MovieChat Forums > The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2015) Discussion > Severely lacking compared to the first f...

Severely lacking compared to the first film

posted 9 years ago by jac91604
20 replies | jump to latest

Sorry folks, the plot(what little there was) was both convoluted and contrived. I looked at my watch more than once. It was all over the place, and none of the stories were that interesting. Should have focused more on Richard Gere romancing the mother, instead of this nonsense about who was the one from the corporate office, as if that wasn't easy to spot.

What made the original work was that it was realistic, a bunch of British pensioners moving to India and experiencing culture shock, even as an American not of retirement age who has moved from one part of the US to another you can relate to how strange a new place can be.

This movie pales big time in comparison.

Very disappointed, but than most sequels aren't even close to the original.

[–] VidaBoheme 9 years ago

Totally agree with your assessment of the sequel. It was absolutely all over the place and very convoluted. I don't feel like any of the characters had enough screen time to flesh out their storylines at all. It would have been one thing if the main point of the story was either the wedding or the opening of a new hotel, but not both. For a 2-hour film, it felt like nothing much happened overall.

[–] monstermayhem32 9 years ago

I will say Muriel storyline was the most confusing of the bunch. I enjoyed the sequel. I just hope the third provides closure.

[–] jac91604 9 years ago

Exactly Vida, it was all over the place and none of the stories were that interesting or given enough time to develop.

It was like a TV sitcom that has been on for 7 seasons, when 4 would have been enough.

You're right, there was not enough screen time given to any of the storylines.

It felt like a bunch of short vignettes thrown together, but with no real point to them.

I found myself not caring about the characters, which was the complete opposite of how I felt about the original, which sparked your interest from the beginning with them sitting at the airport in London.

[–] WhenGreyjoysCry 9 years ago

I thought the second was better than the first. Second went more for a comedic vibe and gave Sonny more screen and he frequently delivered on the comedy. His rivalry with Kushal was hilarious. Muriel's character was more interesting this time around. Her crankiness was funny where in the first one she just came across as a cranky old racist.

"Gold buys a mans silence for a time. A bolt to the heart buys it forever"

[–] louiseculmer 9 years ago

I agree. Very poor film i thought compared to the first, all those irritating and pointless misunderstandings.

[–] monstermayhem32 9 years ago

I liked the sequel bur felt it was a bit confusing ar times to follow.

[–] PacificHeights 9 years ago

I agree completely with jac91604. This was a very stupid movie. The plot was so thin and it was scattered all over the place. The directing wasn't good and the guy who played Sonny was irritating and ridiculous. None of the characters had chemistry with each other.
The sub plot of Guy Chambers being interested in rude, insulting, extremely unpleasant Mommy G was not believable in the least.

[–] badgerking10 9 years ago

I'm glad I paid to see this one with some of the points on my Odeon card rather than with money... I had suspected that this had only been made to cash in on the success of the first one and I should have trusted my instincts... While some individual scenes are fine or even rather good, it's a mess and there's a bit too much going on... I could have done without the utterly bland Richard Gere. (Though, the fact that all the old dears in the place cooed appreciatively when he first appeared may well explain why he was cast...) In the first one, I was surprised to quite enjoy Bill Nighy's performance. But, in this one, he was back to his usual style, which I find quite irritating... Positives..? The likeable Dev Patel's given a bit more to do, I enjoyed the big dance number and the end was poignant and sweet and really made me wish that everything that had gone before had been much better.

[–] SCsurfguy 9 years ago

I agree. It seemed rather frenetic to me….jumping all over the place. Too much going on. Was hard to maintain interest. By the time it got going, I didn't really care all that much.
And I thought the character played by Nighy was particularly irritating in this one, as well. The two of them together were rather irritating. When two characters are reticent about starting up a relationship, it's understandable. And it can make for an interesting emotional journey.
That story just didn't have it. It became more like, 'Just make up your mind!'
And the guy who was chasing his girlfriend in a taxi, only to find she was having an affair…. because "I thought you were having an affair?"
Yawn.
And I agree that the Richard Gere plot line was silly. As was bringing in the American woman. I really didn't care to be honest. Not enough drama or development on that storyline to care. "I'm a writer. No, I'm not. Do you still like me? I'm a writer again…."
Kind of a shame, because I loved the first one.

[–] dgcasey 9 years ago

In the first one, I was surprised to quite enjoy Bill Nighy's performance. But, in this one, he was back to his usual style, which I find quite irritating...

I didn't see him being back to his old self at all. In the first one he was suffocating under the thumb of his wife and he finally got rid of her. In this, the second one, he was now cast into the role of being a free man, something he hadn't been for decades and he was quite out of practice. It seemed to me that Evelyn was waiting for him to grab her and kiss her, but she was just too proper to say so.

[–] RuthlessGoat 9 years ago

I agree, this one was a bust on so many levels. I reviewed it http://www.ruthlessreviews.com/28905/the-second-best-exotic-marigold-hotel/

Goat at Ruthless Reviews

[–] Jelly-4 9 years ago

Agree. It was dreadful.

The first was full of rich characters, wonderful, memorable dialogue (like Bill Nighy's scene with his wife when he's had enough), real conflict, utter pathos and real joy. And the setting of India was another character in and of itself that profoundly changed the pensioners.

I didn't expect the second to be quite as good as the first, but didn't expect a film with no story, no conflict, characters stripped of the complexity they had in the first, scenes that don't relate to one another and jump all over the place..

[–] hillrosemary 9 years ago

I agree that this didn't soar to the same heights as the original, but then that would have been setting the bar almost out of reach. Having said that, there was plenty to enjoy - I think Dev Patel does a beautiful job, and Shazad Latif was just as good as Kushal. I loved the scenes with Douglas 'tour-guiding' with the aid of an unseen (and unreliable!) prompter and of Evelyn giving a mouthful in Hindi to the cloth merchant without the slightest idea of what it meant. Muriel's story was moving and added just the right note of pathos. It was lovely to see the cantankerous, prejudiced old biddy that she once was being given a home and a welcome by the young Indian woman she once insulted.

As to the story strand involving Richard Gere's character, yes, perhaps it was the least necessary and least fitting. But films have to be sold, and the USA is a big market. I think his coming on board is understandable.

I'm sure many people will tear the film to shreds. But in the end, it strikes me as being a wonderful advertisement for what old age CAN be with the right attitude, and as someone fast approaching it, I came out with a smile on my face. Who could ask for more?

[–] dgcasey 9 years ago

Evelyn giving a mouthful in Hindi to the cloth merchant without the slightest idea of what it meant. Muriel's story was moving and added just the right note of pathos. It was lovely to see the cantankerous, prejudiced old biddy that she once was being given a home and a welcome by the young Indian woman she once insulted.

There was no greater moment in the movie than when Judi and Margaret shared the screen those too few times. That made the entire movie worth it. The only thing that could possibly top it is to have a new guest at the hotel in the next movie and have that guest played by Helen Mirren. They could dispense with the rest of the cast and just center on those three and it would be fabulous.

[–] halomaniac88 9 years ago

The sequel is completely stupid and pointless. I liked the first one it had its charms.