Directed by: Craig Brewer
Starring: Eddie Murphy, Arsenio Hall, Jermaine Fowler, Wesley Snipes, Shari Headley, James Earl Jones, Leslie Jones, Tracy Morgan, Teyana Taylor, Nomzamo Mbatha, John Amos, Louie Anderson
There is plenty of nostalgia to be had in Coming 2 America, the sequel released thirty-three years after the original which itself has been years in the making. It's fun to see Eddie Murphy back in one of his signature roles as Prince Akeem, who in the original film traveled to Queens to find love and escape an arranged marriage. Murphy also returns in his other characters from the first film, as does Arsenio Hall, and at times director Craig Brewer must've felt like a traffic cop trying to ensure the returning characters, plus the new ones, get their moments in the sun. I also could've done without the dance numbers which seem to be shoehorned in from nowhere, but in the end Coming 2 America has enough heart and enough nostalgic quality to be at least worthwhile for Coming to America fans.
Coming 2 America begins thirty years after the original in the fictional African land of Zamunda (a likely neighbor of Wakanda). Prince Akeem is still a prince as his father King Jaffe Joffer (James Earl Jones) still rules, but is now on his deathbed. The king laments that Akeem is soft and spoiled. "You will be assassinated in a week," the king states, likely by General Izzi (Snipes) of neighboring Nextdoria (funny name) and leaving Zamunda ripe for a takeover. Izzi busts Akeem's balls about not having a male heir, but in a plot development which strains the limits of credulity, the king reveals that Akeem indeed has a thirty-year old son living in Queens. Akeem's trusted manservant and best friend Semmi (Hall) knows more than the flabbergasted Akeem about the night of the son's conception and I'll leave it at that.
Because Zamunda's throne ascendency laws still require passage of the crown to a male heir down the line, Akeem and Semmi travel to Queens to seek out his son Lavelle (Fowler), who was raised by his mother Mary (Jones) and Uncle Reem (Morgan). We reconnect with the regulars at the My-T-Sharp barber shop, still owned by the wisecracking Clarence (Murphy) and his posse of old Jewish man Saul (Murphy again) and Arsenio Hall and Clint Smith recreating their roles as well. The jokes they throw at us still have the same rhythm and delivery, but are updated to reflect the passage of years.
Lavelle is a nice, dull guy with few prospects who leaps at the chance to go to Zamunda to assume his place as Akeem's royal heir, supplanting Akeem's oldest daughter who has been training for the role her entire life and now has to grit her teeth as the newcomer usurps her place in line. General Izzi proposes a marriage between his daughter (Taylor) and Lavelle to unite the nations and bloodlines, but Lavelle soon falls for common woman Mirembe (Mbatha) and we can figure out what happens from there. Akeem seems to forget he defied his father's wishes and married Lisa (Headley) all those years ago while forbidding his son from doing the same.
Because Coming 2 America spends so much time and energy ensuring most of the living characters from the first film receive at least a walk-on, Akeem seems almost like an afterthought. Snipes is maliciously funny as General Izzi, but his subplot feels like one subplot too many. There is even a cameo of the elephant Akeem petted in the first film while strolling on the palace grounds with his dad. He's bigger and older now of course, but it seems like Murphy and company didn't want to leave anyone or anything out.
I didn't expect Coming 2 America to be on par with the original film, which was a comic masterpiece, but it actually approaches being a worthy sequel due to some big laughs and a sense of its own history. The costumes by Oscar-winner Ruth Carter (Black Panther) and set designs make Zamunda a colorful and vibrant place we would want to visit. It's a near-miss though, mostly because Coming 2 America feels too convoluted for its own good. By the end, it's a free-for-all. Maybe with some tightening up, the two-and-a-half stars could have been three.
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