Barbershop 2: Back in Business

Lukewarm but watchable and laid-back follow-up has shop owner Cube and his rambunctious co-workers enjoying the success of their thriving business, until a new, technologically advanced shop prepares to open across the street. It's run by a smarmy political suit who not only threatens to put them out of business, but has also convinced the majority of the neighborhood inhabitants to sell out as well. First film was likable enough but didn't exactly cry out for a sequel, though there are some occasional laughs. Uninspired script doesn't have much of a story to tell, but it's still well-performed and made worthwhile by an enthusiastic cast, especially Cedric the Entertainer who seems to be having the most fun of all. **

The same crew is back in a sequel to the hilarious comedy about a group of barbers who cut hair and discuss life inside their little barbershop community. Calvin (Ice Cube) is the owner of the barbershop with Cedric The Entertainer as his oldest barber. Queen Latifah has been added to the cast with a beauty shop next door. The south side of Chicago is changing with developers buying up everything and moving everybody out of the old neighborhood. Calvin is about to have new competition from a chain barbershop opening across the street. To fight the new barbershop, Calvin tries to upscale his barbershop with paintings and glass sculptures. Calvin also orders his barbers to be quiet and just cut hair, and stop the tradition of being able to say anything you want inside the barbershop. If you liked the first movie, you will like this one. Some of the discussions are outrageous, especially, the ones with Cedric. I laughed through the entire movie. (MGM, Run Time 1:38, Rated PG-13) (7/10)

Although I thought this movie was really funny the first was still better. It was wrapped around more controversy. Also this movie was made for Cedric. He is the central point of the movie. Not that I mind b/c he is a great comedian. Queen Latifah was very underused but it seems that she has her own barber/beauty movie coming out so that will make up for it. I also like the fact that the Barbershop movies talk about real problems with the way society thinks about things. This movie is good and needs to be watched. I own the first and will own the second.

Most of the major characters return for this impressive sequel that nearly works as well as its very good predecessor. Barbershop owner Ice Cube and his fellow cutters (out-of-place female Eve, African immigrant Leonard Earl Howze, super white boy Troy Garity, ex-con Michael Ealy and loud-mouthed veteran Cedric the Entertainer) have a new problem on their hands. Business opportunist Harry Lennix wants to open a Nappy Cutz (a fictional Super Cuts-styled rip-off) shop across the street. Immediately the group is worried about the possibility of being run out of business by the upstarts. Former barber Sean Patrick Thomas (now working for Illinois state governor Robert Wisdom) realizes the situation and does what he can to help. Naturally though Wisdom is just as crooked and suspicious as Lennix so thus another dilemma occurs. Ice Cube is also constantly bothered by one of his wife's (Jazsmin Lewis) relatives (a priceless turn by Kenan Thompson). Thompson also has the itch to become a stylist and hangs around the shop in spite of the fact that no one trusts him with their hair. Also along for the ride is beauty shop owner Queen Latifah who doubles as Cube's old love interest and Cedric's acid-tongued equal. A little history into Cedric's background is hilarious, heart-breaking and thought-provoking all at the same time. He thinks about a lost love (Garcelle Beauvais) and also remembers Cube's kind and decent father (Javon Jackson). Flashbacks to a Civil Rights-torn landscape of 1960s Chicago becomes a strangely poignant part of a franchise that people do not think of as serious. All in all "Barbershop 2: Back in Business" is a noble work. Once again the screenplay and direction are adequate, but the amazing characters are still the series' primary calling card. Lennix and Wisdom are really not quite as good as antagonist Keith David was in the original. I also missed neighborhood trouble-makers Anthony Anderson and Lahmard Tate, but their absences do not shatter the overall effectiveness of the sequel. 4 stars out of 5.

I thoroughly enjoyed the original Barber Shop but the sequel left me wondering why I had spent the time watching it. Cederic the Entertainer was brilliant in the original but this time it seemed like someone was holding him back. The lines just weren't funny and there was not any plot urgency to keep the action moving. The music in the original was terrific, this time I couldn't tell you the title of anything that was used. There was practically no character development and the viewer was left thinking why?? The brief scenes with Queen Latifah were some of the best in the movie and I kept wondering why she wasn't featured more. The most telling comment I can make is that I slept through the first hour and still knew everything that happened.