Journey 2: The Mysterious Island Review

By: Robert Acosta

Cast:
Dwayne Johnson as Hank
Josh Hutcherson as Sean

Vanessa Hudgens as Kailani

Luis Guzman as Gabato

Plot: After cracking some codes, Sean and step father Hank embark on a journey to find the Mysterious Island and Sean's grandpa (played by Michael Caine)

Review: I've got a weird review on my hands here. Because on one hand, I enjoyed the movie for what it was. What it was a somewhat pseudo kids movie with a lot of likable actors put together. You cannot deny how charismatic The Rock, Josh Hutcherson, Luis Guzman and Michael Caine are. Not to mention Vanessa Hudgens is very easy on the eyes. On the other hand, there's nothing outstanding about this movie either. Being a sequel of a movie that most people may have missed, or really didn't care about, the direction is a bit weird.

It's a very likable movie. Like I said, lots of likable actors, all doing a good job. The Rock continues to do kiddy movies, it's still not the ideal situation to watch him in, but he does well in these films. He got to show off some adventure moves he's got in the arsenal, but he needs to make his way in to action films. Josh Hutcherson, being on Jose's guys to look out for, starts the year off well, showing a little more "man" and "adult" to both the character and even himself. Luis Guzman is the clear comical relief, and it worked tremendously. Most of the best parts of the film involve Guzman. 

There's a nice blend of action and comedy found in Journey 2. Maybe a little more on the action/adventure side, but this certainly isn't without comedy. I can't say much about a background of the story, because there is none. Everything is kind of thrust upon you, as if it were meant to be something other than sequel. The story itself is not bad, a basic adventure/rescue mission of sorts, but with no back story, it's not the most interesting of movies. 

All in all, I enjoyed Journey 2 for what it was, a action packed, comedy adventure with not much of a story. Depending on how it does in the box office, it could get a 3rd part, which they've somewhat hinted at already. This should sell enough to get another sequel. 

Rating: 3 out of 5