Wonderful character development!

This Movie Can Only Be Described With One Word.

Better Late Then Never

This movie tries so hard to be funny, yet it falls flat every time. Just another example of recycled ideas repackaged with women in an attempt to appeal to a certain audience.

With Sister Act 2: Back In The Habit Whoopi Goldberg is back as a faux nun who gets a request from Mother Superior Maggie Smith from the first Sister Act to go back undercover to help save a Catholic School run by the Catholic brothers headed in this case by Barnard Hughes. They need a music teacher and Whoopi's credentials were amply proved in the first Sister Act.Once again plot gambits are taken from those Bing Crosby classics that Leo McCarey did. Like in The Bells Of St. Mary's Whoopi is sent in to a failing Catholic School. Like in Going My Way she forms a really great choir from the raw material she finds in her music class. She also has to deal with a secular villain with church ties. James Coburn is hardly anything like the lovable Henry Travers as Mr. Bogardus in The Bells Of St. Mary's and has to be dealt with differently.If you bring Whoopi back you surely have to give her that lovable posse she formed from the first Sister Act. Kathy Najimy, Wendy Makkena and the lovable veteran Mary Wickes have all returned as well.The music is the best part of this film especially Lauryn Hill who is the centerpiece of that choir. Lauryn's scenes with Sheryl Ralph playing her mother who thinks her music aspirations are foolish are quite tender and real.The element of personal danger for Whoopi is not present in the sequel, it's lighter and at times a bit silly. Still I enjoyed it and Whoopi Goldberg's fans and many others will as well.

The sisters are back, and here, they are running a school far away from the quiet San Francisco convent where they first met Dolores Van Cartier (Whoopie Goldberg). Mother Superior Maggie Smith, having lightened up towards "Sister Mary Clarence" in the first entry, sends her old pals Mary Wickes, Kathy Najimy and Wendy Makkena to Vegas to bring Dolores back, to help save her school from scheming property owner James Coburn. Like "The Bells of St. Mary's", they are in danger of loosing the school which may not be accredited, and Goldberg's job is to help them win financial support by getting the unenthusiastic chorus to L.A. for a choral contest. Yes, this is basically a Mickey/Judy movie, "Let's put on a show and crush the goals of some mean adult", only in nun's habits and catholic school uniforms. But while not as well thought out as the original, it remains entertaining and diverting.The edge is gone with the lack of a mob intrusion into the convent's life, but with many Catholic schools going under thanks to lack of funding or decreasing attendance, this was much more realistic. The subplots concerning individual students are many, from the troubled rebel who yearns for her mother's approval but doesn't go about the right way in getting it, to the talented young boy who shows he just needs some guts to bring out his true spirit, and pretty much the entire school's need to understand that these nuns are just as spirited, if more, than they are.What isn't realistic is the fact that just a year after singing for the pope, these nuns aren't recognized by the kids, and that they don't know who Dolores Van Cartier is from her previous newspaper headlines. "Are you really a Vegas showgirl?" one student asks incredulously. "No, I am a headliner", Goldberg says as only she can. The lack of continuity between the two films gives it a definite "sitcom" feel, but unlike most sitcoms, this one rises above mediocrity because it is just so pleasant to sit through, especially when the kids get their act together, take it on the road, and sing to the Lord, not just to win, but to show that they've grown ever since Sister Mary Clarence came into their lives.Like in the two 1960's film where she played a bus driving nun, Mary Wickes gets back in front of the wheel, and also continues the string of funny delivery with lines that with other actors would just draw blank stares. Coburn is appropriately stolid, while such popular character actors as Barnard Hughes and Michael Jeter take on priestly roles with joyous glee. The same group of Broadway supporting players are back as singing nuns, with special mention to Susan Johnson, Beth Fowler and Ruth Kobart, as full voiced on screen as they were on stage. While the original "Sister Act" got its own big Broadway musical, the producers of that show (including Whoopie) were wise to realize that based upon previous experiences of hit musicals attempting sequels to just quit while they were ahead. "Sister Act II" is great as a video entertainment, and to take it any further would be fruitless.

Did the original Sister Act need a sequel? Probably not but the success of the first one meant that the inevitable sequel was made in 1993.And to the credit of everyone involved it's not that bad and proves and enjoyable way to spend 90 minutes. While the story isn't really that strong and the first 30 minutes are a little manic as the director tries to re-establish the characters, the story and the reason for Goldberg going back in disguise (because, let's face it, that's what audiences want to see.And so begins a film that has some good moments of comedy and music. It's not as good as the first but then again most sequels aren't. The main thing is that this film doesn't tarnish the reputation of the first and shows again that nuns can be funny.

Films are like food. And obviously, people have their tastes and expectations. I watched Sister Act One and it was great, and was funny as much as it kept you at the edge of your sit. However, Sister Act 2 is a different kettle of fish, in spite of the return of a few known characters. I can seriously relate to it, and so can people working with kinds, teens and 'tweens' , in schools, inner city urban situations. I like a movie where people of no hope end up with hope. Found myself wipe off a few tears at the end. And in life almost imitating art. I was asked to help out as choir director for a bunch of kids and teens that were being taken care off by our local Salvation Army. They, you guess it decided to form a choir. They were kids from different,sometimes dysfunctional and even broken homes, with a few suffering from ADHD ! Not to bore you, the same group has become much sought after, sung in festivals, won an award, been a TV a couple of times and will be traveling outside the country in a few month's time! That's why I love to watch this movie. Fun and hope.