Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit

Jay Boyar started his review by admitting, “Never in my wildest dreams would I have suspected that the sequel to last year's Sister Act could be half as much fun as it is. But Sister Act 2 has made me a believer. Though a major hit, the original Sister Act struck me as godawful nunsense with only two basic jokes: Nuns doing "normal" things like repairing cars and dancing, and Whoopi Goldberg in a habit. In Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit, the filmmakers don't exactly avoid these apparently sure-fire devices. They just don't focus on them as if they were the only possible sources of comedy in the universe.”

Once again, Whoopi Goldberg plays Vegas headliner Deloris Van Cartier, and she pretends to be Sister Mary Clarence.

However, this time around the story is about Deloris trying to use music to inspire the students at her alma mater, St. Francis High, where her religious friends from the first film are currently teaching.

“Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit,” released in 1993, has a new director, Bill Duke, a new writing team (James Or, Jim Cruickshank, and Judi Ann Mason) and a completely new spirit. Boyar said, “I won't go so far as to say that this movie is hip, but it's funny, lively and a heck of a lot closer to hip than the original.”

Much of this spirit seems to come from Goldberg herself, who, throughout most of the first film, looked like she was tired of repeating the same jokes continuously. In the sequel, she’s much freer to do the story of comedy bits that only she can.

Early in the movie, there’s a hilarious scene where an uptight priest advises her to concentrate on discipline in the classroom. Deloris puts him down without showing any disrespect.

Another scene, where Deloris reveals an unexpected likeness for the Ice Capades, is funny in a way that doesn’t need explanation.

Boyar noted, “And in the classroom sequences, she gets to demonstrate that she can operate on the kids' wavelength.” When a student tries to excuse his napping in class by complaining about his work schedule, Deloris sets him straight. “Baby,” she calls out, “save it for Oprah.”

Along with Goldberg, the first Sister Act had included Kathy Najimy who, as the lively spirited Sister Mary Patrick, managed to save a scene or two. She is back, and once again she’s funny.

For the sequel, Duke has included an impressive new supporting cast and has found new looks in returning characters as Wendy Makkena (as the soft-spoken Sister Mary Robert), Mary Wickes (as the weird Sister Mary Lazarus), and Maggie Smith (as the formerly strict Mother Superior).

There’s almost a lot of talent in the cast. The always Robert Pastoreilli gets lost very quickly, and such talented actors as Michael Jeter and Sheryl Lee Ralph put in such great small appearances that they make you want to see more.

A lot of the same is true of the newcomers who play the students in Deloris’ class.

Especially amazing is Lauryn Hill as a student who quits the class, who has great authority in this role, which easily could have been a harsh cliché.

Boyar admitted, “Sometimes Sister Act 2 is a little too insistently inspirational for my taste.” Despite Duke and his crew manage to downplay the most predictable parts of this story, there was probably no way to escape those parts completely. The first one was a hit after all.

However, what the director does with the songs makes up for a lot.

Boyar noted, “Rather than just coyly converting love songs to hymns by changing a word or two ("My Guy" to "My God," for example) as in the first film, Duke often does something that's both simpler and more difficult: He includes both secular and religious songs, giving each its due.”

Through the way Duke films the different songs, he expresses the liking of each. He doesn’t simply film singers, he uses the camera to help sell the songs.

In “Sister Act 2,” these high-spirited songs and the hilarious comedy work together in ways that are very hard to resist. Boyar ended his review by saying, “And considering how terribly resistible (to me, at least) last year's Sister Act was, the sequel seems like a movie miracle.”

I saw this before I saw the first one, and I really enjoyed this. I know people don’t like this sequel, but I seriously think this has a lot of enjoyment in it. I don’t know what I would have thought of this if I saw the first one before seeing this one. However, for what it’s worth, especially seeing it multiple times, I really liked this film. You should watch it and give it a chance, because it gets wrongfully bashed. There’s a lot of things to like about it, and just judge it based on your opinion. If you liked the first one, see the sequel.

Check in tomorrow to see what else I have in store for “Disney Month 2021.”