Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues?is one long, hilarious riff on 24 hour news channels in general, and Fox News in particular. Anchorman 2 is to the Tea Party what Talladega Nights was to the NASCAR crowd.
I don’t think it is giving away too much to say that anchor-fool Ron Burgundy has a brilliant insight that perfectly encapsulates the no news “news” as we know it today:
I just don’t know why we have to tell the people what they need to hear. Why can’t we just tell them what they want to hear?
The whole San Dee-AAH-go news team is back (Will Ferrell, Christina Applegate, Paul Rudd, Steve Carell, David Koechner), and this time they are changing the world of news as we knew it, on both a national and a global scale. Set in a time before CNN, Fox News, and even MTV, they hit every note: clueless racism (in an homage to or rip-off of the Austin Powers “mole” scene); jingoism; pointless car chases; celebrities who kill women; and the public obsession with the spectacular versus the truly news-worthy. In addition to the original cast, there is a star galaxy of cameo appearances, and a fun turn by Kristen Wiig, who only does fun turns, as Brick Tamblin’s love interest.
The seventies make a wonderful appearance in the form of the Halston shirtdress, perms, and the musical score. I never, ever anticipated laughing so hard while listening to the Captain and Tennille’s 1976 take on Willis Alan Ramsey’s “Muskrat Love,” which is right up there in the pantheon of dumbest song lyrics ever written or sung. It was a lovely, nostalgic ride for those of us who grew up watching “Uncle” Walter Cronkite, and now disable the Fox “News” channels every time we get a new cable provider.
Not every joke is a winner, but so what? Includes (to borrow a term from the great Joe Bob Briggs) major league bimbo-fu, road trips, exile, ESP “confusement,” bad hair, hot Laundromat sex, RC Cola, terrible clothes, condomology, filial and other kinds of love, and the surprising return of Sex Panther. My whole family, which includes a brooding but brilliant college student, laughed a lot. Anchorman 2 rates a “Great” on the Krug Scale: Citizen Kane, Great, So Bad It’s Good, Can’t Remember, and Unforgettably Bad.
Edited/Published by: SB
