There are movies and then there are over all film experiences.  As the much anticipated, decade-in-the-making film, "The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day" finally debuted on the big screen I would definitely categorize this one as an experience.  A good one at that.
 
First, let's just go ahead and get the actual review out of the way.  By movie standards was it great? Not really.  The bar was set so high that while we waited for the second installment to come to fruition, the idea that it could reach the mark was quite frankly unrealistic.  There is a very simple formula to Troy Duffy's baby;  keep all the same elements in the story.  That was a help and a hindrance.  As Norman Reedus (Murphy McManus) puts it, having 100% of the cast and crew come back after a ten year absence was like "coming home".  However, as a critic, I was wishing for some originality.  It felt as though it was not a continuation from the first plot to the second but rather a carbon copy. Sure there were a few new faces such as Special Agent Eunice Bloom  (Julie Benz) but sadly her acting was subpar and the southern accent was atrocious.  (If you're going to fake an accent, I better not be able to tell.)  There was also a back story into the life of  Poppa M "Il Duce"  and the addition of Clifton Collins Jr. as Romeo, the hot headed La Raza Mexican sidekick. But overall, it felt all too familiar and I wanted something a little more defining for such a long awaited sequel.
 
That said, as a fan, did I care? Absolutely not!  This is "THE BOONDOCK SAINTS II: ALL SAINTS DAY" - the SEQUEL people!!!  The familiarity of "The Boondock Saints" to "The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day" was a good thing for the fans who finally got to relive the McManus brothers in all their glory. The comedy in this one was way more apparent.  It was a bit less organic than in the original film, but it was just as hilarious.  The drama felt like a secondary theme compared to the amount of relentless line-crossing jokes and whitty one liners thrown at the audience every couple of minutes.  New film: new feel; however, bringing back ALL the original characters in some way shape or form allowed for a much more big-city Boondock Saints to maintain a small-town feel and not lose the characters' charm or charisma. 

That is what truly makes Boondock Saints boondock.  Change the scenery, change the plot, change the faces of some of the characters even, but don't mess with the gun-slinging "strangely comfortable with it", never-goes-as-planned McManus brothers or their FBI and Boston police accomplices, and all will be right in the world of Boondock Saints.  In the end, I have to be fair and give it two different ratings.  As a critic, I can give it a generous 3 out 5 stars.  As a fan, I give it 5 out of 5 whup a** fajitas!