We are a big fan of Illumination. Their entertaining and graphically beautiful movies, starring relatable heroes are fun to watch, and the kids love them. Naturally, when the sequel to one of our favourite movies was announced, it is immediately put on to our must- watch list. Although the idea of revisiting the cute, fluffy animals and catching up on what they’ve been up to may sound exciting, like many sequels, it almost nailed it.
The Secret Life of Pets 2 consists of sending the pets into three different plots – lead dog Max (Patton Oswalt) and Duke (Eric Stonestreet) have become new “parents” to their owner Katie’s (Ellie Kemper) baby, Liam. Snowball (Kevin Hart) who fancies himself to be a superhero, helps his new friend Daisy (Tiffany Haddish) to rescue a white tiger from the evil circus owner. The third plot is about Gidget (Jenny Slate) pretending to be a cat in a house full of cats, while trying to recover Max’s favourite toy that he had asked her to look after as he goes to visit an uncle’s farm. The plots eventually come together, but was it necessary to jam so much into one movie? Probably not, as it ended up feeling somewhat disconnected.
The plots are both fun and far-fetched (I know, it’s animation!) but I would have preferred to see more of the original characters, and more of the original characters getting up to no good without trying to be A) an insecure parent. B) a superhero. C) a dog posing as a cat.
Sure, the movie has lots of laughs and of course, some toilet humour and the characters are very well-played. Our kids were fully entertained, eyes glued to screen, except for a slightly scary scene that my 5yo closed his eyes for, but it’s definitely fine for older kids.
Chris Renaud returns as director for this sequel and has kept it playful and energetic, perhaps slightly darker than the original. There are new characters such as Harrison Ford as Rooster, the farm’s sheepdog, of course, Tiffany Haddish’s Daisy and Patton Oswalt taking over from Louis C.K. in the original movie.
The Secret Life of Pets 2 is entertaining and perfect to take the kids to on school holidays. It may make an interesting discussion of cats vs dogs and which makes the better pet.. but I’m sure you already know the answer to that! 😉
2 – 2.5 of 5 stars.
About the Secret Life of Pets 2
The Secret Life of Pets 2 is produced by Illumination founder and CEO Chris Meledandri and his longtime collaborator Janet Healy, the visionary team behind Dr Seuss’ The Grinch and the Despicable Me and Minions franchise, and is written by returning Pets screenwriter Brian Lynch. The film is directed by returning filmmaker Chris Renaud, who also directed Illumination’s Despicable Me series and Dr Seuss’ The Lorax. #TheSecretLifeOfPets2
https://www.universalpictures.com.au/micro/the-secret-life-of-pets-2
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