This movie is breaking important barriers - having men and women being funny TOGETHER!
You're watching Beyond The Trailer's review of Neighbors 2 Sorority Rising!
As Bridesmaids seemed to finally settle once and for all the "are women funny" debate,
it's also seemed as if there was an addendum: women can only be funny by themselves. Thus
a string of all female and all male comedies, where the other sex merely showed up in each
as eye candy or the sweet love interest. But last year Spy was a major win for men and
women making audiences laugh together, and this year we not only have Neighbors 2 but
Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates - hmm, it would seem Zac Efron is the poster boy-man
for co-ed comedy. A position he's certainly thrilled to have, as "silver screen heartthrob"
and "serious actor" didn't work out for him. In fact, outside of animated movies, the first
Neighbors is Efron's most successful movie to date - same for Seth Rogen actually. So
naturally they had to make a sequel, turning it around as fast as Jump Street did theirs
- refreshing for a time in Hollywood where there's usually ten plus years between franchise
entries! Now as studios greenlight more and more female comedies, there's actually a run
on female comedians. Luckily the first Neighbors already locked in the very undervalued Rose
Byrne - who everybody seems to forget was in Bridesmaids AND Spy. For the new recruits,
Neighbors 2 has cleverly brought in social media butterfly Selena Gomez, as well as Hit
Girl herself Chloe Moretz. As you might recall, Moretz actually had some good zingers playing
Hit Girl, and she's probably eager to move into comedy as well since - like Efron - her
other attempts at branding herself haven't worked out. Kiersey Clemons from Dope and
newcomer Beanie Feldstein are also looking to make a name for themselves here, although
I think Beanie Feldstein will have an easier time of it because that's an awesome name.
Although you know what else will help her? Being Jonah Hill's sister. Nepotism for the
win! Jason Segal's frequent collaborator Nicholas Stoller returns from the first movie to direct,
and the same writing team is also onboard. So will Neighbors 2 offer further proof that
men and women can be funny together! Or...the opposite...?