I’m not going to lie to you – I didn’t think there was a need for a sequel to 2018’s “Den of Thieves” movie.
I just lumped it into one of those momentarily fun action flicks that wasn’t overly memorable.
Unfortunately, there are a lot of movies like that in my book.
I caught “Den of Thieves 2: Pantera” in theaters last week and found it served up the same fare as its predecessor.
Sometimes it feels like Hollywood goes through the basic motions and try to cram a streaming or straight-to-video-release into theaters when it’s lackluster.
Pantera has a great backdrop in the French Riviera for its heist this time, but the action isn’t terribly impressive and feels a bit like it wants to be a “Fast and Furious” movie.
The only really cool thing is that it was inspired by an actual event - the 2003 Antwerp diamond heist.
Pantera is an American heist film that serves as the sequel to the 2018 film Den of Thieves.
Gerard Butler and O’Shea Jackson Jr. reprise their roles from the first film, while Christian Gudegast returns to write and direct.
Other cast members include Evin Ahmad, Salvatore Esposito, Orli Shuka, Stephane Coulon, Crisitan Solimeno, Nazmiye Oral, Yasen Atour, Dino Kelly, Velibor Topic, and Meadow Williams.
The film is 144-minutes long and rated R for pervasive language, some violence, drug use and sexual references.
In Antwerp, Donnie Wilson (Jackson) joins the Panther Crew, led by Jovahnna (Ahmad) to steal a red diamond and files from an airport hangar.
They flee disguised as SWAT while back in Los Angeles, Sheriff Nick O’Brien (Butler) interrogates Merrimen’s widow Holly (Williams) about any connections between Merrimen and Donnie.
O’Brien is recently divorced and put on leave by the police – which makes him desperate for answers.
The Panthers plan their next heist: a diamond vault at the World Diamond Center in Nice, France.
Donnie, posing as an executive, infiltrates the bank, while Nick discovers Donnie’s involvement through the local police force led by Detective Hugo (Atour).
Nick meets Donnie and O’Brien forces his way into the crew.
Jovahnna introduces Nick to Chava (Oral) - the vault manager’s wife and their inside link.
Meanwhile, the Italian mafia, angry over the stolen red diamond, plans retaliation.
The Panthers party at a club, where Nick flirts with Jovahnna, causing her ex-boyfriend Marko (Kelly) and Vuk (Topic) to brawl with Nick.
After being kicked out of the club, Nick and Donnie are kidnapped by the mafia, demanding the diamond’s return to their leader the infamous Octopus.
After being let go, Nick encounters Hugo in a church before recommitting to the heist.
Jovahnna announces that Marko and Vuk have quit the crew following their fight.
Disguised as a security contractor, Nick maps out the vault with Donnie.
The crew executes a meticulous infiltration, avoiding surveillance and cracking safes.
They secure the diamond and cash, but face complications during their escape.
Nick, improvising under pressure, saves the crew but attracts attention from guards.
They regroup and flee, transferring their loot to Jovahnna’s van, before Nick, Donnie and crew member Slavko continue on to the Italian border to escape.
I won’t spoil the very end of the movie for you but, the heist crew isn’t out of the woods yet.
Despite that, there isn’t enough to redeem this two-hour-plus bore, so, I fully encourage you to save your money because you aren’t missing out on much.
