SPY KIDS 2: ISLAND OF LOST DREAMS (2002) **1/2 Those winsome forces for good are back, perhaps not incidentally, working for a fictitious American intelligence agency (it would be more difficult to believe if they were working for the CIA or FBI, no?). The kids will still love it, but for parents looking for acting or a plot...there are bits of both. Everything, it seems, is now secondary to director Robert Rodriguez' clinic on how to put together cool props, and great sets, and reference the initial triumph without bogging down. The truth is that Rodriguez is excellent in all of these areas so it's a fun lesson, delivered with the panache of a circus performer still not bored with explaining how he sails through the air with the greatest of ease. On the other hand, when you have an actor of the calibre of Antonio Banderas, and his best moments are understated facial expressions, you probably haven't given him the room he deserves. The in-law stuff is amusing, or frustrating for those of us unable to recognize it as anything but more metaphorical of an even more irritating reality (Ricardo Montalban back on the island, get it?). Good fun, true to the original while keeping the formula fresh, and plenty of stuff for kids and special effects freaks. "The Juggler" looks like about the ultimate carnival ride, and I'm sorry to admit that I probably didn't have the stomache for it, even as a teenager.
back to Brilliant Observations on 1776 Films home
go back home, or send me email
no more reviews! I want to buy your novel!