Review of Short Circuit 2 (1988) by Troy F — 24 Jan 2015

Short Circuit 2 does retain some of the same goofiness as the first film, but feels a bit inconsistent. Ben Jahvi returns with no sign of Guttenberg and the other female, as he strikes a deal to make toy versions of Johnny 5, and is aided by Johnny 5 who is sent by Guttenberg (who somehow knew Ben was in trouble and needed him according to the note sent). Johnny 5 gets naive and explores urban Philadelphia (clearly Toronto) and is fooled into a bank vault break-in scheme.

The lack of Guttenberg and the girl is unfortunate as Ben goes from side character to main character in this film, meaning more screen time for his goofy but ridiculously stereotypical Indian mannerisms. While Johnny 5's quest to learn more and be human is explored with some difficulty that furthers his character, we do also get a lot of him shooting out loads of movie one-liners and pop culture references which seem oddly more irritating here than they did in the first film. He still has a child-like behaviour that seems to appeal to children who see this film, yet the film otherwise feels awfully PG-13 with some foul language (it's PG). Not that I mind as an older viewer but I mention it for the sake of the film's target audience. It's an 80's thing, I guess.

I recommend Short Circuit 2 if you just want to see more of Johnny 5 in action with his goofiness and gadgets, and to be fair the urban setting is more interesting grounds for Johnny 5 to be in as it challenges who he is and to face acceptance into society. That's perhaps why some people like this one better than the first. I do however stand by the fact that the human plot is a bit weaker and and the whole bank robbery deal is cliche, making the film weaker overall, but the film holds enough in action and silliness to be a follow-up worth watching.