If you loved the first Miss Congeniality, as I did, then you’ll probably hate the sequel as I did, but if you didn’t like the first Miss Congeniality then there’s no accounting for your taste so maybe you’ll go for the second one.

Miss Congeniality 2 takes place three weeks after the conclusion of the first movie. Agent Gracie Hart Hart (Sandra Bullock) is still reaping the fame from her heroics in the first movie and so is having trouble completing new undercover FBI duties because she seems to be recognized wherever she goes. Early on, one can see that, in spite of the several returning characters from the first movie, the charm and wit of the first film seems to have been excluded. So too is love interest and FBI agent Eric Matthews (Benjamin Bratt) and so we’re forced to endure Gracie explaining his absence via one-way phone conversations.

But, in spite of what is lacking, at least we still have Sandra’s portrayal of tough, yet sometimes bumbling Gracie Hart, which for me was a major part of my enjoyment of the first movie. Unfortunately, though, that soon changed as well as Gracie is assigned to become the spokesperson for the FBI (this way it would be okay for her to be recognized). And so she undergoes intensive training to be even prissier than she was faking to be in the first movie, but, in this case, after ten months of pretending, Gracie Hart forgets who she was and becomes shallow and condescending. And there went both my suspension of disbelief and my last reason for enjoying the movie.

Meanwhile, unlike in the first movie, Gracie’s sidekick characters are too one-dimensional to be interesting. First, in place of Benjamin Bratt, we have FBI agent Sam Fuller (played by Regina King) who is assigned to be Gracie’s bodyguard and is meant to be so tough that she can throw around the male FBI agents without even breaking a sweat. As well, she has no self-control over her toughness, and tackles an elderly man trying to get Gracie’s autograph. And, in place of Michael Caine, the new gay character Joel (played by Diedrich Bader from Drew Carey) has admittedly some good one-liners, but, in terms of personality, has no individuality beyond the official Hollywood-approved gay characteristics. Although, that may not have been a particular prejudice against gays; after all, all of the characters in the film are one-dimensional.

Without giving away the anti-climactic ending of the film, I can tell you that Gracie does learn her lesson and goes back suddenly to being the old non-prissy Gracie. But the odd thing is that she doesn’t retain any of the useful etiquette training she has received and so suddenly is again as clueless as before about not eating with her mouth full.

But I am going to give the movie credit for managing to go through an entire romantic comedy without a love interest. That was actually quite original. Too bad it was wasted on such a bad movie.