M3gan 2.0 hits theaters Friday, June 27th.
M3gan got 2023 off to a wild start. The murderous AI doll with sick dance moves caught audiences by surprise, quickly becoming one of the more memorable PG-13 horror films in recent memory. It’s campy, cheesy, and packed full of entertainment. When the conclusion of that film teased an inevitable sequel, my interest was piqued, curious as to how they would continue such a wildly and intentionally ridiculous story. The answer is leaning full force into lazy humor at the expense of story and character development.
M3gan 2.0 plot
Two years after the events of the first film, an AI being, AMELIA (Ivanna Sakhno, Ahsoka), that rivals the capabilities of M3gan has emerged. Initially used as a military weapon by the government, AMELIA goes rogue and begins killing off anybody who played a part in her creation. With Gemma (Allison Williams, Get Out) seemingly on her hitlist, the only thing that can keep her and Cady (Violet McGraw, Thunderbolts*) safe is bringing back M3gan. But can she be trusted?
M3gan 2.0 review
M3gan 2.0 takes the Terminator 2: Judgement Day sequel approach, diverting from the horror genre and opting for a more action-oriented story. The antagonist of the previous film becomes this story’s unlikely heroine; however, that is where the similarities end. M3gan 2.0 takes the meme-worthy elements from its predecessor and makes them its entire identity. Any semblance of an interesting plot or meaningful character connections is replaced with sarcastic quips and forced dance sequences reeking of desperation to recapture the spark of the original.
The story suffers from an incoherently poor script. With director Gerard Johnstone (Housebound, M3GAN) taking over screenplay duties from Akela Cooper (Malignant, Hellfest), the story devolves into a barrage of one-liners and self-aware winks to the audience, some of which work, but the majority of which do not. Every character introduced exists for the sole purpose of behaving so idiotically that you’ll have to laugh.
While the original movie featured compelling subplots like the fractured relationship between Gemma and Cady, Cady’s reliance on AI to fill the void left by the tragic passing of her parents, and Gemma’s attempts to succeed in her job through the creation of the most advanced AI toy ever created, M3gan 2.0 brings nothing of substance to keep an audience engaged or interested. The minimalistic plot is established through a series of painfully blatant exposition dumps, and the movie becomes a drawn-out race from point A to point B.
The trailer promised a Brittney Spears-inspired wild ride that the actual movie fails to deliver. Its try-hard energy is reminiscent of the annoying kid at a party who begs you to watch him do a cartwheel and falls over halfway through, but you still have to clap and tell him he did a great job. Most frustrating of all are the few small moments that present genuinely interesting and compelling ideas, only to be abandoned for the sake of a cheap joke. The movie has essentially abandoned all horror elements, but we’re given quick glimpses at what a horror sequel could have been, and it looks so much better than what we got.
Is M3gan 2.0 worth watching?
Fans of the original film will likely find themselves scratching their heads and wondering how we go so far off track so quickly. The utterly blundered sequel makes the success of the original feel like a happy accident. I chuckled a couple of times, but I rolled my eyes and checked my watch dozens more. I’m happy for Amie Donald (M3GAN, Sweet Tooth) to have the opportunity to return to the character, I only wish it had been in a more competent movie.
M3GAN 2.0 Review – From Cult Classic to Campy Catastrophe
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