Main Cast: Antonio Banderas, Carla Gugino, Alexa Vega, Daryl Sabara, Steve Buscemi
Release Year: 2002
Run Time: 99 minutes
MPAA Rating: PG
Plot
The prepubescent, globetrotting, super-spy sibling duo from director Robert Rodriguez's surprise 2001 hit Spy Kids is back to save the world for a second time in this bigger-budget, larger-scale sequel. Spy Kids 2: Island of Lost Dreams opens with our heroes Carmen and Juni (Alexa Vega and Daryl Sabara), now official OSS agents, in the midst of another crisis situation: They have to reclaim to the powerful Transmooker Device from the clutches of those who might try to use it to permanently disable energy on Earth. Their quest leads them to the tropical lair of Romero (Steve Buscemi), an unhinged scientist who retreated into seclusion after a daring experiment backfired on him -- as well as on a whole breed of mutant creatures. As if finding the Transmooker weren't enough, Carmen and Juni have to contend with another set of mini-spies, Gary and Gerti Giggles (Matt O'Leary and Emily Osment), who are eager to one-up the world's most-respected spy kids. Returning to Spy Kids 2 are parents Antonio Banderas and Carla Gugino, as well as the evil-doers of the first film, Alan Cummings and Tony Shalhoub. ~ Michael Hastings, All Movie Guide
Review
Spy Kids 2, Robert Rodriguez's follow-up to his hit family action film from the previous year, manages to achieve the sense of fun and wonder of the first film, even though it lacks the sense of discovery that the first film possessed. Rodriguez thrusts the kids into an adventure that recalls both The Island of Dr. Moreau and Land of the Lost. He relies on effects more than he did in the first film, which would be a problem if he were only interested in making a buck. Fortunately, Rodriguez's heart is in the right place once again. From the throwaway jokes about new amusement park rides, to the coolest new spy gadgets, to a serpentine water monster, Rodriguez never lets the effects be the point. He is so intoxicated with a sense of wonder and fun that his giddiness comes across in every frame. While the film looks remarkably expensive, Spy Kids 2 is a triumph of imagination rather than special effects. Alexa Vega and Daryl Sabara are pitch perfect as Carmen and Juni. The script is smart enough to lessen the amount and the harshness of the bickering they engage in. They have learned their lessons from the first film, but still realistically get on each other's nerves. Disappointingly, there is much less of Antonio Banderas and Carla Gugino in this film. Their scenes with Ricardo Montalban and Holland Taylor are funny, but they detract from the pacing of the kids' adventure. Those scenes shoehorn the family moral into the film, a lesson that was seamlessly woven into the first film. While it may suffer slightly in comparison to the original, Spy Kids 2 is superb family entertainment. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
John Frick - Art Director, Ed Vega - Supervising Art Director, Mary Vernieu - Casting, Rebecca Rodriguez - Choreography, Patricia Vonne - Choreography, Graciela Mazon - Costume Designer, Brian Bettwy - First Assistant Director, Robert Rodriguez - Director, Robert Rodriguez - Editor, Bob Weinstein - Executive Producer, Harvey Weinstein - Executive Producer, John Debney - Composer (Music Score), Robert Rodriguez - Composer (Music Score), Nicotero Kurtzman & Berger EFX Group - Makeup Special Effects, Robert Rodriguez - Production Designer, Robert Rodriguez - Cinematographer, Robert Rodriguez - Producer, Elizabeth Avellan - Producer, Ronn Basquette - Set Designer, John Pritchett - Sound/Sound Designer, Martin Jacob Lopez - Sound/Sound Designer, Robert Rodriguez - Screenwriter, Jimmy Lindsey - Additional Cinematography, Robert Rodriguez - Visual Effects Supervisor, Daniel Leduc - Visual Effects Supervisor, Reel EFX - Digital Effects, Cinesite - Digital Effects, Digiscope - Digital Effects, Computer Cafe - Digital Effects, Hybride Technologies - Digital Effects, Troublemaker Digital Studios - Digital Effects, Janimation - Digital Effects, Darrell D. Pritchett - Special Effects Coordinator, Dean Beville - Supervising Sound Editor, LeAnn Radeka - Costume/Wardrobe, Jeanette Scott - Set Decorator
Carmen Cortez and Juni Cortez have become agents of the OSS, which now has a new 'Spy Kids' division for children, and face particularly hard competition with Gary and Gerti Giggles (Emily Osment and Matt O'Leary), the children of double-dealing agent Donnagon Giggles (Mike Judge), whom Carmen and Juni helped to rescue in the previous film.
Following an incident at an amusement park (filmed at Six Flags Magic Mountain), where the President's daughter (Taylor Momsen) deliberately sabotaged a thrill ride that juggles its passengers, in which the Giggles and the Cortez kids were competing in the rescue, Donnagon was named the director of the OSS, and Juni was fired. In this act, Donnagon can carry forth his plan of wanting to steal the "Transmooker", a highly coveted device that can shut off all electronic devices, so he can take control of the world.
After Carmen manages to hack into the database and reinstates Juni's level as an agent, Carmen and Juni follow the trail to a mysterious island near Madagascar, which is home to Romero (Steve Buscemi), a lunatic scientist. Romero has been attempting to create genetically-miniaturized animals( and mutated animals )so he can make a profit by selling the animials to kids, but has instead ended up with mutated "monsters" populating the island. After a number of action sequences, such as fighting skeletons and being captured by sporks, literal flying pigs, the spy kids (with the help of their family, Romero and Gary and Gerti Giggles) destroy the transmooker and defeat Donnagon, who is then fired by the president. Juni quits afterward due to the impersonal treatment of agents by the OSS.
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Special effects
Despite the fact that this film uses over twice the amount of effects shots, Rodriguez didn't ask for a larger budget than he had on the first film.[2] "...I told the studio I don't want more money. I just want to be more creative," said Rodriguez.[2] Rodriguez picked some visual effects companies who were eager and less established, as well as starting up his own Troublemaker Studios and reemploying Hybride, who had worked with him on the first film.[3] The film employs a certain technique to make the movements of the computer-generated creatures resemble the stop-motion work of filmmaker Ray Harryhausen,[2] who has a cameo in the film.[4] The scene with the army of live skeletons was shot on a real rock formation with the two young actors on safety wires;[5] the computer-generated skeletons were later added to over three dozen shots.[5]
Reviews of the film were mostly positive. Michael Wilmington of Metromix Chicago, noting how Rodriguez borrows many elements from television and earlier films, stated that, "“Rodriguez recycles and refurbishes all these old movie bits with the opportunistic energy of a man looting his old attic toy chest -- but he also puts some personal feeling into the movie. This is a film about families staying together, children asserting themselves and even, to some degree, Latino power."[6]
VHS and DVD release
February 18, 2003
Soundtrack
Music from the Dimension Motion Picture Spy Kids 2: The Island of Lost Dreams
The film score is co-written by director Robert Rodriguez and composer John Debney, who had also co-written the score to Spy Kids. The sound is a mix of rock, pop and indie rock, and includes songs performed by Alan Cumming and Alexa Vega. Unusually, the orchestral score for the film was recorded in the auditorium of a local high school in Austin, Georgetown High School.[7]
