The Kissing Booth 2 (2020)
The Kissing Booth 3 is already scheduled for release in 2021 but I don’t know who’s looking forward to it after The Kissing Booth 2. While the first contained some sexist elements and the plot was full of tired cliches it at least had the couple's chemistry to keep you going. This movie begins with them apart, which means you’ve got nothing to latch onto through this 2hr+ melodrama of boredom.
As Noah (Jacob Elordi) leaves for college, Elle (Joey King) is left wondering what to do. She wants to keep their relationship going but is unsure if the distance will break them up. Her fears are amplified by Noah’s new friend, model-like Chloe (Maisie Richardson-Sellers). Elle wants to attend the same school as Noah after she graduates. To do this, she needs to win a Dance Dance Mania competition with a $50,000 grand prize. She can’t do it alone. Unfortunately, her best friend Lee (Joel Courtney) is having trouble with his girlfriend Rachel (Meganne Young). She thinks Lee is spending too much time with the needy Elle.
The Kissing Booth 2 feels like all the B plots in a teen romance/drama TV series stitched together. Worse, they could all be solved if the characters just sat down and talked. Unfortunately, love makes you dumb. Elle wants to go to the same college as Noah. Unfortunately, she made a childhood promise to Lee that they’d always go to the same schools. She has to choose between her boyfriend and best friend... the same friend who is her partner in the dance competition… the same competition she needs to win to go to school with her boyfriend! It’s a tangled knot of emotion from which there is no escape because we haven’t even gotten to the titular kissing booth!
This plot is way too complex for what it is. The dance competition is also there to include this series’ “Jacob”, Marco Peña (Taylor Zakhan Perez). He’s so handsome Elle can’t help herself - particularly not with Chloe “not flirting” with Noah. She lovingly details just how hot he is in a long, dumb gag that doubles up as a kind of action scene. It’s supposed to be embarrassing for Elle but her character's so phony all you see is Joey King and she’s getting paid. It becomes embarrassing for you instead.
Among the subplots, there is only one that’s remotely worthwhile. It deals with the gay couple previously featured so briefly you probably missed them. That one’s actually kind of sweet. I can credit it for showing some character growth between the beginning of the first movie and the end of this one too.
Initially, I was tempted to call the first Kissing Booth good but right away, I knew I would have no such dilemma with this sequel. It’s long, banal, forced, and occasionally ridiculous but never in a good way or even in a “so bad it’s good” way. (September 29, 2020)
