Van Wilder 2: The Rise of Taj

This movie was OK, but certainly no where near as good as a lot of college/party films. The character of Taj is pretty funny as well as his band of misfits in the Cock and Bulls frat. The geeky guy was probably the best. And Pip is certainly a slime ball. Taj comes to England to be a student teacher. He is also the house leader of a frat. He wants to win the Hastings Cup and really stick it to Pip. A lot of the film is Taj charming Pip's girl, Charlotte. There is also Sadie a member of Taj's frat, whom one could say has an ample bussom that is played for laughs.

Overall, there are a few laughs, but it has a long ways to go before I would call it a funny movie.

FINAL VERDICT: If you have to see every movie that is sort of like Animal House or Beerfest, then check this out. Otherwise, I would skip it.

After making a great supporting role in Van Wilder and being pretty damn funny in Harold and Kumar, I had kind of high hopes for Kal Penn, but Oh God does this movie suck.

Short of changing the actor who plays the lead character for a sequel, the worst thing you can do when making a sequel is get rid of the main character who is in this case also the title character (how can it be called Van wilder 2 if Van Wilder isn't freaking in it?).

A brief synopsis of the story is that Taj goes to England and starts trying to do Van's thing in a posh college, he also somehow gets involved in a dog show. Sounds pretty lame, doesn't it? Well, yeah it is. Not only is it not funny at all, but again there's the completely stupid British stereotypes flying around as if people even found them funny the first time round.

Don't waste your time

First off I must say I loved VW one, it is still one of my favorite movies. It was very funny, entertaining and Ryan Reynolds was just perfect. The acting was great and the Van Wilder character was unique but familiar.

Now that starts me off on the first problem with "VW2:Rise of Taj" and that problem is that Taj just does not bode well as a primary character. And as much as I like Kal Penn he looked uncomfortable trying to maintain "Taj" and not become "Kumar" and not become "Van Wilder" himself. He seemed conflicted with this issue the entire film. Even his accent would stray in and out, at times sounding totally SoCal American.

The plot itself was predictable from the second it started unfolding. You pretty much knew the gist of what was going to happen for the next 90 minutes based on the initial meeting of Taj and Pip (the antagonist) but really we don't watch these types of movies for their plot-twisting and high caliber story. We watch them because they are fun. Or in this case because we hope it is funny.

That brings up the next problem with VW2. It was not all that much fun, especially not compared to VW1. And it was not all that funny. The first hour was pretty boring and choppy, and seemed comfused about where it wanted to go, even though we knew where it was going. It never really seems to be leading anywhere but in circles. But the problem is that while it is leading in circles, the jokes trying to hold it together are not very funny. They had so many chances to go in interesting directions but never did. They seemed to force it all together too quickly, as the movie oddly moves too slowly.

I actually really liked some of the supporting case.... I really liked Lauren Cohen a lot. She was understated and strong at the same time, while doing her best to work within the limits of the script. The goofy cast of misfits turned cool are good, but are really underused by the writers and directors. One of the things that made VW1 so great was the use of secondary players and there was much more unexplored potential there.

But then something happened towards the end of the film. You unexpectedly start to pull for the underdogs to win and you don't have to wait too long for that to happen. Everything buttons up at the end in a more entertaining way then you expect after the first half. A few decent gags work their way into the fold and you have no choice but to smile a little.

You walk away feeling satisfied that the bad guy got what he deserved and all the good guys win. Which if the movie is that bad you generally don't care about at all. And that got me thinking that the movie overall was not as bad as it seemed.

Yes VW2 is a pretty bad movie, but so are a lot of movies. It is not that bad if you don't compare it to VW1. If you go in expecting to see the original feeling that VW1 had you will be disappointed a lot..... if you take VW2 by itself, it is a silly movie that is not all that funny, but still has some redeeming qualities, and a few funny moments. I gave it a 5-of-10 as I would compare it to most middle of the road college comedy movies.

Just don't go in expecting to see Van Wilder. This movie would have done better to drop the "Van Wilder 2" title altogether. It really is not VW2, it is a small secondary character in another movie with very few ties to the original. It would have been better to just toss in the VW association like they did and leave it off the title. I'm pretty sure Lampoon fans would have made the connection without VW being in the title. compare it to VW1 or it will pale in comparison....

The bad reviews are kind of astonishing. I'm not sure what people were expecting for a National Lampoon's flick. I mean, the things we can compare it to are: "Adam and Eve," "Going the Distance," and "Barely Legal." The series is now just a raunch-fest of low-brow humor. If that's not what you're into, why did you watch the movie? The soundtrack of this movie was priceless, and people who point out the formulaic nature of the story should realize that it was the point. It wasn't a film that took itself seriously. It was a NATIONAL LAMPOONS movie. The series hasn't involved any family friendly humor since Christmas Vacation.

It's funny for a laugh, and I think people need to lighten up a bit. I'm tough to please, and I thought the movie was worth a few chuckles. The final scene (which I won't spoil, but can tell you it has to do with swords) was the coup de grâce for this underrated film. I give it a 7, out of 10.

Taj Mahal Badalandabad (played by Kal Penn) had a few funny moments in the movie (i.e. jokes regarding the former British aristocracy in India), but the movie almost nothing but sex jokes for the entire movie. This sort of humor included nearly a dozen different euphemisms for the female anatomy (I lost count), and countless jokes about how to "score" with the opposite gender. I laughed at the first few sex jokes, but by the end of the movie, I was really tired of hearing crude jokes.

If this sort of humor is appealing to you, then you'll enjoy this movie. Otherwise, don't bother seeing it. Overall, I felt "Harold and Kumar" was much more humorous. I'm a fan of Kal Penn's, but unfortunately, I cannot recommend this movie.

Brief Plot Synopsis (no spoilers below): Taj heads to Camford University (name taken from Cambridge and Oxford) in England to pursue his higher education and to follow in his fathers footsteps. He believes that he has been accepted to the prestigious fraternal guild "Fox and Hounds". However, upon arriving at the University, he is told by a "Fox and Hounds" member (nicknamed "Pip") that he was mistakenly sent this acceptance letter.

Taj is forced to become a teacher's assistant at the "Barn" residence, which contains a group of social outcasts. Pip and the other "Fox and Hounds" members treat Taj and his house mates very poorly. Determined to help the members of the Barn residence gain acceptance, Taj starts the "Cock and Bulls" fraternal guild. He hopes that the "Cock and Bulls" guild will win the Camford Cup, which is an annual academic, social, and athletic competition between fraternities. The bitterness between Taj and Pip only increases as the fraternities compete in several competitions to earn points towards the Camford Cup.

I cannot say anything more about the plot, or else I'll spoil it for you.