MURDER MYSTERY 2 (NETFLIX) (2023)

SYNOPSIS: Four years after solving their first murder mystery, Nick and Audrey Spitz (Adam Sandler, Jennifer Aniston) are now full-time detectives struggling to get their private eye agency off the ground when they’re invited to celebrate the wedding of their friend the Maharaja (Adeel Akhtar) on his private island. But trouble follows the Spitzes again when the groom is kidnapped for ransom soon after the festivities begin — making each glamorous guest, family member, and the bride herself a suspect. MURDER MYSTERY 2 sends Nick and Audrey Spitz on a high-stakes case that finally gives them everything they’ve ever dreamed of: a shot at their detective agency finally becoming successful…and their long-awaited trip to Paris. 

MOVIE REVIEW:

It’s that time once again when we have fun watching Adam Sandler having fun on Netflix as Jennifer Aniston joins him in their second outing, Murder Mystery 2.

No longer a low-ranking NYPD policeman, Nick (Sandler) who successfully solved a murder mystery while on a long-delayed honeymoon with his hairdresser wife, Audrey (Aniston) in the first one are now both freelance private detectives. While not exactly a hit in their new career path, the Spitzs decide to take a brief break and accept an all-expenses paid wedding invitation from the super-rich Maharajah Vikram (a returning Adeel Akhtar) who is marrying a supposedly French gold-digger, Claudette (Melanie Laurent).

However, Nick and Audrey’s happiness is short-lived when the Maharajah is mysteriously kidnapped on his wedding day. Trapped on the island with Colonel Ulenga (also a returning John Kani), Vik’s ex-girlfriend, Countess Sekou (Jodie Turner-Smith), Vik’s sister, Saira (Kuhoo Verma) and the CEO of Vik’s company, the lecherous Francisco (Enrique Arce), the Spitzs must find Vik and hand in the ransom with the help of an ex-MI6 agent, Miller (Mark Strong) before he is brutally kill by the kidnappers.

James Vanderbilt (Zodiac, Scream VI) resumes his screenwriting duties for the sequel and he wastes no time in setting up the crime scene and suspects making Murder Mystery 2 a brisk and silly affair. Unlike the intricate plotting of the Knives Out franchise or the Hercule Poirot outings, this murder mystery relies heavily on the chemistry of Sandler and Aniston to make things work instead of an engaging smart whodunit. How many times does Audrey needs to fall over the Eiffel tower anyway? By the third time, you know they have ran out of options.

There’s no doubt Sandler ad-libbed his way throughout given most of the lines are just random nonsense but at the very minimum, they did travelled to Paris to shoot a ridiculous car chase through the streets and a comedic confrontation at a huge lavish castle.

In an age where movies are on average over two hours long, Murder Mystery 2 runs at an efficient 90 minutes because frankly, Sandler needs more free time for his vacation break with his grown-ups buddies. The technical and production values are surprisingly top-notch unfortunately the rest of Murder Mystery 2 is so predictable and lazy that it cheapens the entire experience killing the likely possibility of a third one. Fingers crossed if this is yet another hit for Netflix.

MOVIE RATING:

Review by Linus Tee