The Addams Family 2 - Blu-ray Review

[Michael Scott]

The Addams Family 2



Movie:
Video:
Audio:
Extras:
Final Score:


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Movie
I don’t know why, but The Addams Family has managed to survive for almost 100 years. Charles 1938 comic strip (which ran for over 25 years) was a huge hit in 20th century America, morphing into a goofy TV show in the 1960s, and then finally a Raul Julia masterpiece of cheese in the 1990s. After that adaptation most of us thought that the intellectual property was done creating new material, but in 2019 MGM studios decided to pull the series from the grave and re-do it in animated form. The results…..a surprisingly fun little animated romp that wasn’t anything as special as what came before, but good fun nonetheless. Fast forward a couple of years into the Pandemic that followed righter after, and we see a beleaguered sequel come to fruition, right on schedule.

In an effort to once again come together as a family (one of the biggest struggles the weird family has had over their entire existence), Gomez Addams (Oscar Isaac) decides to assemble the Addams family together for a giant road trip! However, his real motivation stems from trying to run away from a disturbing revelation. A revelation that his daughter Wednesday (Chloe Grace Moretz) may actually NOT be his daughter after all, when a mysterious lawyer (played by the infamous Wallace Shawn) comes to inform him that Wednesday might have had different parents. Trying to escape the pertinacious lawyer like he’s being served a summons, Gomez crams himself, his wife Morticia (Charlize Theron), Wednesday and son Pugsley (played by Javon Walton this time) into their old wannabe RV and across the country they head.

Gomez really doesn’t have much of a plan in mind. All he cares about is getting Wednesday away from the lawyer so that she never finds out that she might not be his daughter, and the rest he’s going to play by ear. However, playing it by ear turns into a bit of a stressful situation as Gomez is dodging the lawyer, trying to blend into “normal” America, and generally fails at all of his hair brained schemes. Wednesday inevitable finds out about her supposed heritage issue, and leaves on her own to meet up with her “father” Dr. Strange (Bill Hader) and has a bit of a turning point crisis herself over who her family really is.

The new Addams Family adventure is pretty rote I might add. It’s your typical “who am I?” and “what makes my family MY family?” stories that we’ve seen a thousand times. Having the same directions as the previous animated film, this one is not far off the quality mark as it’s predecessor, but neither film is exactly revolutionary. Instead it’s a quirky and kooky (and altogether spooky) madcap adventure that really lives and dies on the sheer enthusiasm of the voice actors. Honestly, without them giving it their all, this story would have been your average generic animated flick. Oscar Isaac really throws his heart and soul into the insanity of Gomez, and Nick Kroll is exceptionally funny as Uncle Fester. I was skeptical back when I heard Chloe Grace Moretz would take over for Christina Ricci, but she has done an amazing job voice wise. All in all, a fun film that really has a bunch of heartfelt enthusiasm, but is still just a generic animated flick behind it all.




Rating:

Rated PG for macabre and suggestive humor, and some action.




Video:

The 1.85:1 framed digital film is pure eye candy, with lots of bright and shiny colors with excellent animation lines. The film sports amazing clarity, razor sharp lines, and no real major artifacts to be seen outside of some mild banding. Some of the animation isn’t always super detailed from the start, so I can’t really hold it against the film, but things like Water and backgrounds can sometimes look a bit bland in comparison to the intricately nuanced clothing bits, or the vehicle in which they drive around with. Colors are rich and vibrant, with lots of punch and great saturation levels. All around a great looking disc that is near demo material.








Audio:

The 7.1 DTS-HD MA track found on the disc is NEARLY is fantastic as the 7.1 mix found on the previous film. It’s spacious and rambunctious, with Pugsley and Wednesday Addams still playing all manner of pranks on each other. However, I did notice that this one felt a good bit more subdued and quiet for larger portions of the movie, especially when dealing with the dramatic elements regarding Wednesday’s past. However, the 7.1 mix is certainly immersive when it needs to be, and the bass can be fantastic in scenes such as IT’s plane landing, or the massive explosions that Pugsley sets off at the canyons. It’s a great mix, just not a perfect one as the more subdued nature makes it less dynamic overall. Good track that should please most everyone.










Extras:

• We're Altogether Addams: Meet the people behind the voices - Featurette
• Courage to be Kooky: See why it's okay to be different (even kooky) with a little help from the cast of THE ADDAMS FAMILY 2 - Featurette
• THE ADDAMS FAMILY Road Trip Checklist: In this "How To" vignette, we'll show you everything you need for a successful road trip with the family. From essentials to games, we've got you covered.

Final Score: ​

The Addams Family did surprise me a bit, and I’m glad it did. I’m always happy to eat crow and change my tune on something for the positive if I possibly can, and after the silly trailer that Universal released months ago I was fully expecting the worst. Needless to say the movie is charming, fun, and light enough to be enjoyed by the whole family (there’s definitely a few winking and nodding adult jokes that slide through as well). The Blu-ray is magnificent in it’s technical specs, and the disc even holds a moderate amount of extras as well. Definitely worth a watch in my humble opinion.


Technical Specifications:

Starring: Charlize Theron, Chloe Grace Moretz, Oscar Isaac, Snoop Dogg, Nick Kroll, Bette Midler, Javon Walton
Directed by: Greg Tiernan, Conrad Vernon, Laura Brousseau
Written by: Dan Hernandez, Benji Samit, Ben Queen
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 AVC
Audio: English: DTS-HD MA 7.1, Spanish DTS-HD HR 7.1, French DTS 5.1
Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish, French
Studio: Universal
Rated: PG
Runtime: 93 minutes
Blu-Ray Release Date: January 18th, 2022

Recommendation: Fun Romp

 

[tripplej]

Thanks for the review. I have only seen the goofy tv series which I loved by the way.. I haven't seen any of the animated versions so will check them out.