Starring: Bruce Willis, John Malkovich, Mary Louise-Parker, Helen Mirren, Catherine Zeta-Jones Director: Dean Parisot

    CLEARLY designed to have even broader global appeal than its predecessor, the messy sequel to surprise 2010 hit “Red” doesn’t stint on gunplay, plot twists, far-flung settings or stars — Anthony Hopkins, Catherine Zeta-Jones and South Korea’s Lee Byung-hun are among those joining Bruce Willis, John Malkovich, Mary-Louise Parker and Helen Mirren this time out.

    But crucially, the sequel never quite recaptures the refreshing action comedy spirit that helped the original connect — to the tune of almost US$200 million worldwide — with the growing baby boomer audience.

    Once again working with characters from the “Red” comic book series, returning writers Jon Hoeber and Erich Hoeber give the sequel a barely comprehensible plot that has Willis’ retired CIA agent Frank Moses being dragged back into a black ops adventure by girlfriend Sarah (Parker) and eccentric former partner Marvin (Malkovich).

    Trying to track down a nuclear bomb that went missing during the Cold War, the team jets between the United States, Europe and Asia crossing paths with old rivals and colleagues including Mirren’s sexy English sharpshooter and Zeta-Jones’ Russian spy. Hopkins appears as a creepy British scientist and Lee (best known outside Asia for the “G.I. Joe” films) as a lethal assassin-for-hire. (Morgan Freeman, whose character was killed in the first film, is the only original star missing from the sequel.)

    Taking over from the original film’s Robert Schwentke, director Dean Parisot (“Galaxy Quest”) orchestrates some fairly effective action sequences that are bigger and more violent than those in the original. But when it goes for the kind of winking humor that gave the original much of its charm the sequel feels forced rather than refreshing.

    Among the performances, which also made a big contribution to the first film’s zest, Willis and Malkovich are still fun while Mirren appears to get less screen time. Zeta-Jones can’t do much with her very silly role but Lee adds a martial arts flavor that might help the sequel draw a younger demographic.

    The movie is now being screened in Shenzhen. (SD-Agencies)