Dallas - War of The Ewings (1998)
It has been two years since Bobby and Sue Ellen Ewing took over control of Ewing Oil. Although J.R. is successfully managing a large oil conglomerate, he wants to once again own his father's company. When he discovers that Ray Krebbs' land, which is heavily mortgaged, has undiscovered oil on it, he knows that if he plays his cards right, he can purchase the land and have enough money to regain control of Ewing Oil. But his business rival Carter McKay also has his eyes on Ray's property, and may soon join Bobby and Sue Ellen as an executive at Ewing Oil. Both parties hatch schemes in order to get what they want. (Written by Phil Fernando)
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So much average
Don't Believe the Hype
This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.
Worth seeing just to witness how winsome it is.
I am a huge "Dallas"-fan, but this movie is just not good enough. Silly one-liners, the acting and direction seems rushed and contrived. And don't get me started on the story, or should I say lack of the same. The first reunion movie "JR Returns" at least had a decent script and some good and entertaining parts, but this time it just didn't work. The title is a misnomer as well, there are hardly any Ewings left on Southfork. JR, Bobby and Sue Ellen. One thing I DID like though was the updated opening titles. Classy! I liked the shot of J.R in the helicopter. If they had used the original "Dallas"-font i would have been perfect, but I guess you can't have it all.
"Dallas" fans must have enjoyed the inside joke at the beginning of this second reunion movie for the popular CBS primetime soap: Bobby is shown in his famous Dream Season shower scene, turning around and saying hello -- but it's Sue Ellen he's greeting! And this time, the shower scene is actually the dream, and it's J.R. who thankfully wakes up! J.R. is now the owner of Weststar Oil, the largest independent oil company in Texas, while Ewing Oil -- now owned by Bobby and Sue Ellen -- is right behind it. J.R. decides he'd like to get Ewing Oil back. Anita Smithfield is at his side again (returning from the first reunion movie). J.R. finds out that Ray's ranch might have oil under it, and he thinks this could get him the collateral he needs for a loan to do the Ewing Oil takeover.Carter McKay, meanwhile, has an offer for Sue Ellen that he says will make Ewing Oil even bigger than Weststar. J.R. spends part of the movie trying to feed conspiracy theories to Sue Ellen about Bobby to drive them apart. Jennifer Jansen of Jansen Oil seeks advice from J.R., and he's thinking she might be a nice distraction for Bobby. Cattle rustlers force some gunplay at Southfork, and various attempts are made on J.R.'s life.The movie does deliver on all usual fun stuff that "Dallas" fans look for (J.R.'s connivin' and dealin' and all that), though it's a bit painful to see our beloved stars aging.
This is an extremely poor movie with a very weak plot and an ageing cast - not that age is necessarily a bad thing, but surely the most logical thing to do would have been to include some of the next generation Ewings to support the old stalwarts. Although Linda Grey (Sue Ellen) still looks fabulous for a woman of 50-odd and Patrick Duffy (Bobby) hasn't changed much apart from some grey hairs, the main character, Larry Hagman's J.R., is looking very old and jaded now. My main beef with this movie, apart from the lack of new blood and poor plot, was the very small cast. Southfork is decidedly empty these days, and having Sue Ellen living back there at all and on (almost) friendly terms with J.R. is, to my mind, stretching credibility to the limit, even by the standards of U.S. soaps. Let's hope that if there are any more Dallas reunion movies, the makers will have the good sense to include some younger blood - why not bring J.R.'s son John Ross (who'll now be well into his 20s) back as a younger, even more evil, nasty version of the old J.R.? After all, he was an obnoxious, spoilt brat in the original series, and that would be a logical progression. As for this movie - don't bother unless you've absolutely nothing better to do.
An awful film. Usual plot, usual characters, but fewer of them. The stars have aged somewhat, except perhaps Patrick Duffy who still looks almost as well as his days in "the man from Atlantis". Many scenes make the film laughable, such as the shoot out with the rustlers. J.R. is up to his usual tricks but doesn't quite have the meanness of the old days. This might as well have been just another episode in the Dallas series. If you like laughing at B class movies, or you are a Dallas die-hard, then this is a film for you! My vote: 2.