When Nobody was released four years ago, it seemed to be a breath of fresh air people needed after a year of the Covid-19 pandemic. It was just a silly action thriller starring Bob Odenkirk as Hutch Mansell a former government assassin turned everyday man trying to live a “normal life” in the suburbs.
Yet the humdrum monotony has put a strain on his marriage which is elevated when Hutch refuses to get violent with burglars during a home invasion. It’s because he could see the revolver they aimed at him was unloaded. Later when he suspects they’ve stolen a cherished locket of his daughter’s, he goes only to discover they are desperate couple trying to get extra money for their sick child.
But when he tries to return home, he gets into a fight with Russian Mafia soldiers to keep them from harassing a young woman on the transit bus. This sets in motion in which Hutch takes on a Russian Mafia crime boss to protect his family. It was a nice little take on the action thriller trope especially since it was written by Derek Kolstad, who created the John Wick franchise.
Hutch seemed to be what would have happened if John Wick had a “happily ever after” once he got married. It’s hard to just turn your life around like flipping a switch. Yet Hutch’s relationship with his wife, Becca (Connie Nielsen), seems to be a marriage of convenience until this ignites a spark in their relationship. Nobody 2 picks up in the years after the ending where Hutch has found himself indebted to the world of organized crime for the millions of dollars he burned at the end of the first movie.
That’s because there are no happy endings when you try to walk away from the world of organized crime. And the bosses make their own rules and keep resetting the goalposts. Now, Hutch is having to kill people almost on a daily basis to pay off his debt. Becca is upset because Hutch is devoted too much time and their relationship has become strained again.
But while performing a hit, he notices an old car bummer for the fictional town of Plummerville, Wis. It’s one of the tourist trap communities that might have been popular for Baby Boomer parents raising kids in the Reaganeighties when Midwestern people couldn’t afford tropical vacations. But the hey day is long gone. There’s still a thriving arcade and carnival with a midway. Hutch tell his family it’s where his father, David (Christopher Lloyd), took them when they were young.
Almost immediately when they arrive in Plummerville, there are problems. The lodging isn’t the best. The waterpark is temporarily closed. And the local sheriff, Abel (Colin Hanks), is one of those high school bullies who barely graduated with a C-minus average but became a cop so he can intimidate people who weren’t as fortunate to move away. Very soon, Hutch learns it’s not the best place to have a family vacation as his son, Brady (Gage Munroe), is accosted by Max Martin (Lucius Hoyos) at the arcade suspected of flirting with his girlfriend.
Max is the spoiled brat son of Wyatt (John Ortiz), the corrupt theme park operator who has control of the whole community. Next thing he knows, Hutch is starting a brawl with the security guards who accused his son of starting a fight and slapped his daughter, Sammy (Paisley Cadorath), on the back of the head when she didn’t leave the arcade fast enough.
The guards have it coming. But what’s funny is at this point Nobody 2 turns into another generic action movie in which Hutch is faced with taking on the local corrupt people in a small town. I’m thinking mostly of the Burt Reynolds action movie Malone as a good template. Maybe that’s why it feels more like an action thriller from the Reagan/Bush era. But they’ve been hundreds if not thousands of similar more movies dating all the way back to the western movies like Shane or A Fistful of Dollars. Even Akira Kurosawa did it with samurai with his iconic Yojimbo.
The fact this movie includes a cast of Odenkirk, Nielsen, Lloyd, Hanks, RZA and Sharon Stone as the main villain Lendina leads me to wonder if they’re making a subtle parody of this type of subgenre. Filming was done in the Winnipeg area mostly in the summer of 2024. And it has that odd B-movie Made in Canada for the tax shelter credits feel to it.
As a parody, it seems to hit almost every keystroke at the right time. As a more serious movie, it just seems like a bunch of wasted talent. In the years since John Wick and the Kingsman movies change action, it’s not enough for the good guy to shoot the bad guy, he’s got to do it in some tremendous fashion. A punch isn’t just a punch unless we can see the bad guys’ teeth go flying out of his mouth in slow-motion. To be honest, this really all started with those Jason Bourne movies.
At 89 minutes with credits, the pacing is fast even though the story lacks the charm of the first movie. Mainly, it’s because the element of surprise is gone. RZA as Hutch’s brother, Harry, and Lloyd were both clever casting choices the first time around. Here they feel more or less like an obligation.
Neither Hanks nor Ortiz manage to look as menacing as they should be. I’m also confused by a plot twist change that never does seem like it’s deserved. Stone does what she can with the role, but it comes so far into the movie, it feels uneven.
At 63, Odenkirk has proven himself to be one of the most versatile entertainers. I kind of feel this was made just to show he was ok after his heart attack during the summer of 2021 during the filming of Better Call Saul.
Zane Says 