Directed by Craig Brewer
Written by Bary W. Blaustein, David Sheffield, Justin Kanew, and Kenya Barris, based on characters by Eddie Murphy
Starring Eddie Murphy, Arsenio Hall, Jermaine Fowler, Leslie Jones, Nomzamo Mbatha, Kiki Layne, Shari Headley
Rated PG-13 for language
Runtime: 1 hour 50 minutes
Available on Amazon Prime March 5

by Audrey Callerstrom, Staff Writer

Coming to America was the third highest grossing film of 1988, behind Rain Man and Who Framed Roger Rabbit? Many of its laughs came from the giddy, wide-eyed Eddie Murphy as Akeem, an African prince and fish-out-of-water in Queens, New York, accompanied by his companion, Semmi (Arsenio Hall). Akeem, displeased with the arranged marriage set up by his father (James Earl Jones) and mother (Madge Sinclair), leaves his country of Zamunda in search of his true love. Hall and Murphy also played multiple roles within the film, including those of a preacher, women at a club, and the patrons of a local barbershop, among others. It is current on Amazon Prime, as is this sequel.

It is with a heavy heart to see all of the original’s charm, particularly Murphy’s energy, stripped away in favor of an overloaded, formulaic, and dull sequel. Through some exposition-heavy scenes of dialogue, we find out that Akeem, who lives in Zamunda with wife Lisa (Shari Headley) and their three daughters, has a son, Lavelle (Jermaine Fowler), whom he conceived during his trip to America thirty years ago. In an unfunny scene, we see that Akeem had a fling with Mary (Leslie Jones) under the influence of drugs, which he doesn’t remember fully until Semmi reminds him. Ha! Drugs, the most convenient of explanations. In need of a male heir to the throne, Akeem returns to America to meet his son.

The film could have stayed in Queens, like the original did, especially since Akeem and Semmi remark how much the neighborhood has changed with gentrification. This would have been funny for them to explore. But it zips back and forth, never wanting to stay with any moment for too long. Now Lavelle is the fish out of water in Zamunda, accompanied by Mary, and later, just because, Lavelle’s uncle (Tracy Morgan). The film nervously flies off in a bunch of other directions, none of them amusing or funny. There is the conflict with Akeem’s oldest daughter, Princess Meeka (Kiki Layne), who is eager to show her father her skills as a warrior and leader. There is General Izzi (Wesley Snipes, eager to be in a comedy, but ultimately underused), of the neighboring village Nexdoria, who wants his daughter to marry Lavelle. There is flirtation between Lavelle and his “royal barber,” Mirembe (Nomzamo Mbatha), and conflicts that arise between Lisa and Akeem, the latter of which has fallen complacent with his kingdom’s archaic practices.

Coming 2 America is simultaneously everything and nothing. Nearly every gag or quip is a take on something from the original. It’s too busy shuffling characters back and forth and peppering in cameos to even land any good jokes. Almost every single cast member from the original makes an appearance (sadly, not Madge Sinclair, who passed away in 1995). John Amos, as Lisa’s father and the owner of McDowell’s (NOT McDonald’s); Louie Anderson as the McDowell’s employee; James Earl Jones in a couple scenes as the King; Paul Bates as Oha, the royal servant. If you left the room to get a drink from the fridge, you might miss one of several celebrity cameos, including Gladys Knight, Rick Ross, Salt N’ Pepa, En Vogue, and Dikembe Mutombo. With such an overloaded cast and plot, why even bother with the extra makeup to slot in Murphy and Hall as supporting characters? It’s all blink-and-you’ll-miss-it.

Jermaine Fowler is the center of the film, and he’s a charming presence, but he’s never given a single punchline. We witness an awkward job interview with Colin Jost (playing a Colin Jost-type), and a brief scene where Akeem visits Lavelle’s home, and that’s it. Without any sort of transition, Lavelle goes from meeting his dad to being acquainted with the “royal bathers” in Zamunda. Ha! Get it? Like from the original. The film has multiple labored montages of Lavelle in “prince training” akin to the montages in another royalty-in-training comedy. Do we need to see Lavelle and a CGI lion? What does that add? Is Coming 2 America, a PG-13 sequel watered down from the R-rated original, a children’s film? It certainly feels like it.

Coming 2 America is directed by Craig Brewer, who previously worked with Murphy on Dolemite is My Name and who also directed Hustle and Flow. He doesn’t feel comfortable with the material. The elaborate dance sequences in Coming to America are gone. There are still elaborate dance sequences and bright textiles, but they’re short and filmed in dim light. The rest of Zamunda looks drab. Uncomfortable (or unwilling) to develop an interesting story for the sequel, a couple scenes just flashback to the original. We know it’s good; we’ve seen it. Some of the musical numbers are fun, including Lavelle singing Prince’s “Gett Off,” and it’s silly how Trevor Noah is the correspondent for Zamunda’s own news network, ZNN (like CNN!) But there is hardly any moment throughout the whole film that will illicit more than a courtesy chuckle.