For a sequel that’s been in development for a while now, fans were waiting for Den of Thieves 2: Pantera to come. In fact, it’s been in the works by director Christian Gudegast for nearly seven years, which is a feat of its own. Though he’s been a screenwriter, with London Has Fallen and A Man Apart, Gudegast has always sought to go bigger. His collaboration with Gerard Butler has shown that, especially with the first Den of Thieves. However, Gudegast’s move to bring his action-adventure franchise to an international level proves to be beneficial and detrimental.
There’s no doubt that the decision to move Den of Thieves‘s story to Europe gives the film a bigger sandbox to work with. It picks up where Den of Thieves left off, with Detective Nick O’Brien (Butler) living a mostly peaceful life. However, he still has his sights sets on Donnie (O’Shea Jackson Jr.), who’s taken on a new job in Belgium. O’Brien’s investigation leads him into a winding manhunt for Donnie, but new complications force them into an uneasy alliance. As criminals and police hunt them, O’Brien and Donnie must learn to cooperate with each other, for better or worse.
From the start, Den of Thieves 2: Pantera instantly throws you straight into the action with this huge stealth heist. It follows in the vein of Heat and Reservoir Dogs as Donnie and his new crew, an interestingly diverse lot. Some standouts include the coordinator Jovanna (Evin Ahmad), whose personal empathies really shows her complexity, and the more comedic Slavko (Salvatore Esposito). While both, in this introduction, act as focused as possible, there are later moments that give them some much needed development. This entire sequence is played as straightforward as possible for an introduction, but it does help contextualize Donnie’s new situation.
On the side characters of Den of Thieves 2: Pantera, everyone does their best with who they’re playing. Jovanna and Slavko are particular in this case due to how they open up themselves later on. Jovanna lets her “mean girl” side reveal how she’s withholding from an actual connection while Slavko sees this team as his actual family. Other characters, like Marko (Dino Kelly) and Chava (Nazmiye Oral), maintain this one-sidedness in their personalities. As a result, it makes them feel less compelling as characters or even obstacles for O’Brien and Donnie.
Meanwhile, O’Shea Jackson Jr. is able to bring more depth to Donnie, who was the hidden villain in the original. However, that’s doesn’t necessarily feel like that’s the case here. Sure, Donnie still has planned out everything, top to bottom, but his attitude doesn’t suggest he’s the “leader”. Rather, Jackson Jr. lets some of Donnie’s firmness go, instead putting him on an equal field with his crewmates. Yet, when things shift later on, he takes on this gradual change into being more like a henchman. Though he’s still intimidating in character, it sort of removes the captivating infamy he had.
On the other end, Gerard Butler undergoes this massive transformation where his alignment is really undecided. At the start of Den of Thieves 2: Pantera, he returns to his cop-like roots to find Donnie. However, as the film continues, there’s this feeling that he truly fits into the criminal underworld. This feeling lingers into the second act, when the all of the plan’s elements slowly start to come together. Butler’s O’Brien is as witty as ever, picking up jokes on different things on a whim. However, like Donnie, O’Brien has this new lightheartedness to make him interesting.
This theme of compassion really seems to shine in Den of Thieves 2: Pantera. For something that’s so attuned to putting action first, having these calmer moments was a nice change of pace. There’s one particular scene with O’Brien and Donnie when they begin exchanging backstories. Through this moment of bonding, they’re able to find common ground in a way that has this emotional pull. For two characters that fought and hated each others’ guts, one wouldn’t expect a moment like that to stick. Yet, by having these moments, it makes those final act turns even more brutal.
This is especially so in O’Brien’s case, who wants to figure out how to balance both justice and personal beliefs. At this point, he’s been turned away from being a detective, but his new European friends give him this opportunity. However, the close “friendship” he’s developing with Donnie is construing his perspective about his job. Some scenes, including one where he incidentally comes across his friends’ family and takes in the responsibilities, nail that in. Gudegast really lets these moments flow naturally, confidently providing intricacy where need be.
The comedy of Den of Thieves 2: Pantera can land depending on how one views the initial build-up. Most of the jokes come from O’Brien, who has these “misunderstandings” about European culture that are soft-hitting. There are some other scenes in the second act that really feel absurd, yet happily so. It does feel like Jackson Jr. and Butler were having a lot of fun with these scenes and goes to show their buddy chemistry works. Albeit, both of their characters are still somewhat brash in the end, which makes these moments linger for a short while.
As for the action of Den of Thieves 2: Pantera, there’s always something to behold. The full heist itself, which is inspired by the 2003 Antwerp diamond heist, definitely pulls from some other movies. There’s this one part where it almost replicates that hallway scene from Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol. Another part where the team has to coordinate when to jump down the elevator lift is a familiar sight of its own. Yet, the huge action set pieces are the parts where the film really shines. From this climactic car chase into a tunnel to this rooftop madness, every action scene just clicks really well.
Yet, the straightforward writing of Den of Thieves 2: Pantera‘s narrative really holds it back. Due to the fact that much detail is put into the heist itself, most of these characters are mostly plain. Although what happens in the final act nearly rectifies this, it feels like there could’ve been more potential here. By playing everything as focused as possible without leaving room to explore other side arcs, the film is not as full as it could be.
Den of Thieves 2: Pantera is more charming and intensive than its predecessor for sure. Yet, it still feels like it’s missing that clarity to make it more intriguing. Of course, that isn’t to dismiss how Gudegast and his team have executed the awesome action and more heartfelt character moments. Through these scenes, the film is able to stand out more and make O’Brien and Donnie characters to enjoy watching. However, it may seem like a follow-up may come sooner than expected for fans. Although there has to be a stronger drive for character development in the action to make another sequel better than the last.
Den of Thieves 2: Pantera releases in theaters on January 10.
