Two sequels came out Memorial Day Weekend. One fell short of expectations, and the other skadooshed, at least my expectations out of the water...
The Hangover: Part 2
Directed By Todd Phillips
Starring Bradley Cooper as Phil, Ed Helms as Stu, Zach Galifanakis as Alan, and Ken Jeong as Leslie Chow
The sequel takes The Wolf Pack to Thailand, for Stu's wedding this time, and much like the last one a night of partying goes awry, and Phil, Stu, and Alan must retrace their steps to set things right before the wedding. Sounds a lot like the first one right? Well, The Hangover Part 2 is quite literally, a shot-for-shot remake of the original for about 70% of its viewing time.
Instead of a baby, there's a monkey. Instead of losing Doug, the groom, they lose Teddy, the younger brother of Stu's bride Laura. Instead of losing a tooth and marrying a whore, Stu gets a Mike Tyson-inspired tattoo and....I'll uh, leave this part for you to find out. A lot of the same gags and plot twists are reused, and that element of surprise from The Hangover is lost in a sense. There is some shock value to it, as the jokes in this movie are edgier, darker. Does that work? Meh. You will laugh during this movie, but not after so many repeat viewings like people did with the original.
Now I did enjoy this movie. The reason everyone out their is hating on it, I think, is because they were expecting a bit of surprise like they did in its predecessor. Instead Todd Phillips and his crew went by the "If it's not broke, don't fix it" philosophy, and I admire them for sticking to their guns, and giving us something like the original. But they will have to change the game for their third outing, which is happening.
Every cast member displays the talent they did in the first movie, but Zach Galifanakis I feel is starting to lose his appeal fast. Paul Giamatti does great as a mob boss for the little time we see him, just saying. Ken Jeong does well with the more screen-time he's given, but the same way I see him in Community as Senor Chang, a little too much of him can be, well too much.
Even if you're the most cynical of moviegoers, I recommend seeing this sequel at least once, even if its not the great instant classic its predecessor was. It still delivers an hour and a half worth of laughs.
Kung Fu Panda 2
Directed By Jennifer Yuh Nelson
Starring Jack Black as Po, Dustin Hoffman as Master Shifu, Angelina Jolie as Tigress, and Gary Oldman as Lord Shen
Like any good sequel, Kung Fu Panda 2 addresses any questions left unanswered in the original, like "Why is Po's dad Mr. Ping a goose?". Oh boy does this movie answers that question. The movie begins by explaining how the young peacock prince of Gongmen City, Lord Shen, heard a soothsayer tell his parents if he continued down his path of using fireworks as weapon to take over China, he would be destroyed by a warrior of black and white. Determined to change his destiny, Shen set out with his army of wolves to the land of the pandas, and wiped them all out, and in response was banished by his parents. But one day Shen vowed he would return for revenge...
And he does, and of course he didn't wipe out all the pandas, for we have Po, living out the kung fu lifestyle with The Furious Five and his master Shifu, who tells him he must achieve inner peace in the next phase of his training. To truly do this, he will have to face the mystery of his origins, which interlink his and Lord Shen's destinies, as Po and The Furious Five set out to stop him from taking all of China with his firework cannon arsenal.
Kung Fu Panda 2 boosts both the action and emotion of the first movie while tying together well with the original in all aspects. The voice actors from the original continue to do great work, Jack Black and Angelina Jolie stand out at the top of the pack. Dustin Hoffman as Shifu, who was so good in the first, isn't given much to do here unfortunately. James Hong as Mr. Ping continues to be very comical, but this time around very touching as well. Gary Oldman is perfect as Lord Shen, making him one of the best villains in a Dreamworks animated movie.
All the new characters are welcome additions, and the animation, is spectacular. It makes great use of three different styles: classic hand-drawn, modern computer generated, and stunning Chinese puppetry like animation, and all three forms motivate the storytelling aspect of this movie perfectly. The hand-drawn this time around isn't as nice to look at as the hand-drawn in the first Kung Fu Panda in my opinion. In 2, it looks, cheaper, dare I say. Hans Zimmer, with the help of John Powell, creates such a powerful score for the movie, and continues to show he is a musical force not be reckoned with. The action scenes are cool to watch, and the cliffhanger at the end...oh man, they got to get working on Kung Fu Panda 3 now.
Kung Fu Panda 2 is a rare animated sequel that exceeds its predecessor. There's four more coming, hopefully they will be just as enjoyable as the first two.
No comments:
Post a Comment