REVIEW – JOURNEY 2: THE MYSTERIOUS ISLAND
Mel Valentin February 10, 2012 0
JOURNEY 2: THE MYSTERIOUS ISLAND
Directed by: Brad Peyton
Written by: Brian Gunn (screenplay), Mark Gunn (screenplay), Richard Outten (story)
Starring: Dwayne Johnson, Josh Hutcherson, Vanessa Hudgens, Michael Caine, Luis Guzmán, Kristin Davis
If you were among the select, the few, not-so-proud moviegoers who thoroughly enjoyed JOURNEY TO THE CENTER OF THE EARTH (3D), 2008’s entry in the family fun (in 3D) sweepstakes, then the eagerly non-anticipated sequel, JOURNEY 2: THE MYSTERIOUS ISLAND, will bring you paroxysms of joy and other positive feelings. If, however, you were not among the select, the few, not-so-proud moviegoers who enjoyed JOURNEY TO THE CENTER OF THE EARTH (3D), then nothing but enervating boredom awaits you. That and Dwayne “Don’t Call Me the Rock (Anymore)” Johnson’s hypertrophied physique (e.g., the pec power of love) and a whiter-than-white smile await you for 94 minutes (not counting a four-minute animated short starring Elmer Fudd and Daffy Duck).
When we meet up again with Sean Anderson (Josh Hutcherson), the lone holdover from the first entry, he’s turned into a surly, sullen teen, perpetually upset at being forced to live under the same roof as his new stepfather, Hank Parsons (Dwayne “Don’t Call Me the Rock” Johnson), a former Navy man and cryptography specialist. Like his decade-dead biological father and explorer uncle, Trevor (Brendan Fraser), conspicuously absent from this installment and, most likely, future installments, Sean considers himself a Vernian. He’s among a select few (select and few because they exist only in fiction, specifically only in this film and its predecessor) who strongly believes 19th-century science-fantasy writer Jules Verne (“20,000 Leagues Under the Sea,” “From the Earth to the Moon”) hid fact-based experiences in the fiction that became the mass-market bestsellers of their time. In the first entry, Sean and Trevor journeyed to the hollow center of the world and back again.
Thanks to an easy-to-decode radio message, Sean and Hank discover that Sean’s grandfather, Alexander (Michael Caine), is alive and well on the “mysterious island.” Alexander’s coded radio message conveniently includes the latitude and longitude of the island, an island apparently a hop, skip, and a jump away from Palau in the Pacific Ocean. Hank eventually agrees to journey to the “mysterious island” as Sean’s chaperone and protector. Sean’s mother, Liz (Kristin Davis), stays behind. On Palau, Sean and Hank hire Gabato (Luis Guzmán), a tour guide and (non) comic relief, and Kailani (Vanessa Hudgens), Gabato’s teenage daughter and the age-appropriate, obligatory love interest for Sean, to provide them with transportation to the mysterious island of the title (apparently there’s one and only island in the entire world that could be described as “mysterious”).
JOURNEY 2: THE MYSTERIOUS ISLAND’s origins in a spec script written by Richard Outten is probably more fascinating or interesting than the reconfigured result moviegoers will experience this weekend or not (or not at all, depending on their preference). JOURNEY 2’s producing partners, Walden Media and New Line Cinema, picked up Outten’s spec script, MYSTERIOUS TRAVELS, hired two additional writers, Brian Gunn and Mark Gunn, to rewrite the script first as a nominal sequel to JOURNEY TO THE CENTER OF THE EARTH, but second as a star vehicle for Johnson. Squarely pitched at preteens and less discerning tweens, the result will leave everyone else wondering why, yet again, Johnson agreed to partake in another film that under-uses his action-star charisma in exchange for substandard one-liners and under-rendered, CG-heavy action scenes. Maybe it was the narcissism typical of actors and performers that led Johnson to accept such a woefully one-dimensional role, but that’s exactly what he did.
The Gunn Brothers’ script also under-utilizes the rest of the cast. As the left-behind mother and wife, Kristin Davis appears in only a handful of throwaway scenes. Vanessa Hudgens gets stuck in an underwritten, perfunctory romantic subplot. Josh Hutcherson spends a considerable amount of JOURNEY 2’s running time pouting or, as Sean, weakly rebelling against Hank’s orders before falling into line. In the case of Luis Guzmán, the old adage about saving the worst for last applies. The Gunn Brothers’ script saddles Guzman with a steady barrage of cringe-inducing scenes and dialogue. Gabato may have been meant as comic relief, but in director Brad Peyton incapable hands, he’s an unfunny buffoon, a stock character perilously bordering on stereotype. No one at Walden Media or New Line Cinema cared about or noticed the Gabato’s potentially offensive or insulting behavior. Then again, they obviously paid little attention to anything else except the visual effects and even there more attention (and money) should have been paid.
About the author: Mel Valentin View all posts by Mel Valentin
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