“Pantera” is not a worthy “Den of Thieves” sequel

2018's "Den of Thieves" had two things going for it that made it catnip for me: Gerald Butler, and it was a heist movie. I was destined to love it. The movie did not do well critically or commercially, but I loved it. Luckily, I was not alone, and seven years later, we finally got a sequel.

Big Nick (Butler) travels to Europe on the hunt for Donnie (O'Shea Jackson Jr.). "Big Nick" is determined to stop his latest heist.

If you haven't seen the original, leave now and watch it. It is an entertaining heist movie, and the ending twist/reveal was well done. Because of that, I was slightly disappointed by "Den of Thieves 2: Pantera." The big reveal at the end of the movie was not nearly as clever, and it was easily telegraphed.

I also was not a fan of the heist. It involves breaking into the world's largest diamond exchange in Paris. It is more complicated, but how it plays out is not as interesting as the heist from the first one. It involves a lot of waiting for blindspots in cameras.

This did not reach the level of the original, but there is still fun to be had. Butler is having a great time as "Big Nick," while I feel like his rougher edges have been sanded down, he is still an entertaining antihero. I had a good time during the movie, but as the days passed, I grew very lukewarm about the movie. It doesn't make the first one worse, but I still love it. It feels like an unnecessary/wasted sequel.

6/10

Rated R for pervasive language, some violence, drug use and sexual references.

2h 24m