Blu-Ray Review
14 Aug 2011
Hoodwinked Too: Hood vs. Evil: A Blu-Ray Review
Look, I'm going to level with you: I flat-out loved the original Hoodwinked. An animated, super-hip, Tarantino-tinged mash-up of Little Red Riding Hood and Rashomon, Hoodwinked came out of nowhere and blindsided me with its charm. I took my kids to see it during its original theatrical run, and while the boys marvelled at the fun storytelling style and colorful visuals, I laughed at many jokes that flew over their heads; quite a few of them, in fact, surprised me with their intelligence.
I have historically been critical of movies that are too smart for their own good, and which confuse pop-culture name-checks with jokewriting, but Hoodwinked hit a manic stride during its first scene and drug us along for the ride. All three of us were delighted by the film, and Hoodwinked became a much-loved part of our family's DVD collection from the moment it debuted on home video.
Now, six years later -- an eternity in both filmmaking and parenting -- here comes a sequel. My boys are in middle school now, far from the toddling pre-schoolers they were when we saw the original together. I was more than a little curious to discover what they'd think of this second journey through the world of twisted fairy tales.
The story: Red Riding Hood (Hayden Panettiere, replacing the original film's Anne Hathaway) and the Big Bad Wolf (Patrick Warburton) have maintained a strained friendship after the events of the first movie, and they now work for Nicky Flippers (David Ogden Stiers) and his Happily Ever After (HEA) agency. When Hansel and Gretel (Bill Hader and Amy Poehler) get kidnapped by the evil witch Verushka (Joan Cusack), it's up to these mismatched partners to save the day.
It saddens to me report that the awkwardly titled Hoodwinked Too: Hood vs. Evil exchanges the magic of the first story for a plot that is both perfunctory and unengaging. Most of the characters from the first movie return, even the ones that have no business being involved with this tale. Sure, it's nice to see Granny (Glenn Close), Twitchy the Squirrel (Cory Edwards), and (my favorite) Japeth the Singing Goat (Benjy Gaither) again... but do we really need them here? Although the plot features a couple of nice twists, the freshness is long gone. Even the core premise -- two "buddy cops" who don't like each very much but eventually change their opinions of each other -- is almost as old and stale as the fairy tales the movie is trying to satirize.
The whole film seems like it was designed with the goal of reminding us how much we liked the first movie, rather than earning affection on its own. As such, there is precious little reinvention, and the writing quickly settles into a bare minimum of quality. While I laughed out loud repeatedly during the original film, the sequel earned only a few smiles and half-hearted chuckles from me.
It's not terrible, you understand. But it's an unnecessary and inferior cash-in. I'm disappointed by how transparent I found the filmmakers' lack of ambition to be.
Too bad. Japeth the Singing Goat deserved better.
Enough about the movie! What about the Blu-Ray?
Hoodwinked Too: Hood vs. Evil is coming to home video in enough different versions to halt Twitchy the Hyperactive Squirrel in his tracks. It's on DVD, of course. It's also available as a Blu-Ray/DVD combo pack (which is the version I received for review). But if two different viewing options aren't enough for you, a four-disc deluxe version (including DVD, Blu-Ray, 3D Blu-Ray, and a digital copy for your laptop or portable media player) can be yours also. And that's not even counting the digital download option. Sheesh.
The film is presented in a slightly muted 1080p anamorphic transfer (1.78:1). Detail levels are very high, but unlike the earlier film's pleasing warm colors, the sequel looks a bit dingy and drab. This is by design, however, and this transfer does a good job of reproducing what was shown in theaters.
Audio is available in your choice of Dolby Digital 5.1 or DTS HD 5.1 (both are English tracks). English and Spanish subtitles are also offered.
Special features are a bit on the light side, but three music videos are offered (including Hayden "Red Riding Hood" Panettiere's "I Can Do It Alone"). A brief featurette on the voice actors is also included, along with storyboards and assorted production artwork.
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Comments
caroche 15 Aug 2011 10:30
It good film with it. I also like the subtitles.