The sort of unimaginative
and unnecessary follow-up that gives sequels a bad name, Oh, God! Book II reprises almost exactly the same storyline as its
mildly amusing predecessor, Oh, God!
(1977), but the second film fails to replicate the original picture’s novelty,
purpose, or wit. Instead, Oh, God! Book
II is pure cash-the-paycheck junk, with leading man George Burns phoning in
a few scenes while pint-sized, single-named costar Louanne, playing a spunky
little girl to whom God speaks, does all the hard work. In the first picture,
God (Burns) appears to a supermarket employee played by John Denver because the
Supreme Being worries that humans have lost touch with His principles. Denver’s
character is ostracized as a lunatic until God presents Himself in a courtroom,
performing miracles that exonerate His messenger. Exactly the same thing
happens in Oh, God! Book II. Tracy
(Louanne) is the daughter of divorced parents Don (David Birney), an
advertising executive, and Paula (Suzanne Pleshette). One day, God appears to
Tracy and asks her to write a slogan reminding humanity about the Holy Word.
Yes, that’s the plot: God wants an ad campaign. Together with her
Asian-American neighbor, Shingo (John Louie), Tracy comes up with the slogan
“Think God,” which she and her young friends plaster around Los Angeles. As
with Denver’s character in the first picture, Tracy is considered mentally ill
until God shows up to do his shtick. Directed by Gilbert Cates with detached
professionalism and lacking any standout humor—Burns delivers a few wheezy
one-liners, and the comedic “highlight” is a boring, FX-laden scene of God
driving a motorcycle while Tracy rides in a sidecar—this movie has no
discernible reason for existence except for wringing a few extra dollars from
people who enjoyed the first movie. Unwilling to leave well enough alone,
Warner Bros. went to the well a final time with the awful Oh, God! You Devil (1984), featuring Burns in dual roles the nature
of which should be clear from the title.
Oh, God! Book II: LAME
This film made my list of the 10 Worst Films I paid to see. Number 7, to be exact. I saw it on a date. About half way through, we just looked over at each other and got up and left. I rarely walk out of movies, but I was happy to make the exception here. I thought the next sequel was an improvement. Here's my blog about my 10 Worst Films I paid to see. https://seanpaulmurphyville.blogspot.com/2022/08/the-10-worst-films-i-paid-to-see.html
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