Review of Blues Brothers 2000 (1998) by David G — 16 May 2010

A flawed and unadventurous but blues-tastic sequel to the cult 1980 original which boasts some memorable randomness and inspired musical moments. The plot is essentially a rehash of the first film's with some plot elements and characters changed, which is disappointing, especially since the original did it so much better. Dan Aykroyd reprises his role as Elwood Blues and is a lot of fun, but since John Belushi had passed away he's now partnered by John Goodman and Joe Morton, who are game, but the magic of the original pairing has been lost. The film loses the most points however for the colossal fuck up that is Buster - an irritating 10-year-old who exists purely for the "novelty" of having a kid dancing and singing along with the guys. OK, so he has a small amount to do with the plot (such as it is) but the movie would have been a lot better off without him.

On the plus side, the music is great and is arguably even better than in the original. If you thought the collection of artists they got together for the first film was impressive, you 'aint seen nothing yet! Blues/Soul fans will be in for a real treat. There are also some really funny scenes as well as several moments that truly take the term "WTF" to the next level!