Delayed Reaction: Young Guns II

The Pitch: You know, we didn't get to how Billy the Kid died in the first movie...

How I Came Into It: I just saw Young Guns about a week ago. It was fine. Nothing special. When I saw that the original cast didn't return in full, I assumed that would be problematic, indicating a lack of interest by certain actors to return. I didn't consider that it wouldn't make as much sense if everyone survived in the interim between movies, given the nature of their work.

Why I Saw It: (Club 50) Young Guns II transitioned from the outright ensemble of the first to specifically being the Billy the Kid story. As a result, it could breath a little more. It wasn't as busy making sure everyone got his moment, or rather, there were fewer characters to service. I liked the addition of Christian Slater as Arkansas Dave. Honestly, the fact that this was a sequel of a movie that was already a proven success I think put everyone more at ease this time around.

Why I Wish I Hadn't: Billy the Kid is a sociopath and no one seems to recognize that. It gets hard to root for him at times. That old man makeup was ridiculous. I can't pretend otherwise. Without the focus on the group, the movie lost some of its edge. I keep thinking back to the introduction of all the actors at the beginning of the first movie. Nothing in this one tried to be cool like that. This lacked an identity.

Verdict (?): Weakly Don't Recommend