The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel

Call it truth in advertising, but as the title suggests, The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel really does lag a little bit behind 2012's The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel.  That's not to say it's bad, as it's not at all.  The movie is quite charming and funny, actually.  It just feels a bit more contrived really, which may be due to the fact that the original film was intended as a stand-alone story.  Like a lot of unplanned sequels, the movie sometimes has trouble finding ways to carry on the plot.  But the charm of the performances, as well as some genuinely funny dialogue, more than makes up for any shortcomings.

The film continues the story of an assortment of British retirees living in a retirement hotel in India, and how the experiences there have changed their lives.  As this story kicks off, the hotel's youthful and enthusiastic owner, Sonny (Dev Patel), has traveled to America with his curmudgeonly partner, Muriel (Maggie Smith), in the hopes of striking a deal that will expand their franchise to a second building.  They meet with an executive (an underused David Strathairn), who is interested in the business deal, and states that he will send someone disguised as a guest at the hotel to examine the building and its management before he will agree to work with their expansion plan.  Shortly after Sonny and Muriel return to India, a charming new guest checks in - an American by the name of Guy Chambers (Richard Gere).  He claims he's trying to start his life over and write the novel he's always dreamed of, but Sonny is convinced that Guy is the man sent to examine the building, and so he sets out to give him the royal treatment.

There are a lot of subplots to go with this one, perhaps too many.  The main one concerns Sonny and his fiance, Sunaina (Tena Desae) making their final wedding plans.  It's around this time that a handsome man from Sunaina's past (Shazad Latif) suddenly walks back into her life, and (at least to Sonny) seems to be trying to charm Sonny's future bride.  We also get some individual plots for each of the retirees living at the hotel.  Douglas (Bill Nighy) and Evelyn (Judi Dench) are continuing their shy and slow relationship, still afraid to admit their feelings for each other.  When Evelyn gets a job that will require her to travel, Douglas is not sure what to do or say to her.  It gets even more complicated when Douglas' former wife, Jean (Penelope Wilson), shows up wanting him to sign divorce papers, and he has to deal with that as well. Former ladies man, Norman (Ronald Pickup) is trying to settle down with his new love, Carol (Diana Hardcastle), but he fears she might not be faithful to him.  Finally, Madge (Celia Imrie) is caught in a love triangle of sorts, and must decide where her heart lies.

The main difference between Second Best and the first movie is that the original was a simple and heartfelt movie about a group of people who thought life had passed them by, and discovered they could all have a second chance at either life or relationships.  This movie takes a much more convoluted and almost sitcom-like approach to its plot.  It's full of misunderstandings, mistaken identities, and contrived situations that only exist simply because the characters don't say the one or two words it would take to fix the misunderstanding.  Ordinarily, I would find this infuriating, but returning screenwriter Ol Parker wisely does not play the situations too broadly.  These still feel like the same charming people we fell in love with in the first movie.  Even if the situations they're in don't ring as genuine as they did the last time, they're still entertaining to watch, because the cast is filled with old pros.

Could actors like Dench, Smith, Nighy and Gere play these kind of characters in their sleep?  Undoubtedly.  Fortunately, they don't appear to be bored, and give their portrayals as much life as possible.  Dench and Smith, in particular, get some wonderful moments where they exchange witty banter and insults during their scenes together.  Who else but Maggie Smith could deliver lines like, as when she describes her trip to America, "I went with low expectations, and I was still disappointed" with a kind of direct honesty that makes you fall in love with her even more?  It's the cast that carries this admittedly unnecessary sequel, and makes it charming.  From Patel's constant enthusiasm and optimism, to the quieter charms of Nighy and Dench, there's not a single performance that's off.  Even Richard Gere, who kind of sticks out from the mostly British cast, gets a few sweet moments as he starts a relationship with Sonny's mother.

This is a case of a sequel that did not really need to be made, but you're glad they did anyway.  There's still enough warmth and humor to carry this idea through another movie, so while it may be an unnecessary sequel, it's not an unwelcome one.  I may even welcome a third visit to these characters.  Maybe.

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