 |
|
|
|
Son of the Mask (2005)
 email this review to a friend
Movie Review by Nick
February 16th, 2005
|  |
Speaking as someone who has no experience with parenting or any plans to procreate any time soon, it seems to me that along with the many joys of child rearing comes a heaping helping of two things:
Pain and sacrifice.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying it's all bad--why would anyone do it if it was--but from an outsider's perspective it seems like a good portion of your life is dedicated to doing things you would normally have no desire to do. Prepare to add SON OF THE MASK, sequel to 1994's THE MASK, to that list. If your child is between the ages of five and twelve, he or she will probably want to see this film. Let me warn you now: the only satisfaction you will garner from this theatre excursion is the look of joy on your child's face.
In the original Jim Carrey motivated hit, the legendary Mask of Loki turned milquetoast Stanley Ipkiss' life upside down. In the sequel, you can bet dollars to donuts there is more of the same wacky hijinks that made THE MASK a success. Jamie Kennedy plays aspiring animator Tim Avery, whose wife Tonya has just given birth to a seemingly normal baby boy... however, not everything is as it appears. The neophyte father soon discovers that his son Alvey has certain unnatural abilities, all of which seem strikingly similar to the spectacular powers the Mask of Loki grants (perhaps connected to a Halloween night of wild, Mask-induced fervor, hmmm?). Meanwhile, Odin (as in the Norse father of the gods) has commanded his son Loki, god of mischief and creator of the Mask, to collect his creation or lose his godly powers. Loki's path leads to Tim and as you can surely imagine, bedlam ensues.
SON OF THE MASK is a veritable treasure trove of displeasures and the first of many is that Jim Carrey did not return to reprise his role from the first film. However, after his work in MALIBU'S MOST WANTED, it is apparent that Jamie Kennedy was the perfect choice for the role.
Sorry, sometimes I forget that sarcasm doesn't carry over well in print.
Truthfully, I don't understand why Jamie Kennedy is given anything other than supporting roles or the HAROLD AND KUMAR style cameos that he obviously shines in. Although he does his best to follow in Carrey's footsteps as The Mask, the magic that Carrey brought to the role of the zany mischief maker is completely lost in Kennedy's performance. The CGI-- which has improved since the last film and is very impressive overall-- gives Kennedy the means to behave as an animated character, but without Carrey at the helm it just doesn't work. Allan Cumming makes a first-class Loki and Bob Hoskins (although hardly recognizable) is great in the role of Odin, however, all of the aforementioned play second fiddle to the real stars, Otis the dog and Alvey Avery. Portrayed by Bear and the Falconer twins respectively, both characters are responsible for the very few sequences adults may find entertaining. Alvey sees the classic Warner Brother's short "One Froggy Evening" and decides to use the same approach as the infamous dancing frog to drive his father mad. Described by Tim as "A cunning little mastermind that will stop at nothing until I go completely insane," the infant sings, tap dances, and uses other classic-cartoon inspired methods to drive Tim bonkers. Amidst this chaos, Otis is having jealousy issues and decides its time to don the Mask and eliminate young Alvey in a stint reminiscent of "Tom and Jerry" meets "Spy vs. Spy." Unfortunately, aside from the occasional quip that covers any content the average adult would enjoy, and even then the only true pleasure is derived from reliving the hilariously violent cartoons of days gone by.
Ben Stein has a mildly humorous cameo as a museum tour guide and comedy icon Steven Wright also has a small and painfully disappointing role as Tim's boss. A man known for comedy should be, well... comedic, yet I laughed more at LEAVING LAS VEGAS than I did at anything Wright had to say in SON OF THE MASK.
Sadly, the rest of the film can be summarized by one word: torturous. The CGI is generally quite good, but it's hardly a savior of the otherwise dismal film. In a nutshell, SON OF THE MASK is like an egg roll stuffed with broken glass. Get past the delicious CGI and you're left with is agonizing center that will leave you feeling completely empty.
email this review to a friend
Comment on this Review:
Sorry, you must be a member to add comments to reviews.
Join or Login. |
 Subscribe to MatchFlick Movie Reviews through RSS
|
