Nutty Professor II: The Klumps

Nutty Professor II: The Klumps is a 2000 American science-fiction dark comedy film directed by Peter Segal.[3] It is a sequel to the 1996 film The Nutty Professor.

Nutty Professor II: The Klumps
Theatrical release poster
Directed byPeter Segal
Produced byBrian Grazer
Screenplay byBarry W. Blaustein
David Sheffield
Paul Weitz
Chris Weitz
Story byBarry W. Blaustein
David Sheffield
Paul Weitz
Chris Weitz
Zak Penn
Based onCharacters
by Jerry Lewis
Bill Richmond
Starring
Music byDavid Newman
CinematographyDean Semler
Edited byWilliam Kerr
Production
company
Distributed byUniversal Pictures
Release date
  • July 28, 2000 (2000-07-28)
Running time
107 minutes[1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$84 million[2]
Box office$166.3 million[2]

In contrast to the previous film, subplots which are centered on his parents (with his brother and grandmother providing comic relief) occupy a substantial part of the film.

Plot

Sherman Klump has created a new youth formula that enables those who take it to de-age. He has also fallen in love with DNA researcher, Denise Gaines, who has developed a method to isolate genetic material. Despite his good fortune, Sherman has a major problem: the personality of his id, Buddy Love, is still ingrained inside him and has begun to periodically take control of his body. Sherman tries to propose to Denise, but Buddy takes over and humiliates him, mortifying Denise.

Determined to be rid of Buddy permanently, and despite his assistant, Jason, warning him of potential consequences for his health, Sherman uses Denise's methodology to isolate and remove a gene in his DNA where Buddy has manifested. However, the genetic material containing Buddy grows into a sentient being when a hair from a Basset Hound accidentally lands in it. Sherman apologizes to Denise and the two become engaged. Later, Dean Richmond informs the two that a pharmaceutical firm has offered Wellman College $150 million for the youth formula.

Sherman and Denise then encounter the newly reformed Buddy at a movie theater. Buddy pickpockets Sherman and learns of the $150 million offer. He subsequently visits the pharmaceutical company and makes a rival bid for the youth formula. Sherman learns that due to the extraction, his body chemistry has been altered and that he is losing his intelligence. Realizing he needs to keep the youth formula out of Buddy's hands, Sherman stashes it at his parents' house.

Sherman's father, Cletus, who is frustrated due to his age and impotence, drinks accidentally some of the youth formula. He goes out for a night on the town and attempts to seduce his wife, but she is horrified. Buddy witnesses Cletus changing and realizes that the youth formula is being stored in the Klump household. Meanwhile, Sherman's condition causes him to act like a fool in front of Denise's parents, concerning her.

Buddy steals some of the youth formulae from the Klump household and fills the vial the rest of the way with fertilizer. This sabotage causes chaos at a demonstration the next day, as a male hamster, Sherman uses to demonstrate the formula instead mutates into a giant monster who humps Richmond while trying to escape with a fur coat, causing the hamster to get confused by thinking he was the missing female hamster that escaped during the event. The humiliated and enraged Richmond fires Sherman and he soon learns that his brain's deterioration has worsened from Jason, and he decides to break up with Denise. Cletus reconciles with his wife, Anna, and consoles a depressed Sherman.

Sherman quickly works on a newer, much more potent formula while his mental faculties allow him to. Richmond confronts him about Buddy's actions, believing the two are working together. Sherman leaves with Richmond and a tennis ball covered in the youth formula and heads to a presentation Buddy is giving about the youth formula. Meanwhile, a worried Denise discovers what has happened and that Sherman's brain damage is still progressing. Enlisting the help of Cletus, Denise goes after him. Sherman takes advantage of the canine DNA that crossed with Buddy's and uses the tennis ball to distract him. Buddy catches the ball in his mouth, and the youth formula transforms Buddy back into a glowing mass of sentient genetic material.

Sherman chases the genetic material, intent on drinking it to correct his condition. However, the material evaporates on the edge of a fountain before he can consume it. Cletus and Denise arrive too late to save him, and Denise breaks into tears, which hit the genetic material and fall into the fountain. As they go to leave, Sherman takes a look at a fountain and remarks that it is "pretty". Seeing that the water is glowing, Denise realizes that the genetic material has reconstituted thanks to her tears and has fallen into the fountain and that if Sherman drinks the fountain water before it dissipates, he will be restored to normal. Sherman drinks the water and is able to get his genetic makeup back in proper order, restoring his intelligence.

Sherman and Denise later get married, while Richmond entertains the idea of loving the hamster, who has returned to normal.

Cast

Additionally, Kathleen Freeman makes an uncredited appearance as Denise's neighbor who witnesses Sherman proposing to her. Freeman previously portrayed Millie Lemmon in the original 1963 film.

Release

Box office

The film grossed over $42.5 million in its opening weekend and went on to a total gross of over $123.3 million. It earned an additional $43 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $166.3 million worldwide.[2]

Critical reception

Unlike the first film, Nutty Professor II received unfavorable reviews from critics. Adjectives such as "obnoxious", "lowbrow", "bloated", and "unfunny" cropped up frequently in reviews. On Rotten Tomatoes the film has an approval rating of 26% based on reviews from 88 critics. The site's consensus states that "While Eddie Murphy is still hilarious as the entire Klump family, the movie falls apart because of uneven pacing, a poor script, and skits that rely on being gross rather than funny."[4] On Metacritic the film has a score of 38 out of 100, a score that indicates generally unfavorable reviews, based on reviews from 34 critics.[5] Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film a grade A- on scale of A to F.[6]

Salon.com's reviewer gave the movie one of its few positive notices, and offered the praise "cheerfully vulgar".[7] The New Yorker's Anthony Lane was particularly severe; in addition to hating the film, he dismissed Murphy's playing of multiple characters as "minstrelling", and charged the actor with "at once feeding us what we like and despising us for swallowing it."[8] Most critics, gave a generally negative assessment of the movie with at least a nod towards Murphy's versatility and comic talent.

Roger Ebert gave the film three stars, noting that while it was "raucous" and "scatological," the film overall proved to be "very funny" and "never less than amazing."[9] Variety's Joe Leydon wrote: "Be prepared to laugh less at a lot more of the same thing in this overbearing but underwhelming sequel."[10]

Soundtrack
Main article: Nutty Professor II: The Klumps (soundtrack)

See also

References
  1. "NUTTY PROFESSOR II: THE KLUMPS (12)". British Board of Film Classification. July 27, 2000. Retrieved November 16, 2014.
  2. "The Nutty Professor II: The Klumps (2000)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved January 1, 2021.
  3. "Nutty Professor II: The Klumps". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved April 11, 2016.
  4. "Nutty Professor II: The Klumps (2000)". Rotten Tomatoes.
  5. "Nutty Professor II: The Klumps". Metacritic.
  6. "Cinemascore". CinemaScore. Archived from the original on December 20, 2018. Retrieved August 28, 2019.
  7. Andrew O'Hehir (July 28, 2000). ""Nutty Professor II: The Klumps"". Salon.com.
  8. Lane, Anthony. The New Yorker, August 7, 2000. The Fat of the Land (subscription required)
  9. Roger Ebert (July 28, 2000). "Nutty Professor II: The Klumps Movie Review (2000)". Chicago Sun-Times.
  10. Leydon, Joe (July 27, 2000). "The Nutty Professor II: The Klumps". Variety.
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