A movie that features Eddie Murphy, Arsenio Hall, Tracy Morgan, and Leslie Jones ought to be a whole lot funnier than this. Coming 2 America has a few small chuckles, usually when it revisits stuff from the first movie. Mostly it's a drag.

Murphy's Prince Akeem of Zamunda becomes King after the death of his father (James Earl Jones). Akeem himself has no heir to the throne; according to Zamundan law, only male children can take the crown, and all of Akeem's children are daughters. Because of this, neighboring dictator Izzi (Wesley Snipes) poses a threat to Zamunda's sovereignty.

Akeem learns from an oracle he has a son after all, back in America. On his first trip to Queens, he had a one-night stand with Mary Judson (Leslie Jones), which he barely remembers because she got him high. He goes back to Queens to find his son and ensure that control of Zamunda stays in the family. None of this sits well with Akeem's oldest daughter Meeka (KiKi Layne), who wants to reform Zamunda's sexist laws.

Very little of the sequel takes place in Queens. Most of the film follows the son, Lavelle (Jermaine Fowler), as he gets acclimated to life in Zamunda and undergoes tests to determine his fitness to become King. A romance blossoms between Lavelle and the royal hair stylist, Mirembe (Nomzamo Mbatha), but he's being pressured to marry Izzi's daughter for political reasons. Teyana Taylor, as the daughter, serenades Lavelle with a banging rendition of Prince's "Gett Off."

The movie eventually stumbles its way into a fairy tale ending. I won't spoil it with details, but if you don't see it coming, you might not have a central nervous system. The last fifteen minutes earn some nostalgic goodwill by revisiting some of the first movie's memorable side characters, including the rapping twins, the barber shop guys, and Sexual Chocolate.

The cast is generally solid, even when they're not given much help from the script. Ruth E. Carter gets kudos for sumptuous costume design. The land of Zamunda looks great, albeit with some obvious CGI. Unfortunately, the laughs are too few and far between.

6 out of 10.

Seen on Amazon Prime.