Film review: The Inbetweeners 2

The Inbetweeners 2 (15) review

BANTER BRIGADE: From left Jay (James Buckley), Will (Simon Bird), Simon (Joe Thomas) and Neil (Blake Harrison).

I’ll fess up and admit that I was pretty sceptical when I heard about this Inbetweeners sequel.

The first movie was largely successful, but it kind of felt like the end of the line for Jay, Will, Neil and Simon after their three hit TV series’.

There didn’t seem to be much more that could be done with the hapless quartet – but after such a profitable first movie (it took more than £13m in its opening weekend back in 2011) I guess it was considered a no-brainer.

This is a direct sequel to their first big screen outing, which saw the lads all (somehow) find love in Malia.

We find them at Will’s (Simon Bird) University digs in Bristol, where Simon (Joe Thomas) and Neil (Blake Harrison) have come to visit.

After a suitably disastrous night out, an email from Jay (James Buckley) – who is on a gap year in Australia – offers the trio a chance to escape their woe by travelling to see their pal down under.

While Will and Neil are now single, the trip also provides Simon with the chance to bail on crazed girlfriend Lucy (Tamla Kari) for Jay’s promise of luxury accommodation and girls galore.

Naturally, Jay has over-egged his situation in Australia and things soon go to pot, leaving the lads with no other choice but to follow WiIl’s love interest Katie (24’s Emily Berrington) to Byron Bay.

What follows is textbook Inbetweeners, with all four fellas suffering pretty much embarrassment after embarrassment in one bizarre way or another.

Jay’s character arc is the main event this time around, with a bit more of his back story leaked to provide the audience with a tad more sympathy for a character that most would otherwise detest.

Having surprisingly avoided much of the ‘banter’ in the first film, Will is on the receiving end of some of the funnier scenes this time around – including the stand-out moment at the hands of Neil during a trip to a water park.

He also performs a toe-curling rendition of ‘The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face’ which seems to go on for an eternity and is cringe-worthy in the extreme.

There are a host of other laugh out loud scenes – but most come during the second half of the 96 minute sequel.

Indeed, for the first half an hour or so it was pretty mundane stuff that didn’t really seem to be capturing anyone’s imagination in the audience.

Thankfully, it improves as the film goes on and just about surpasses the original.

It has to be said, however, that sexism, racism and homophobia are once again the order of the day in most of the gags.

That’s nothing new to the series, but be warned if you’re thinking about delving into The Inbetweeners’ world for the first time.

As with any TV series that jumps to the big screen, this is essentially a feature length episode of the show.

If you like what you’ve seen in the past, this is more of the same with a bigger budget. Similarly, it won’t change your opinion of the show if you’re not a fan.

But if this is to be the last we see of the ‘banter brigade’, I’d have to say that they’ve signed off in pretty decent fashion.

Rating: 3/5 (Watched at West End Cinema, Boston)