The much anticipated sequel of the 1988 Blockbuster 'Coming To America' finally premiered a day ago and it was like a big family reunion. It features Eddie Murphy and Arsenio Hall who reprise their roles in the original as the prince of Zamunda and the associate respectively.
James Earl Jones is still very much King Jaffe Joffer but this time delivers all his scenes in bed. Lisa played by Shari Headly now the queen of Zamunda, her father Cleo McDowell and even the barbershop crew all return in this sequel or better still, 'remake'.
There are fun additions to the cast in the likes of Wesley Snipes,Tracy Morgan and Leslie Jones. We see cameo appearances from Trevor Noah, Teyana Taylor, Rick Ross, Morgan Freeman, Michael Blackson, Rotimi and Davido.
Akeem and Lisa however are not the main characters in this sequel although it's pretty much the same love story as in the original. This sequel stars Jermaine Fowler (Lavelle) and Nomzamo Mbatha (Mirembe). Lavelle is the bastard son of Akeem and heir to the throne of Zamunda. Akeem and Semmi journey again to America to search for his son in order to make him the crown prince.
Getting to Zamunda, Lavelle is proposed to marry General Izzi's daughter in order to form an alliance between Zamunda and Nexdoria but the plan goes downhill when Lavelle falls in love with his barber Mirembe.
There were bouts of nostalgia as flashback scenes of the original movie were used and nearly all of the old actors making a reappearance. The wardrobe department did an amazing job with the African inspired outfits and the stunning palace happens to be the home of rapper Rick Ross who made a cameo appearance.
There was music by Gladys Knight, Salt n Peppa, Davido and soundtrack by John Legend, Tiwa Savage and Burna boy.
There are bad reviews about the sequel but that's not surprising, even the original wasn't received so well at first but it's now a blockbuster.
The sequel plays it safe by not being gender insensitive unlike the original and now tries to tone down the patriarchy.
It was a fun movie to watch especially because of how nostalgic it is. If you ever saw the original, you most likely would enjoy this. Just like one of the movie characters said in one of the scenes about American cinema, "what do we have besides superhero shit, remakes and sequels to old movies nobody asked for?"
This is definitely a sequel to watch because it's enjoyable and a mix of new school with old school. It is a sequel people did ask for.
It is currently rated 51% on Rotten Tomatoes.
Here's a trailer of Coming 2 America
