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Parents' Guide to

Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous

By Nell Minow, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 14+

Silly but mildly entertaining farce.

Movie PG-13 2005 115 minutes
Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

Community Reviews

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age 15+

Based on 2 parent reviews

wonder dove
wonder dove Adult
May 3, 2013
age 12+

Hmm, not bad!

Miss Congeniality 2 was good, but the first one was way, way better in my opinion. This one seemed sillier in a kid way, less funny and less entertaining, however, I think tweens and teens would just love it! The story isn't bad, but does take off from the first one. In this round, Gracie (Sandra) is partnered with Sam Fuller whom she does not get along with at all, they are completely opposite which is where most of the humor takes place. They must go on the run to save Gracie's friends from the first movie (pageant winner of the Miss United States and pageant representative Stan Fields) from getting kidnapped. Later, Gracie and Sam become closer as they get to know each other better (which was very predictable!) Violence is all done in humor and has some martial arts, hitting, pushing and arguing. Sexual content is fairly mild and mostly all talk including the word "sluts" more than once, Gracie deals with her ex-boyfriend, there is a reference to cheating. Language isn't bad with a couple dirty words meant for humor. Also some drinking but not much. 12+ teens seems fair.

This title has:

Too much violence
1 person found this helpful.
laurencatlett25
laurencatlett25 Adult
June 19, 2021
age 18+

This title has:

Too much violence
See all 2 parent reviews

What's the Story?

Gracie's notoriety from her exploits from the previous film has made it impossible for her to do undercover work and the romance has come unraveled. She is given the choice between a desk job and going on the road to do promotional work for the Bureau. While she does not want to become "FBI Barbie," she does not want to deal with the loneliness and insecurity of her old life, so she gets another makeover, goes on a book tour, and ends up demonstrating her famous SING method of self-defense (that's "solar plexus, instep, nose, and groin") on Regis, with the help of Sam Fuller, her hostile new associate (Regina King). When Gracie's friends from the beauty pageant (Heather Burns as Miss United States of America and William Shatner as pageant representative Stan Fields) get kidnapped, and Gracie and Sam have to outsmart not just the bad guys but also the local FBI by-the-books types to save the day.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (2 ):
Kids say (14 ):

This sequel is an outlandish and silly but mildly entertaining farce. The original Miss Congeniality was a Cinderella story with Sandra Bullock as the ironically-named FBI agent Gracie Hart. The shy and dowdy girl who snorted when she laughed got a glamour makeover so that she could go undercover in a beauty competition. She unleashed her inner bombshell, bonded with her fellow beauty queens, and captured both the bad guys and the heart of a hunky fellow agent. But there's no such thing as happily ever after when there's sequel money to be made. In MISS CONGENIALITY 2: ARMED AND FABULOUS, Bullock chases and tackles someone she thinks is a Dolly Parton impersonator, dresses up like an old Jewish lady in a wheelchair, and does a lot of racing around in sequins and high heels. But the reversal of the usual makeover/romance theme adds, if not weight, at least a bit more interest.

As producer of the film, Bullock has tailored it around her talents, and her pleasure in the role makes it more fun to watch. The wonderful Regina King (Ray) is unfortunately relegated to scowls and punches for most of the movie but gets to shine in her own set of spangles near the end. Dietrich Bader (The Drew Carey Show, Napoleon Dynamite) and Eileen Brennan (Private Benjamin) provide some bright moments but the rest of the cast is cardboard-y and practically invisible.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about whether "people care about people who care about themselves." Why was Sam so angry? What was the most important thing that Sam and Gracie learned?

Movie Details

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