MOVIE TITLE: The Secret Life of Pets 2
DIRECTOR: Chris Renaud
YEAR: 2019
GENRE: 3D Animated Comedy
RATING: PG for comic mischief
GRADE: Pass
A Jack Russell Terrier named Max is having difficulty with
being stressed out and easily fearful, especially when his owner has a baby
named Liam and the whole family takes a trip to a chaotic farm. A superhero
rabbit named Snowball has been charged with the task of rescuing a white tiger
named Hu from a sadistic circus owner. While Max is away on vacation, his Pomeranian
girlfriend Gidget is tasked with taking care of his favorite squeaky bumblebee
toy only for it to wind up in a crazy cat lady’s apartment. These three stories
converge near the end and the animals find that they’re willing to do
extraordinary things to achieve their individual goals.
Cuteness aside, the guy who put together this movie
definitely has experience with animal quirks and it shows in the most obvious
ways. Cats chasing after laser pens, dogs acting paranoid when things get too
stressful, animals in general defecating in places where the owners will least
suspect it, cats knocking things over haphazardly, the list goes on and on. I
can confirm all of these things and more since I too am an avid animal lover.
Realism will always earn points with the audience, especially if there’s humor
attached to it. You don’t have to hee-haw at every scene to think it’s funny.
You could be laughing on the inside and walking out of the movie theater with
happiness in your heart. Isn’t that what animal movies are all about?
Every story and subplot in this movie was well-executed, but
my favorite in terms of character development has to be Max and his journey to
overcome the fear of everything. In this respect, he really has no choice since
he vacations on a farm with animals who don’t respect him and eventually
crosses paths with Sergei, the cruel and vicious circus owner. Courage isn’t
the absence of fear, but the action taken in spite of fear. We already know
that Snowball the superhero bunny will voluntarily throw himself into danger
for the good of the group. Gidget’s fear of being around that many cats
dissipates rather quickly. But for Max, it’s a journey that spans the entire
movie. Will he face things head on or will he continue itching at something
that isn’t there? If not for himself, then he has extra motivation when doing
it for baby Liam and his parents.
And now here comes the downer of this review. At the time
that I’m writing this, my elderly cat Emilio is slowly but surely passing away
due to failing kidneys and a subsequent loss of appetite. Throughout his final
days, I’ve been finding solace not only in my creative activities (which
includes this review), but also watching The Secret Life of Pets 2. In other
words, this movie was literally therapy for me. It reminded me that I did
everything I could to save Emilio’s life and when his time eventually comes, he
can cross the Rainbow
Bridge
If you’re looking for a feel-good movie with plenty of
cuteness and humor, you’ll get a lot of satisfaction out of The Secret Life of
Pets 2. Even if you haven’t seen the first movie, you’ll still get enjoyment
out of the sequel and you won’t be confused by the plot. Based on the success
of the sequel, I plan on watching the first movie on Netflix when I get the
chance. How does a passing grade sound to you guys?
