Director Sanaa Hamri takes over for Ken Kwapis for the sequel to The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants. Bringing back all of the same characters from the original, the film does an exemplary job of telling a new story without requiring the audience to have viewed the first one. Unfortunately, the four interweaving trials of our slowly distancing heroines don’t offer up any noticeably authentic revelations or any truly groundbreaking advances in their lives. Many little subplots develop, but most barely affect the whole, and by the end of this lengthy exploration of young women coming of age, nothing warranting a sequel has taken place.

In the first film, four best friends miraculously found a pair of jeans that fit each one perfectly. Using the pants as a way to stay close together as they journey away to college, the four girls mail the heavily decorated jeans back and forth to one another as a good luck charm, and plan to meet up during their summer breaks. Tibby (Amber Tamblyn) works at a video store, and struggles with commitment to her boyfriend. Lena (Alexis Bledel) is studying figure drawing, and is attempting to keep her mind off of a heart-wrenching breakup. Bridget (Blake Lively) is invested in sports and archaeology, but remains troubled over the death of her mother. And Carmen (America Ferrera) is a stagehand for school plays, who isn’t quite sure of what to do with her future.

When summer finally rolls around, the four girlfriends realize that each has their own goals and agendas, and that time spent together has become more difficult and seemingly less important. Their coven-like rituals of sharing adventures has steadily lost its meaning, and the foursome discovers that their summer is going to be drastically more independent. But as Lena confronts her ex, Tibby deals with a contraceptive malfunction, Carmen’s mother goes into labor, and Bridget reunites with her long lost grandmother, the four girls rediscover their friendship and the importance of sticking together.

The ideals are nothing new, the events that frequent each storyline are generic, and the revelations are simplistic. Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2 is an average coming-of-age film that fails to muster up any reasons justifying its existence. It is a continuation of familiar character’s lives, and its strongest asset is in its storytelling approach. Whether or not each girl is appealing or relatable, and although many references to the original are made, their stories are plotted out with enough detail that watching the first film is not a prerequisite.

Two love triangles arise, endurances are tested, and miracles are summoned. Jealousy rears its ugly head, betrayal emerges, and every supporting character is physically picture perfect. As each young woman undergoes many trivial and unemotional plot developments, the picture begins to drag. Sisterhood 2 becomes an unnecessarily long film, which constantly reminds the audience that none of the diminutive, unmoving events amount to anything special. For a film with so many lead characters and so many tales to tell, it couldn’t be more pointless.

- Mike Massie