I have vague recollections of the first Paul Blart movie. Mostly I just recall Kevin James coming to Ireland to promote it, and the fact that it destroyed another, more fancied 'Mall Security Guard ' movie at the box office (the underrated Observe and Report). James has struggled to make a mark on the big screen outside of this character, so the only surprise with this sequel is that it took so long, and actually that it isn't that bad.
Granted, there's a lot to be said for lowered expectations, but Paul Blart manages to get a couple of unexpectedly dark laughs in the opening few minutes.
Six years after the comedic Die Hard-like exploits of the last film and Blart once again finds himself down on his luck. He wife left him after less than a week of marriage, and his Ma' just got a smack of a milk truck (seriously). On the upside, he's just been invited to a Security Guard Conference (again, seriously) in Las Vegas, so heads along with his teenage daughter to soak up some desert rays - and hopefully plaudits.
Naturally, there's crime a brewing, as an art thief and his gang of dastardly wrong sorts are planning, er, a robbery or something. I'm not trying to be indistinct, they just don't say much. So, our fearless, meticulously moustached hero must save the day once more.
Co-written by James, a sequel would've made far more sense four years ago. The first film, although a huge sleeper hit, is a forgettable family flick. That said, James isn't afraid to make a fool of himself and obviously enjoys the physicalcomedy, which generally involves Blart being hit by things or falling over.
It's overtly silly stuff as you might expect, but there's also the odd genuine laugh. While James might find himself back on TV soon, he's shown that he may yet have a franchise on his hands - despite the large gap between films.
You could do worse than taking the kids to this.