The macabre family is back, and they’re going on a road trip, with Oscar Isaac, Charlize Theron and Chloë Grace Moretz reprising their voice roles.
Grade: C- (* 1/2* out of *****)
I wasn’t a fan of the first animated version of The Addams Family, but even if I was I don’t see any reason for the existence of a follow-up.
Even by standards of sequels, The Addams Family2 is an inferior version to the animated reboot of Charles Addams’ ghoulish cartoons.
As directed by Conrad Vernon and Greg Tiernan (the team behind Sausage Party), it’s a predictable, bland, unfunny follow-up, this time around sending the eccentric family on their first road trip.
Overall, the plot, which is written by Dan Hernandez and Benji Samitis, is poorly constructed–a meandering mess.
The only amusing character is Wednesday Addams (voiced by Chloë Grace Moretz), competing in a school science fair. Her presentation involving an experiment of mixing the DNA of an octopus with her uncle Fester (Nick Kroll) to give him a smarter mind than he has.
The homicidal genius daughter of Gomez (Oscar Isaac) and Morticia (Charlize Theron) begins her presentation with a jab at her family, and Moretz’s delivery of her lines is sharp and witty.
Her parents and brother, Pugsley (Javon Walton), are in the audience, having ignored her request to stay away from the event.
Wednesday is embarrassed by her silly family, with brother Pugsley (Javon Walton) pathetically trying to impress girls at school, and Fester too dumb to know a rubix cube isn’t food.
Her parents Gomez and Morticia are too occupied to care about their daughter’s brilliance.
A lawyer (voiced by Wallace Shawn) arrives to tell Gomez that his client, a scientist named Cyrus (Bill Hader), has information that Wednesday isn’t their biological child.
In order to avoid the awful truth, Gomez takes the family on a freaky fun road trip, hoping to bond closer together at the Niagara Falls, see cousin It (voiced by Snoop Dog) on the Florida beach, and the go to the Grand Canyon.
There’s a subplot about Granny (voiced by Bette Midler) throwing a house party that’s pointless to say the least.
Mixed in-between the road trip are pop-hip-hop songs and ads for Progressive Insurance.
Unfortunately, there will be a third installment to The Addams Family, if this chapter makes money at the box-office.
Here is a movie that is not funny for kids or for parents. I highly recommend that you revisit the 1991 live-action version and its sequel, Addams Family Values.
