Jay Rohr
M3GAN 2.0 changes most of its source code. Despite being a sequel, this murder doll fright flick emphasizes elements of action, comedy, and horror hoping to hybridize into something unique. The result is several interesting moments which ultimately add up to a good movie. Unfortunately, M3GAN 2.0 is too busy being three decent flicks instead of one great film.
The general plot involves another predictable misstep in the use of artificial intelligence. This time the U.S. military gets the here-we-go-again ball rolling by building a mechanical murder machine that goes rogue. The android assassin known as AMELIA (Ivanna Sakhno) appears hellbent on killing anyone associated with her origins. This puts Gemma and Cady (Allison Williams and Violet McGraw) from the first film in danger. Their only hope is to trust a resurrected M3GAN.
Some of the suspense is meant to stem from whether the murder doll from the first movie will revert to her wicked ways. There are flickering moments of that working. However, M3GAN 2.0 frequently races away from seriousness. The overall film opts for self-aware comedy rather than deeper messaging, emotions, or horror.
It’s a shame since the movie’s opening sets up some interesting concepts. Gemma and Cady are dealing with the aftermath of their horror story in very different ways. How the events of the first film affected them as well as their relationship is intriguing, especially when M3GAN resurfaces revealing she’s been profoundly affected too. After paying lip service to ideas of PTSD, remorse, and parental responsibility, the movie quickly shifts gear.
That’s because M3GAN 2.0 never wants to explore any deeper ideas. Since none of its notions are novel, the filmmakers feel no obligation to dive into the recycled concepts they’ve presented. Instead, they race through plot points to get to the next display of mechanical murder doll mayhem.
Along the way several exposition dumps keep the audience abreast of the plot direction. During the movie’s opening act, the initial narrative course is reiterated about four times by different characters all saying the same thing. Whenever there is a major shift, someone is always available to monologue like a monorail carrying the audience to the next stop. The writers are clearly determined to make sure either no one is ever left behind, or that viewers can jump in blind at any point and still pick up the plot.
Originality is also not a strength for M3GAN 2.0. Alongside the obvious trope of dangerous artificial intelligence, the movie seems to borrow from a variety of other flicks. It could almost be called a blatant hodgepodge of amalgamated elements from Phantom of the Opera, Terminator 2 (1991), 10 Cloverfield Lane (2016), Upgrade (2018), and at one point, M3GAN 2.0 veers into being a cyberpunk spy actioner akin to the latest Mission Impossible movies, especially considering those were also about stopping rogue A.I. Perhaps this is all homage but considering how the first M3GAN copied so much of its core plot from the 2019 Child’s Play remake, it feels like lazy writing.
As such, this isn’t a movie where the story is the draw. Most of the satisfaction is the spectacle. There is a lot of great work done cinematically stylizing M3GAN 2.0 to deliver some dazzling displays. The fights are top notch martial arts beatdowns. When the movie does risk being creepy, such as animatronic practical effects puppets, it is gloriously unsettling. The comedy doesn’t always land, but there are more hits than misses which will leave the whole audience laughing. Most of which comes courtesy of Jemaine Clement (What We Do in the Shadows) who is excellent as an arrogant tech bro billionaire.
The turn towards self-aware humor is a double-edged sword. It diminishes the seriousness of the movie, reducing opportunities for tension. Furthermore, there’s a tendency to make M3GAN a nonstop font of sass spouting snark at every opportunity. It can feel like trying to force charm through sarcasm. Too many of her one-liners are just trying too hard. Yet, when everything works, M3GAN 2.0 becomes fun.
It’s fair to argue the movie emphasizes aspects seen in the first film. The sequel simply aspires to grander displays of bigger action, and more self-aware black comedy, but it abandons suspense along with sharp scares. Sure, there’s some shocking brutality during amazing fight scenes. Few of these thrills, though, are unsettling. M3GAN 2.0 largely abandons being a horror film to emphasize sarcasm and anime grade action.
The fight scenes are superbly choreographed. That said, they seem oddly limited given the inhuman capabilities of the mechanical menaces. The fights appear designed for the limitations of human combat rather than aspiring to some mindboggling act only M3GAN or AMELIA could perform. And this stands out because filmmakers reserved more outrageous movements for things like a prolonged dance number rather than epic confrontations.
Though there are many such misses, it would be inaccurate to say M3GAN 2.0 isn’t without its merits. The cast does an admirable job. Allison Williams (Get Out) portrays someone struggling to make amends in a way that alienates everyone around her. Violet McGraw (Thunderbolts*) provides a precocious young woman striving to remain optimistic despite dark times. Aristotle Athari (The French Italian) offers an easy to dislike pretentious character hoping to do what’s best for humanity. Ivanna Sakhno (Ahsoka) produces some unsettling instances with her dead eyed gaze and ballerina like battle grace, while Jenna Davis (Lisa Frankenstein) gives M3GAN a fabulously cutesy creepy voice like bubblegum full of razor blades.
M3GAN 2.0 is composed of so many cool scenes and individual instances, it seems like the filmmakers focused on creating those rather than crafting a compelling story throughout. While there are myriad flaws in the predictable narrative, they aren’t any worse than the best Steven Seagal movie. Meanwhile, M3GAN 2.0 is filmed expertly with some interesting choices cinematically. Most of that’s confined to the flashiest scenes, but that’s what this movie is. It’s big, dumb popcorn fun for those willing to turn their brains off.
