The best feat of these Rio movies is how it wholeheartedly shows the landscapes and culture of Brazil. The first twenty or thirty minutes explores the wondrously colorful version of each places. Well, the entire movie really is eye candy, which makes you wish that the whole thing is nothing more than a cinematic tour. People who will come in for the location won't be disappointed because that is exactly what the film is excellent at. Though it's not actually an in-depth exploration, but it's still an inviting ride.
Which is probably why the storyline suddenly hits to telling various ecological messages: one is how we shouldn't take the beauty of the Amazon for granted, and the other is against the logging of the forest. These can form an engaging story, especially after introducing us the wonders of these places, but the plot has caught itself with too many subplots. I mean there is too much conflict to deal with. For example: we see the cockatoo Nigel seeking for revenge to Blu, meanwhile there's Linda and Tulio getting into trouble with the loggers, further on the Macaw flock is unable to accept Blu because of his humanly attitude, and there is even an audition for dancing and drama. There is so much going on, yet any of it hardly offered any momentum to the story. We can see what theme they're trying to say to the audience, but these random stuff being put together randomly makes it kind of complicated.
We couldn't deny that the film overall is still fun. Yes, it has occasional laughs and the flying scenes bring a spectacular scale. There are dance/musical numbers that are well constructed even though most of them feels like they just came out of nowhere. The cast are still a delight. Jesse Eisenberg and Anne Hathaway continues to shine in their roles. Jemaine Clement remains to be the most impressive among, even if the character becomes less necessary than before. Strong additions like Andy Garcia and Kristin Chenoweth also benefits to the adventure by giving distinct personalities that haven't been stepped in the film's lively world.
Rio 2 got some grand potential right there, the problem is it's mostly just jumping from one distraction to another. The second half is probably supposed to be a series of fun sequences, but it never grows as a compelling story, no matter how it keeps delivering important sentiments about family and the environment. It's difficult to fault anyone for this since they are at least trying to elevate the material, the film just needs to be straightforward and consistent, kind of like the first movie. On the other hand, it's visually beautiful. I guess the animation and the vocal performances are the good things that remain intact. Just be aware of the extravagance and we're good.
Which is probably why the storyline suddenly hits to telling various ecological messages: one is how we shouldn't take the beauty of the Amazon for granted, and the other is against the logging of the forest. These can form an engaging story, especially after introducing us the wonders of these places, but the plot has caught itself with too many subplots. I mean there is too much conflict to deal with. For example: we see the cockatoo Nigel seeking for revenge to Blu, meanwhile there's Linda and Tulio getting into trouble with the loggers, further on the Macaw flock is unable to accept Blu because of his humanly attitude, and there is even an audition for dancing and drama. There is so much going on, yet any of it hardly offered any momentum to the story. We can see what theme they're trying to say to the audience, but these random stuff being put together randomly makes it kind of complicated.
We couldn't deny that the film overall is still fun. Yes, it has occasional laughs and the flying scenes bring a spectacular scale. There are dance/musical numbers that are well constructed even though most of them feels like they just came out of nowhere. The cast are still a delight. Jesse Eisenberg and Anne Hathaway continues to shine in their roles. Jemaine Clement remains to be the most impressive among, even if the character becomes less necessary than before. Strong additions like Andy Garcia and Kristin Chenoweth also benefits to the adventure by giving distinct personalities that haven't been stepped in the film's lively world.
Rio 2 got some grand potential right there, the problem is it's mostly just jumping from one distraction to another. The second half is probably supposed to be a series of fun sequences, but it never grows as a compelling story, no matter how it keeps delivering important sentiments about family and the environment. It's difficult to fault anyone for this since they are at least trying to elevate the material, the film just needs to be straightforward and consistent, kind of like the first movie. On the other hand, it's visually beautiful. I guess the animation and the vocal performances are the good things that remain intact. Just be aware of the extravagance and we're good.