'Den of Thieves' is a mildly entertaining sequel

Sequels are a dime a dozen these days. Rarely do they meet the quality of the original film. Yet Hollywood keeps churning them out, and we keep watching them. "Den of Thieves 2: Pantera" is the followup to a moderately successful predecessor and is now available only in theaters.In Belgium a band of thieves led by Donnie Wilson (O'Shea Jackson Jr.) and Jovanna (Evin Ahmad) are executing a diamond heist in a cargo terminal of the Antwerp airport. The group calls themselves the Panthers. The heist goes off without a hitch.Back in Los Angeles Nick O'Brien's life is spiraling out of control. His wife divorced him, he was put on leave by the LAPD and is now a deputy sheriff with the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department. He needs something to go right in his life. He needs a break. A big one.In Nice, France the Panthers are planning their next job. This time, it's a big one. They intend to rob the World Diamond Center. Their main problem is that the building they need access to happens to be one of the most secure buildings in all of Europe. The building is thought to be impregnable, impossible to breach.Nick's big break comes when he links Donnie (a criminal Nick chased in the first film in LA) to the Antwerp job. Bringing in Donnie and his crew would be a feather in his cap. He locates Donnie in Nice and tracks him down without alerting the local police.Donnie is surprised to find Nick in his apartment. He is even more surprised when Nick doesn't immediately arrest him. Instead, Nick wants in on the World Diamond Center job. He's tired of spinning his wheels putting bad guys away for little to no money. He wants the good life, and he knows that he can get it with this one job.It doesn't take much imagination to know that something goes wrong. Something always goes wrong. The question is whether Nick and Donnie can survive to enjoy their millions.It's been a while since a good action movie has hit theaters, one that entertains you with both the characters and the story. While "Den of Thieves 2" is a decent movie, I wouldn't call it an action movie. The film is better described as a gritty crime drama with an elaborate heist.While the movie is being billed as an action flick, 90% of the action takes place in the big heist at the end. The rest of the movie is a slow but steady buildup of tension that serves to set up the theft at the World Diamond Center. That's not necessarily a detriment to the movie, but it was not what I expected.The storyline includes tension in every scene. Of course, a secret diamond theft late at night in France naturally brings its own tension, but you can't relax for even minor scenes. Even when the whole crew is at a club getting drunk you get the distinct feeling that they are one misstep away from disaster.The ultimate decision of whether you might like this movie is simple. Do you like Gerard Butler and O'Shea Jackson Jr.? If you like them both your enjoyment of the film will be high. If you like only one of them it should be a maybe for you. If you like neither actor, stay away from this movie. If you're not sure, give it a chance when it becomes available for home rental.Butler and/or Jackson are in literally every scene in the film. They equally carry the film toward its inevitable conclusion. Butler has made a name for himself starring mostly in unbelievable action films. Not bad films, but certainly not award winners. Jackson (son of the legendary rapper and actor Ice Cube) carries an air of likeability. Even when he plays a criminal like Donnie, you'll find yourself rooting for him. It's a great quality for an actor."Den of Thieves 2" is a moderately entertaining film. It's a serious movie with serious characters and an unusual diamond heist.Grade: BRated R for pervasive language, some violence, drug use, and sexual references.•••Bradley Griffith is a local attorney and a longtime film buff.