Director Paul Feig is one of my favorite filmmakers working today. He has proven himself rather adept at genre deconstruction and his films are kind of like takeout pizza in that even when they’re not great, they’re still pretty good and I can still walk away having enjoyed a lot about them. His 2018 riff on the trashy airport novel, A Simple Favor, is one of my favorite films from this director to date. I was excited to see a sequel in development with Feig and the original screenwriter and stars attached, but was a bit devastated to see it being released exclusively on a streaming service. But luckily, Amazon sent me to an in-person screening, so I got to experience the film projected with a crowd. Does Another Simple Favor live up to the film that came before it?

Five years after the events of A Simple Favor, mommy vlogger with a past Stephanie Smothers (Anna Kendrick) has written a book about her relationship with the elusive, stylish and mysterious Emily Nelson (Blake Lively), who went to prison for murder at the end of the last film. At a book signing, Stephanie is shocked to see Emily waltz in, fresh out the slammer, as chic as ever, asking her to be her maid of honor at her upcoming wedding to the handsome and impossibly wealthy Dante (Michele Morrone) in Capri. She agrees, as a way to mine content for her vlog, but soon finds herself entangled in yet another murder mystery that places her at the center.

A Simple Favor was a very smart stupid movie. With its genre trappings and over-the-top plotting and characters, it subverted audience expectations in an effective way. Another Simple Favor was never going to reach the absurdist, delightful heights of the film that came before it, but for the majority, this sequel comes close. This sequel is a lot of fun, and maintains a lot of what made the original so memorable, and feels like a successful evolution of its characters. And like its original, this has an increasingly convoluted plot that ups the soap-opera-level camp to insane levels, but has a little more trouble sticking the landing this time. The explanation of what’s really going on here is ridiculous and absurd and doesn’t land as well as it did last time, but considering that’s our biggest problem here, I think that’s not altogether a bad thing.

Anna Kendrick and Blake Lively still have the same fun, snappy repartee and electric chemistry they shared in the first film, and both actresses remain incredibly exciting to watch. I love the way Kendrick’s character has evolved since we first met her. Her character trajectory as the perky, energetic, impossibly chipper PTA mom who essentially became Jessica Fletcher, is one I’ve very much enjoyed watching. And Blake Lively, despite all her personal self-inflicted controversy, remains a dazzling and exciting presence in this film. You get the impression both of these actresses have such a deep understanding of who these characters are, and watching their evolution is just so much damn fun, and even if the plotting here became a bit exhausting as we hurl toward the finish line, I would still welcome another crazy story with these two.

From the original film, we have a lot of returning cast members, but not everybody. Henry Golding returns as Emily’s bitter ex husband, and unfortunately he’s not given a lot to do. The great Andrew Rannells returns as Stephanie’s friend from the PTA group, and Bashir Salahuddin returns as the detective who works with her. Elizabeth Perkins takes over the role of Emily’s mother, who Jean Smart played in the first film. I assume Smart declined to reprise her role because she was busy filming Hacks, but I can’t say for sure. Linda Cardellini, Dustin Milligan and Rupert Friend do not reprise their roles, but there would really be no reason for them to. 

We have some exciting additions to our cast here as well. Allison Janney stars as Emily’s aunt Linda, who may be more than she initially appears. Janney seems to be having a ball here, and it’s always good to see her. Tony winner Alex Newell shows up as Stephanie’s book agent who comes to Capri with her, and she’s got a fun comedic presence and is a hoot to watch. And Elena Sofia Ricci, an iconic Italian actress who is lesser known stateside, stars as Dante’s mother, who is very fun to watch here as well. It kind of feels like this sequel exists as an excuse to send this cast on an Italian vacation, but given the fact that Adam Sandler has been making Netflix money for years essentially doing the same thing, I can’t blame Feig and co. for doing this as well.

One thing that infuriates me about this era of streaming content is the plethora of movies that deserve the canvas of the big screen, relegated to streaming services. Amazon released The Accountant 2 in theaters across the country last weekend, and is dumping this sequel on their streaming platform the following week. I have no interest in seeing The Accountant 2 (maybe I will, and if I do, I’ll write about it) but I have no doubt in my mind Another Simple Favor is the stronger sequel of the two. The lush Italian backdrop alongside Renée Ehrlich Kalfus’ stunning costume design, should have earned the film a proper theatrical rollout, and even beyond that, it’s just a very fun film to watch with a crowd, and the fact that viewers will be robbed of that experience is a little depressing. 

Overall, Another Simple Favor’s increasingly convoluted plot stumbles on its way to the finish line, but as a sequel to one of my favorite films of the last decade that I’ve rewatched a bunch of times, I still left the theater with a big smile on my face and I see no reason why I wouldn’t rewatch this one a lot as well. It assumes you remember a lot about the first film, and kind of throws you back into the action without a lot of exposition, so it may be worth a rewatch or at least a glance at A Simple Favor’s Wikipedia synopsis before you boot this one up. The script loses some of the sharpness of the original, and we lose a lot of momentum in the third act, but for the majority of the runtime, Another Simple Favor is a worthy continuation of the 2018 film’s story and themes, and it’s a pleasure to revisit the world of these characters. It’s a delicious, weird, unpredictable and scathing good time.

Another Simple Favor will stream globally on Prime Video beginning on May 1st.