Tyler Perry's Boo 2! A Madea Halloween

One can only hope Perry will move on to another holiday and perhaps take the effort to reconnect with the crazy old-lady persona that has served him so well. Until then: Oh hail, no.

If nothing else, and there really isn't much else, this feature provides a startling glimpse into the interiors of Perry's imagination.

While its predecessor at least pleased his fans, writer-director-star Perry's latest offers few laughs and embarrassing post-production work.

This movie finds Mr. Perry, never the most deft at the technical aspect of filmmaking, drastically off whatever his best game is.

It's already a general rule that Madea movies are never all that funny whenever Madea isn't on screen, but even when she and Joe are at the center of the action, they're batting about .250 when it comes to punchlines.

Like Madea, Perry's getting away with attempted murder.

A few rows in front of me, someone is snoring loudly while the No. 1 movie in the country unspools before him.

Of course, all of the problems with the first film also continue in the sequel, from cringey performances by a cast of social media personalities... to the flimsy, often nonsensical plot.

A disappointingly tired retread that brings no new ideas to the table, and runs on recycled jokes that quickly wear out their welcome.

This film is a cinematic hate crime.