Five years after The Book Club, this sequel arrives and, this time around, the gang embark on a girls’ trip to Italy, a premise that seems glaringly unoriginal. Indeed, it was only a few weeks ago that 80 For Brady was released. In that, four ladies who have been lifelong friends and are now in their late 60s or 70s, including one played by Jane Fonda, go on a trip with comic results. In Book Club 2, four ladies in their late 60s or 70s, including…well you get the idea!
As well as Fonda who reprises her role as Vivian, Diane Keaton, Mary Steenburgen and Candice Bergen all return as Diane, Carol and Sharon respectively. Also back are Andy Garcia, Don Johnson and Craig T. Nelson as the ladies’ partners so there is plenty of talent on display. It is the pleasure is seeing the performers that is the main draw as well as the stunning scenery, as the story, situations and many of the jokes are highly predictable. There is, though, a pleasing coarseness to some of the gags that you might not expect in a film aimed at an older demographic, and early scenes handling lockdown are particularly inventive.
However, the movie runs out of steam before the end, with the last 20 minutes or so are particularly sappy that even a twinkly eyed Andy Garcia cannot save.
Rating: 6.5 out of 10