Maybe it was due to the fact that I spent the last three days watching three films by Ingmar Bergman and was in need of some light entertainment. Then again the fact that I really enjoyed “Barbershop 2: Back in Business” may be due to the fact that it is a warm, funny movie. In fact it is better than the first film. The tone of the movie reminded me of the great Bill Cosby/Sidney Poitier comedies of the 1970s “Uptown Saturday Night” and “Let’s Do it Again.” You know the characters; you know what to expect. Sit back and enjoy. I really hope that MGM plays their cards right and continues this series. The sneak preview contained a trailer for a Queen Latifah spin off “Beauty Shop.” If the quality of the writing continues “Barbershop” could turn into a cash cow for MGM.

“Barbershop 2” benefits greatly from a less dramatic conflict. Instead of battling a dangerous thug who wants his business, Calvin (Ice Cube) is threatened with a corporate salon opening across the street. Calvin’s rivals use politics and bribes to get what they want. Calvin uses the unity of a neighborhood with core values to defend his business. This backdrop is used to let the various characters live their lives. What makes this sequel work is that we care about the everyday lives of these people. This time around Jimmy James (Sean Patrick Thomas) is living his dream of entering politics. He is working for a powerful Alderman. Of course Jimmy James still gets no respect from his former co-workers. Terri (Eve) is kinder and gentler. Like that will last! Ricky Nash (Michael Ealy) appears to be in some kind of trouble. He also has a problem with the fact that Isaac (Troy Garity) is emerging as the star barber at Calvin’s shop. Dinka (Leonard Earl Howze) still has the hots for Terri, but finds that he has an admirer of his own.

Did I forget Eddie (Cedric the Entertainer)? All superheroes need an origin. “Barbershop 2” tells how Eddie came to be a fixture at the shop. The flashbacks to the tumultuous years of 1967 and 68 also give us more background information about Calvin’s father. I guess the question you want answered is “Is the movie funny?” Very funny. I thought it was funnier than the original. Cedric the Entertainer goes toe-to-toe with Queen Latifah in a ranking contest. He also has a hundred throw off lines and contemporary observations. Cedric skewers Kobe, Michael Jackson and R. Kelly with some very funny bits. While there are no Rosa Parks comments, Cedric does point a critical eye at his own race in general. There is a very funny bit with Eddie as a Black Panther back in the day. The film also shows that Eddie is more than a buffoon. I liked finding out why Eddie never had to pay chair rent to Calvin.

Ice Cube provides the strong foundation around which everything gravitates. His role is a thankless one in that the other actors get the funny lines or the dramatic scenes. Ice Cube’s Calvin has grown a lot since the first film. His big dramatic moment is believable because we have seen this character grow and learn. Back in the 1930s it was not unusual for a movie to spawn a dozen sequels (“Tarzan,” “The Thin Man,” “Charlie Chan,” “Sherlock Holmes”). The audience loved the characters and paid good money to see their favorites over and over again. I’d like to see MGM continue this series as long as they can continue to write good scripts. This film works because the day to day lives of these people are interesting. Oh yeah, it doesn’t hurt to have Cedric too!

Rusty White, 2003