“The Secret Life of Pets 2” ~ our favourite pets are back for a worthy sequel
Written by: Peggy Marie, Staff Writer for CC2K
“THE SECRET LIFE OF PETS 2” is another fun filled little romp for the kids. With a few new additions to the cast, most notably Harrison Ford as farm dog Rooster. But the biggest of all additions, a baby is added to the family much to the disgruntlement of our lead dog Max (Patton Oswalt). This sequel actually divides our team into three smaller stories with a somewhat vague theme tying it all together. But it works as you never feel you lost track of what is happening in any of them.
The first plotline involves Max’s owner Katie (Ellie Kemperer) getting married and having a little boy named Liam. Max, whose dislike of children is made very clear, falls in love at first sight and becomes very protective over Liam, to the point of scratching himself out of the anxiety he feels to the point of getting a dog cone. The relationship that forms here is fun and it’s a dog and a baby – who can dislike that?
Max, Duke and the family end up going out to the country where they meet farm dog Rooster and to say in the least, Rooster is not impressed with ‘city-dog’ Max, nor his cowardice at the farm animals. And while the outcome might be predictable, it’s charming and sweet to watch as Rooster helps encourage Max to face his fears and have more confidence.
While the family is at the farm our second subplot comes into play. It’s about my favourite little pet, Gidget (Jenny Slate) as she trying to retrieve a bumblebee toy Max gave her to guard while he is away. The problem is the toy is stuck in the home of the crazy cat lady downstairs who literally fits the persona to a tee, as she literally has dozens of cats. She even talks the incredible Chloe (my other favorite pet), into giving her lessons on how to be a cat. This has some really fun comedic slapstick that made for some good laughs from the entire audience.
Our final plot centers around Snowball, the Kevin Hart voiced bunny who is convinced he is actually a super-bunny because of the way his owner plays with him. He meets a new doggie named Daisy (Tiffany Haddish). Daisy is upset because she saw a baby tiger get taken by a bad man at the circus. Snowball and the team of pets must save the tiger and restore order to the city.
The characters throughout Pet’s are adorable and there are enough laughs and heart to keep the interest level during the film. The vocal performances are all good and the message on overcoming fears is really sweet. The ending credits are also a must-see!! I have no doubt The Secret Life of Pets 2 will make a boat-load of money but for once it is deserved.
‘The Secret Life of Pets 2’ is fun, fast moving and best of all, kids and adults will both be entertained. P.S. Cats RULE!! 🙂