MOVIE REVIEW: DEN OF THIEVES 2: PANTERA

 

Lawman "Big Nick" O'Brien gets embroiled in the treacherous and unpredictable world of diamond thieves as he pursues career criminal Donnie Wilson to Europe.

Director: Christian Gudegast

Cast: Gerard Butler, O'Shea Jackson Jr., Evin Ahmad, Salvatore Esposito, Swen Temmel

Release Date: January 10, 2025

Genre: Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller

Rated R for pervasive language, some violence, drug use and sexual references.

Runtime: 2h 10m

Review:

Den of Thieves 2: Pantera refreshes the formula from the first film, which played like a poor man's Heat, to give the sequel a different, more international dynamic for the central caper with Gerard Butler and O'Shea Jackson Jr chemistry powering the film.  This entry plays things a bit more lighthearted than the overly macho original which allows the director and cast to have a bit more fun with the Ocean's 11 style heist that drives the central plot.  Christian Gudegast delivers a film that is more visually stylish taking advantage of the European back drop much in the way that he used Los Angeles' grimy backdrop to great effect in the original.  Gudegast still has pacing issues as he takes his time getting to the climatic action sequence.  That sequence, outlandish as it is, is well constructed as he creates an impressive air of tension on various occasions before things start to go sideways.  It ends the film on a strong note but getting there is peppered with several superfluous scenes that don't really add much to the film overall.  We are introduced to another set of characters that make up the central crew, but they are all underwritten across the board.  Gerard Butler carries the lion's share of load here with Big Nick's roughish energy coming through the screen along with the smell of booze and cigarettes.  The decision to have his character switch sides and work with O'Shea Jackson Jr.'s Donnie avoids some of the issues of retreading story points.  It also allows Jackson Jr. to flesh out his character a bit more which makes him more likable this go around.  It helps he and Butler have fun chemistry that makes their friendship feel authentic.  Sadly, nobody around them gets that kind of treatment from the script with Evin Ahmad intriguing ringleader, Jovanna, getting the short end of the stick.  There's a set up for a continuing franchise near the end which could be interesting if Gudegast could streamline his pacing and give us more than a couple of three-dimensional characters to flesh out the world.

B