Welp, maybe the Den of Thieves movies aren’t for me. Christian Gudegast‘s 2018 proof that he’s seen Michael Mann‘s Heat has generated a cult following over the years I don’t quite understand. That befuddlement continues with Den of Thieves 2: Pantera, Gudegast’s European double-dip into the original’s well of ideas. Den of Thieves has a significant runtime problem at 140 minutes, and the sequel is just as exhausting at 144 minutes. Gudegast’s film feels almost artificially programmed in its adherence to criminal caper tropes, unable to steal our hearts with the bromantic charms of cops and robbers with boundary issues.
What Is ‘Den of Thieves 2: Pantera’ About?
Gerard Butler returns as Nicholas “Big Nick” O’Brien, the recently divorced LA County Sheriff’s Department boozehound who can’t let the Federal Reserve job die. O’Shea Jackson Jr.’s thief Donnie Wilson is still out there, but he’s gone international. Nick’s persistence leads him to Nice, France, where Donnie becomes embroiled in another robbery scheme connected to the Panther mafia. Donnie, Jovanna (Evin Ahmad), Slavko (Salvatore Esposito), and the rest of the crew plot to infiltrate the world’s largest diamond exchange — unless Nick can intervene. Who needs jurisdiction when you’re “Big Nick” O’Brien?
Gudegast’s follow-up isn’t as colorful or chaotic. It’s selling what’s on the tin, but the product is marginally stale. Den of Thieves 2: Pantera presents a bunch of sophisticated heist tropes with a French accent, which becomes exceedingly tedious as the film lurches towards its inevitable milestones. Nick’s hot on Donnie’s heels in Nice out of nowhere, companions doublecross their allies, mob bosses threaten punishments should their valuables not reappear — you’ve seen this picture before. Which, frankly, isn’t a deathblow. The Town, The Italian Job, and even that Rick and Morty episode aimed at heist tropes follow the same rules. What sets them apart? The devilishness of their details.
Gerard Butler and O’Shea Jackson Jr. Can’t Elevate This Crime Thriller
Den of Thieves 2: Pantera depends on Butler and Jackson Jr.’s adversarial dynamic with a shrunken ensemble, which is a shocking hurdle. Nick’s bad-boy edge has softened, and Donnie’s upgrade to chief “antagonist” diminishes the character’s prior strengths. The two castmates lack magnetic attraction, a substantial concern in a buddy-rival thriller. Butler and Jackson Jr. are talented performers, yet Nick and Donnie share multiple scenes where their line reads are pedestrian, like they’re pushing through conversational motions. The duo feels less enthusiastic in their Den of Thieves roles, extrapolating into an overall complaint that encompasses the entire experience.
Although, Gudegast clearly understands how to shoot smash-and-grab suspense. Cars go vroom as high-speed shootouts take place on unmonitored mountain highways. You’ll hold your breath as thieves shimmy over rooftop gaps on nothing but a steel pole. Den of Thieves 2: Pantera boasts cinematography from Terry Stacey that stands up to most subgenre comparisons, even if crisp visuals don’t match excitement levels. Porsches, stacks of cash, and fancy suits flash the extravagant side of illegal professions, while the “low technology” countermeasures used to deactivate security systems niftily use gelato containers as detection blockers. Everything looks like it should in a film about dangerous risks for massive paydays, but beauty is only skin-deep.
‘Den of Thieves: Pantera’ Only Works About Half the Time
Or, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. The same people who cheered through Den of Thieves will probably be smitten by the coolheaded charms of Den of Thieves 2: Pantera. When Nick and Donnie get sloshed at a nightclub and trauma dump over shawarma, the film’s rigidness melts. When plans meet challenges, the comfortable ease of objective completion becomes excitingly unknown. The hype is real for the 50% of Den of Thieves 2: Pantera where Gudegast colors money-green outside the lines. But for the other 50% as we’re dragged across the finish line, unfazed by blasé burglary antics in swanky duds? It’s like Gudegast draws inspiration from “101” booklets about Action Hero Zingers, Heist Drama Angles, and Crime Team Dynamics.
It’s a shame. Den of Thieves 2: Pantera struts the strut but ruins the illusion when it talks. Butler and Jackson Jr. can’t shoulder the story’s weight, nor does character development allow supporting players to assist. Like I said about Den of Thieves, if this sequel were a tight 100 minutes, maybe my review would have a different tone. As is, and considering the issues highlighted above, Den of Thieves 2: Pantera is a painfully overlong continuation that will probably need to find the same second life Den of Thieves did on Netflix. Perhaps streaming it as a background distraction will yield better results with less attentive audiences.
Den of Thieves 2: Pantera is now playing in theaters.
Gerard Butler and O’Shea Jackson Jr.’s French heist thriller isn’t a fanciful feast of criminal excitement since Gudegast runs into pitfalls new and old in his underwhelming Den of Thieves sequel.
- Says what it is from the start.
- Adrenaline pumps now and then during car chases and stealth missions.
- Gudegast knows how to shoot the criminal subgenre.
- Butler and Jackson Jr. aren?t themselves.
- The ensemble feels like an afterthought.
- It may look the part, but it?s too long, and too underbaked.
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