The Secret Life of Pets 2

If the knock on “The Secret Life of Pets” was that it was a rip-off of “Toy Story,” then the second film better grounds itself in its own universe. Like its main three characters, it has learned to be comfortable in its own animated skin.

The sequel remains charming, beautifully animated, and often incredibly funny, but there’s a sense that writer Brian Lynch realized Max’s story needed a lot more padding this time around.

We want to watch pets behave exactly as we expect them to, and sometimes in a completely incongruous manner. Like the original, “Pets 2” delivers just that, nothing more.

The writing as well as the sprightly character animation captures the spirit of these creatures at their absolute best and hilarious worst in a way every dog owner can recognize and relate to. When the film sticks to that, it works.

I do think it’s improved upon the original insofar as relying on narrative cohesion (episodic or not) above random acts of pandemonium. I still believe having three episodes of television to focus on one character at a time is the better way to go, but their convergence upon Snowball and Daisy’s adventure is authentically drawn regardless of convenience.

Sad to say, the bloom is off the rose.

Effectively acts as an animated ode to heteronormativity, toxic masculinity and patriarchal worldviews, passed off as harmless plot points to entertain young audiences.

From the same creators of "Despicable Me", this film is the first sequel to be made by Illumination Studios outside of that same franchise. And in fact, it was predictable that it would appear as the first "Pets" was a notable success. The film takes up the characters we already know: this time, Max and Duke have to adapt to their owner's little son. Max took a long time to do it but ends up so fond of the child that he becomes overprotective and always afraid for him. When the family is going to a season in the countryside, he has the opportunity to face his newly acquired fears. Meanwhile, Snowball's life as a pet is perfect, with the white rabbit creating superhero illusions thanks to the plays with his child owner. The illusion, however, give him the chance to rescue a young white tiger who suffered abuse at the hands of a circus. Therefore, as you can see, the film has several plots that run in parallel, with a predominance of the plot of Snowball and the tiger, Hu. I believe that this was the biggest problem of the film, in that it relegates two central characters of the previous film (Max and Duke) to a highly secondary plan, besides making the film more complicated to understand for the younger ones. Moreover, the film brings little major news. One thing that was corrected was the number of characters having an active part in the plot. The previous film had a multitude of characters acting in a group. Here, Mel disappears and Pops, Sweet Pea and Buddy appear only in cameo. Cloe, Reginald and Gidget remain present, but only as a "support team" for the other characters. It is clear that Gidget's romantic daydreams about Max never developed also. The tiger, Hu, was very well designed and looks more like a very big cat, for being so docile. The most drastic change is Snowball, who became a heroic figure when he was the great villain of the previous film, where he even had a certain psychopathic personality. The transformation, however, was easy to predict for those who saw the end of the first film. Back in excellent shape are also the voice actors from the first film, with the exception of Louis C.K., who stepped down after a sex scandal and was replaced by Patton Oswalt. The film also has the additions of Tiffany Haddish and Harrison Ford, in his first voice work. Again, dialogues and jokes are still well thought out, but making you smile rather than laugh. Technically, it is a film where it was difficult to demand better. The CGI and the quality of the animations are impeccable, with the animals drawn in their details, magnificent colors and light, movement and action at the right times and guaranteed doses of cuteness. The pace is good, and I never felt it dragged. The soundtrack is still signed by Alexandre Desplat, but it was not as close to my ear as the one in the first film, being too similar to many others that circulated there. Although not as good or as well done as the first, this film is an honorable sequel that knows how to live up to the existing material and the expectations of the public.

Pets 2 is good enough, even with the thin plots and alright humor. My Score: 63

This is one of those movie where "you get what you pay for." If you know what I mean. Also hearing "Panda" in this movie, even though sung by Kevin Hart felt like a war flashback. I forgot about that song, thanks for reminding me.

[SPOILER ALERT: This review contains spoilers.]

Another instance of a studio taking a successful property and stuffing wokeness into a sequel in hopes of people tolerating it. I didn't.