Runtime: 95 minutes
Directed by: Stephen Surjik
Starring: The returning characters plus many famous faces in typically small roles
From: Paramount
As I reviewed teenage favorite Wayne’s World in January 2020 (right before the world went down the toilet!) it was overdue for me to discuss a sequel that never became a favorite and obviously was rushed into production but is not terrible. I enjoyed the first Wayne's World as much as an adult as during my youth.
More than a gag or two from the original is replayed, the plot momentum is not as strong-heck, too often the movie lurches from scene to scene awkwardly-and the humor is more hit or miss. There’s quite the explanation I’ll provide at the end of the review for why the film seems like something they pulled out of their collective butts!
That proclamation made, Wayne’s World 2 is still fine. The amount of times I at least chuckled, all the famous faces (everyone from Aerosmith & Rip Taylor to Bob Odenkirk as a nerd, James Hong & Jay Leno), some subtle background gags, the boomer music, the presence of ladies like Tia Carrere, Heather Locklear, Kim Basinger, Drew Barrymore… schwing! Wayne experiences a vision from Jim Morrison to put on a huge “Waynestock” in Aurora, Illinois as Christopher Walken in a total Walken role is a music producer with his eye on Cassandra. The plot is not much more complex than that… aside from Garth getting a girlfriend in Basinger.
As flawed as the film is, as a middle-aged dude it can’t be hated by me when laughs were to be had, including Walken’s dancing years before the Weapon of Choice video… yet this will be concluded by me spilling some tea. Penelope Spheeris famously did not return, due to problems w/ Mike Myers. I knew that; what I didn’t know until last night was that until late in pre-production, Wayne’s World 2 originally had a completely different plot.
Piecing together this from both Wiki and the IMDb, Myers was a fan of the 1949 British comedy Passport to Pimlico—the original plot for 2 would be loosely based on that and have Wayne & Garth forming their own country, seceding from the United States. Myers either didn’t know or didn’t care of the problems that Paramount would have doing an unauthorized remake… and Paramount didn’t realize it would be an unauthorized remake until almost too late. The studio was as aggravated at Ol’ Mike as you’d expect. There is even more proof of how Myers has a toxic reputation in the entertainment industry as “someone difficult to work with.”
On a lighter note, one day I should finally get around to viewing Withnail and I. Ralph Brown’s wacky roadie character here was apparently a slightly different version of the character he played in Withnail.
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