Sharknado 2: The Second One (2014)

(On Cable TV, August 2014) There’s really no point in trying to exert critical judgement on a self-consciously camp film such as Sharknado 2: Based on the unexpected success of the first film, this sequel delivers more of the same with even less regard toward basic believability.  It’s its own self-aware parody, making the wisecracks for its viewers in an effort to distance itself from accountability.  So what’s left to say?  The breathless plot outline (“Sharknado strikes New York!”) is enough to entice viewers, while the low budget speaks for itself.  There are more celebrity cameos than anyone but a pop-culture junkie can identify (to the point of thinking “this guy must be a celebrity of some sort, otherwise the scene makes no sense”) and Sharknado 2 definitely is on to its own joke to the point of being its own parody.  Nit-picking the film is useless, from the ludicrous book-signing technique to the silliness of cleaving sharks in mid-air with a chainsaw: all of this is expected, probably even intentional.  Surprisingly enough, the film comes together a bit more satisfyingly than the original (which had a flat third quarter) and is slightly better-directed as well.  Still, this really isn’t a good film, and there’s something almost impure in films designed to be bad.  Suffice to say that Sharknado 2 meets expectations, and aren’t most movies really just aiming to do that?