Channing Tatum is getting his kit off once again as he returns as stripper Michael Lane in 'Magic Mike XXL'.
While the 2012 original proved to be a surprise hit, the same thing doesn't look likely to happen again, at least if you believe what the critics are saying...
“In fact the film isn't especially original and takes few real risks. When the stripping has to stop there is always an opaque veil in the form of a posing pouch or leather jock strap to bring an acceptable pudeur to unacceptable pudenda. One wonders what Michael Winterbottom, an equally versatile and prolific director who really does go out on a limb, would have brought to this milieu. Moreover, the film never touches on such matters as the performers engaging intimately with the customers, and only briefly raises the question of ageing and of the role of the mafia muscling in on the business.”
“What follows is an oddly stilted road-trip ramble, with a storyline far shaggier than its scrupulously manscaped stars. Director Gregory Jacobs worked under originalMagic Mike helmer Steven Soderberg for years, but sadly he has almost none of his former boss’s ability to elevate material that is essentially one lamé thong away from a TLC reality series.”
Rolling Stone - 2.5 stars
“The absence of a scene-stealing Matthew McConaughey as Dallas, the Kings' preening MC, hurts like hell. Magic Mike XXL delivers rowdy, raunchy fun, but without McConaughey, it's a long way from "awright, awright, awright."
Daily Star - 4 stars
“Sequels are supposed to do everything a bit bigger than the original. As you can probably tell from the title, this second helping of gyrating beefcakes definitely delivers on that promise. But it isn’t just the muscle-bound hunks that are bulked up this time around.”
Digital Spy - 2 stars
“There are occasional flashes of the boyish naiveté, sense of camaraderie and bare-bottomed cheek that first endeared Magic Mike to crowds a few years ago, but with this sequel, Jacobs has unfortunately grabbed the wrong end of the stick.”
The Independent - 2 stars
“It’s a case of thongs for the memories with the second (and presumably final) film about male stripper Mike Lane (Channing Tatum). It is an undercharged as well as under-dressed affair that can’t ever quite overcome its own cumbersome screenplay.”