The Worst Film Ever

Just perfect...

How sad is this?

The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

What was the reason for the sequel!? The first was bad enough, but well scripted; for other hand, this sequel was abysmal, leaving gaping holes in the connected storyline from the first to this one, and the unlikely action scenes are unbelievably stupid, not to mention the kiddy style used by the bad guys. A spray that knocks you out is the kind of thing I'm talking about. What happened to Natalie (Hilary Duff) from the first film? She dumped Cody? Now replaced by Emily (ex-SClub7 member, Hannah Spearritt). The chemistry between Emily and Cody was poor, he is 18-year-old and she is 23-year-old...without doubt, Emily looked like a real cougar with Cody. And Anthony Anderson as Cody's mentor was more distracting than funny. The end of this sequel was very bad: when Derek says goodbye to Cody, leaves an open ending for a possible third sequel that never happened. Way-too Hollywood. Come to think of it, way-too stupid as well. The fact that this sequel it is a film exclusive for kids is no excuse for it being so bad.P.S.: If anyone thinks that Emily was better than Natalie Connors, because the actress has 23-year-old; go watch and prefer instead a better 23-year-old heroine, Kazumi Hoshikawa/Five Pink, from the Japanese TV show "Chikyu Sentai Fiveman" (1990), a Power Rangers-like series, and make your conclussions.

I ended my review of Agent Cody Banks by calling it exactly what it was, which was a direct-to-DVD, TV movie that had the luxury of being released nationwide in theaters. Now we have Agent Cody Banks 2: Destination London, which stunningly got the same treatment. This is the kind of film you encounter years after its release, stunned at its very existence. Who was this picture made for? The kids who enjoyed the first one? It seemed the first film was substantial enough for a quick, spy-themed sugar rush. "The Los Angeles Times" called the original film, "a clever and lively action-adventure," and preceded to call this sequel, "ingenious...a handsome, often hilarious comedy-adventure." Perhaps it was made for the staff of the "LA Times," who appear to be the franchise's biggest fans.Well, Agent Cody Banks 2 and its predecessor certainly weren't made for me. If I'm going to like a film deemed at younger audiences, it better be mature, somewhat substantial, and imaginative and this sequel is none of the above. It's a tired droll that successfully creates a franchise out of one that, you guessed it, didn't need to be created in the first place. If anything, the only thing this film succeeded in was distracting its talent from other projects they could've and should've been doing instead.The story is just as much of an unoriginal slog as it was the first time we endured it. The title character is back, reprised by Frankie Muniz, who has spent his summer at a CIA recruitment camp disguised as your average, happy-go-lucky summer camp. When Banks mistakes a real attack as an invasion, he allows Victor Diaz (Keith Allen), the alleged head counselor who is trying to get away, to make an escape with discs containing information on how to create a mind control device to manipulate others. Now Banks, with the help of the bumbling Derek (Anthony Anderson) and the obligatory beauty Emily (Hannah Spearritt), must try and retrieve the mind control disc and stop Diaz before this all gets out of hand.In the period of a year (exactly a year, seeing as this came out the same weekend its predecessor did), Cody Banks hasn't changed too much. He still works better as a marketing gimmick for young children who actually believe they could be him and relate to his "struggle" and lust for girls and adventure. Cody Banks is the kind of kid you'd like to play as a child, running around your house, maybe with a few fake weapons, sliding on your mother's furniture, on her newly-polished floor, prancing around and starring in your own little show. I'd rather watch three children play "Cody Banks" in their hours rather than watch a robotic sequel to a film that was already difficult to sit through.I suppose the main problem with this franchise is it's a TV movie playing dress up. I could see parents in the theater in 2004 questioning why they're paying the theater's surcharge for a film that will look just fine and play just as well on TV in a few more months (or simply just deserves to be on TV). If you were to show the average Joe Agent Cody Banks or its sequel on a theater screen, providing them with no prior knowledge of the film, they'd likely assume it was a TV movie blown up on the big screen.Once again, Muniz is a bit charming here, which goes a long way in a film like this. Anthony Anderson, a good-spirited but often shortchanged actor, remains the butt of almost every joke, and Hannah Spearritt doesn't have half the chemistry of Hillary Duff from the first film. She has the blonde hair and a smile, but what she lacks is the irrevocable chemistry Duff had.There are way better films at your local video store than Agent Cody Banks 2: Destination London. They will likely provide your child with imaginative setups along with values and insight. This is a film that provides about as much healthy nourishment to children as a bowl of cereal and a ten minute commercial break.Starring: Frankie Muniz, Anthony Anderson, and Hannah Spearritt. Directed by: Kevin Allen.

Some movies are best not made into a sequel, but with Cody Banks 2, producers could have gone anywhere because number 1 had no loose ends to tie up. Hmm... so the whole idea of spies and secret agents may not appeal to some people, especially the fact that the spies are 16 year old kids. But for a secret agent movie it was quite cool. If you're looking for more action, go seem James Bond! This is a movie basically for 'kids',and I doubt it was ever meant to keep the adults really enthralled. I think they chose the right actors and actresses - yeah the weird Diaz and co are a little... well... weird, but they're the baddies for goodness sake!

The plot for Cody Banks 2 was so bland and dull and silly. But considering this is geared toward 12 year olds, I don't expect it to have the plot of A Beautiful Mind. But what I do expect is some imagination and funny jokes. I mean, one of the gags in this film was an attacking Beanie Baby, very silly. In this film Cody is at an undercover spy camp. The leader at the camp turns bad and steals some computer disks that can be used for mind control. So, Cody is sent to London to track him down and the scientist who plans on using mind control. His undercover act is to be a musical prodigy. The husband of the lady who runs the music school is the scientist. He also has a couple of agents who act a bit silly to help him out.I also have to comment on the ending at Buckingham Palace. It lasted way too long and was just so dull. I just don't get how a script like this could have been given the green light.FINAL VERDICT: Not as good as the first. Not very fun. Maybe a 10 or 12 year old may like it, but if you are older than that, I wouldn't waste my time with this.