{"id":49013,"date":"2025-07-31T13:14:21","date_gmt":"2025-07-31T17:14:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cinema-crazed.com\/blog\/?p=49013"},"modified":"2025-07-31T13:14:21","modified_gmt":"2025-07-31T17:14:21","slug":"the-bad-guys-2-2025","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cinema-crazed.com\/blog\/2025\/07\/31\/the-bad-guys-2-2025\/","title":{"rendered":"The Bad Guys 2 (2025)"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>The reformed Bad Guys are forced to return to crime by another set of thieves in the solid animated sequel The Bad Guys 2, directed by Pierre Perifel and based on the book series by Aaron Blabey.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

No matter anything else, The Bad Guys 2 is a movie I shall hold in my heart. (Don\u2019t worry, it\u2019s good, but come with me here.) The critical\/early-public screening was the first full-length movie for my four-year-old. He\u2019s been to the cartoon showings at our favorite local theatre, but that has the lights up, kids can talk and move around, and nothing is longer than 22 minutes. But coming out to a regular first-run show, getting some popcorn, sitting in a big seat, and semi-silently watching, it’s a first. I\u2019m glad to bring him out. He didn\u2019t quite make it, and my wife took him out after about an hour. But still his first experience. So, I\u2019ll always remember The Bad Guys 2. (Btw, my first movie was An American Tail, also when I was four. My mom said I didn\u2019t like it. I was born a critic.)<\/span><\/p>\n

I\u2019m glad my kid\u2019s first full movie was a good one. Whew. Imagine forever associating it with Hookwinked 18 or something.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I was surprised by how much I enjoyed the 2022 first entry in The Bad Guys franchise. The awesome design, the sleek Soderbergh-cool of the story (yes, the \u201ctwists\u201d are obvious a mile away, but it wasn\u2019t made for a 40-year-old), and a fantastic sense of character. The ins and outs of a heist movie and its character set are translated with a sense of hip energy. I was excited when a sequel was announced. I still haven\u2019t read the book series by Blabey, but I did add it to my massive For Later digital pile on Seattle Public Library\u2019s website.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>The follow-up, aptly named Bad Guys 2, is a solid sequel. It\u2019s lesser, with too much going on and a slip back of character, but is a very fun adventure with a series of thrilling action scenes, led well by returning director Pierre Perifel. The \u201cBad Guys,\u201d having completed their redemption arc, are in dire straits. The team, leader Mr. Wolf, lockpick Mr. Snake, disguise master Mr. Shark, hacker Ms. Tarantula, and wildcard Mr. Piranha, despite their skills, are unable to get jobs. All are downtrodden except the normally grumpy Mr. Snake, now strangely loose and happy. And for reasons (you know, the plot and I don\u2019t spoil details) they end up back in the sights of former adversary now reluctant friend Chief (now Commissioner) and forced to pull One Last Heist by an all-female set of criminals: Kitty Kat (a snow leopard), Doom (a bird) and Pigtail (a Boar) Hijinks ensue, character motivations, talk of good vs bad, nature vs nurture occur, and big adventure follows.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Writers Yoni Brenner & Etan Coen bump it all up. Bad Guys 2 has so much big adventure. It\u2019s a sequel, so we have to get bigger and badder. Everything on the heist and action end is bumped up a few levels. Whether it be the opening flashback Egyptian heist (pure Soderberg), a wedding scheme, the massive finale, or a handful in between, they are all incredibly impressive. The animation is flawless, using the medium to embiggen the heist action. It\u2019s thrilling, clever, and it flows, builds, explodes, and turns with an exciting ease. But there is A LOT of it. It\u2019s a little overwhelming.<\/span><\/p>\n

Speaking of the animation, The Bad Guys 2 uses the modern multi-method impressively. In a very fun touch, the styles switch for particular moments to gain an extra level of emotion, joke, or make a point. The overall character design continues to be intricate and impressive. It all moves with a smoothness. No skimping on the sequel in design or sequences. The physical gags and beats work. Detail, detail, detail!<\/span><\/p>\n

The downside to increasing the severity of action is the erosion of character. Having completed their arc in the first film, there isn\u2019t much further for The Bad Guys to go, except to question if it was the right thing. Being \u201cbad\u201d is easier, so why be good? That\u2019s it. There\u2019s a bit of backstory for the new Bad Girls, but it doesn’t add much. As characters, they\u2019re fun but basic. Unfortunately, the Bad Guys themselves are mostly reduced to the basic skills over character.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Luckily, a great set of voice talent smooths over any snags in the characters. Everyone from the original returns for the sequel. The always dependable Sam Rockwell lends a Danny Ocean charm. Mark Maron\u2019s Snake is delightfully grumpy with great humor in the opening up. Awkwafina\u2019s Ms. Tarantula has boundless spark. Craig Robinson\u2019s Mr. Shark brings the giddy, and Anthony Ramos\u2019s Mr. Piranha\u2019s excitability.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The new voices are excellently suited. Kitty Kat is a feisty Danielle Brooks, Natasha Lyonne is hilarious working with Maron as Doom, and Maria Bakalova continues to make her star with yet another skill set. There\u2019s a chemistry with them all, with a rambunctious, cool energy. I don\u2019t know if they all recorded together, but they flow so well as a group, it feels like it. They are funny people, working from a very funny script, and that helps.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Bad Guys 2 is a solid sequel, with bigger and more action. That bumping up comes with a loss of character growth (although the characters are a joy to watch interact). The intended audience probably won\u2019t notice, so it\u2019s alright. What is here is a ton of fun. It\u2019 a dip, but not much.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The reformed Bad Guys are forced to return to crime by another set of thieves in the solid animated sequel The Bad Guys 2, directed by Pierre Perifel and based on the book series by Aaron Blabey.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":32,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[58,98,457],"class_list":["post-49013","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-movie-reviews","tag-action","tag-animated","tag-heist"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cinema-crazed.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49013","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cinema-crazed.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cinema-crazed.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cinema-crazed.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/32"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cinema-crazed.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=49013"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.cinema-crazed.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49013\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":49017,"href":"https:\/\/www.cinema-crazed.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49013\/revisions\/49017"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cinema-crazed.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=49013"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cinema-crazed.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=49013"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cinema-crazed.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=49013"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}