, and seeing him rise from the ashes – along with a few new quirks he’s picked up along the way – proves to be one of the movie’s few high points.
The first movie is silly and ridiculous, sure. But there’s also something wholesome about it. A surprising thing to say about a comedy such as this, but it’s true. Happy’s love for family shines almost as much as his uncontrollable rage. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said of the sequel, and a story that once again revolves around the Gilmore family. Not only is it rather over the top, it’s overly crass too. The continuing involvement of Happy’s four sons proved particularly tiresome. And when it’s not being crass, Happy Gilmore 2 is all too reliant on our nostalgia for its predecessor. So by the time you reach the final act, much like the tournament Happy is competing in, it just feels like the movie is too preoccupied with justifying its own existence to actually entertain.
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Summary
Despite a few nice tributes to those we’ve lost, a handful of amusing golfing antics, and an incredibly covert alcohol delivery system, Happy Gilmore 2 is a swing and a miss.
