Review of Still Waiting... (2009) by Matt J — 17 Feb 2009

Color=paleturquoise]I can honestly say that I was one of the only true fans of the original "Waiting..." (2005). The writing was terrific. The dialogue was edgy, but never went too far over the line. I enjoyed all of the characters for different reasons. But most importantly, I laughed my ass off. And I'm glad to say, the sequel isn't much different.[/color][/font].

[font=Arial][color=#afeeee]Rob McKittrick, who wrote and directed the original, came back to write "Still Waiting...". A lot of the great characters from the first film are gone, but a lot of the new characters working at the restaurant know as Shenaniganz are still just as interesting. The new manager of Shenaniganz, which is a fictional Applebees type restaurant, is played by John Michael Higgins. Higgins was very good in his role, and much less annoying than the manager of Shenaniganz in the original "Waiting...", who was then played by the sometimes funny David Koechner. I liked Koechner, but not as much as I liked Higgins in this film. And, if you liked Koechner from the first film, he shows up for a while here, too.[/color][/font].

[font=Arial][color=#afeeee]I felt that "Still Waiting..." was kind of celebratory of the cult-classic original. Although the characters aren't quite as good here, and we don't get to know them as well as we did in the original, McKittrick still uses great Kevin Smith influenced dialogue to generate laughs, and make the audience like each character for different reasons.[/color][/font].

[font=Arial][color=#afeeee]The director of "Still Waiting..." is Jeff Balis, who produced the original, and even showed up in a scene as a customer at Shenaniganz. He shows up in a scene in this film too, and does a good job directing. The rest of the "Still Waiting..." cast includes Steve Howey, who is most recognizable for his work on "Reba". Howey made for one strangely likable character, a lot like all of the other characters in both "Waiting..." films. Rob Benedict returns as Calvin, the piss-in-a-public-bathroom-phobia guy from the original, as the manager of Ta-Tas, the new restaurant in town right next to Shenaniganz, in which their waitresses wear skanky outfits to make money, much like Hooters, We can see that McKittrick gets many inspirations. In this film, Calvin is now a hotshot, ladies man. [/color][/font].

[font=Arial][color=#afeeee]I also liked the brief appearances of the cast from the original "Waiting...". Chi McBride shows up in a well executed scene as a customer at Shenaniganz. Justin Long shows up as a regional manager. And Luis Guzman, who has a few scenes, is now a cook over at Ta-Tas. Also returning is Naomi, played by Alanna Ubach, the crazy, hot tempered waitress at Shenaniganz. And if you enjoyed the performance by Andy Milonakis in the original, you will enjoy it here, as he continues his role of Nick, the white wannabe gangster busboy at Shenaniganz.[/color][/font].

[font=Arial][color=#afeeee]I think the best part about "Still Waiting...", is that, like in the first film, we really feel like we're in a real restaurant environment. And the film takes place entirely in one day, much like many of Kevin Smith's films. No wonder I liked it so much. I didn't think that the characters working at Shenaniganz were quite as interesting or enjoyable to watch as they were in the original "Waiting...", but there are so many great appearances, including one by Adam Corolla which I didn't include, that elevate the film into being a very good direct-to-DVD sequel. I was surprised by how good "Still Waiting..." was, and if you're a fan of the original, give the new one a shot. I'm now looking forward to a third installment.[/color][/font].

*** out of ****.

(Three out of four stars).