My Movie Review on 101 Dalmatians II: Patch's London Adventure · 11:24pm May 20th, 2021
Greetings, my good friends.
This is your top-of-the-line film, TV show, and episode reporter here with another review.
Today, for my 222nd film analysis, I'm gonna give you guys my take of "101 Dalmatians II: Patch's London Adventure".
Here's the rundown of this direct-to-video sequel:
A year after the events of the first film, the Radcliffe family and their dalmatians are preparing to move to a plantation in the countryside, just like they decided to do last year so that the puppies could have a bigger space to live in. In the midst of the moving preparations, though, one puppy in the family can't help but feel ignored by the others and wishes to not just be one in a hundred: Patch.
When Patch is accidentally left behind the next morning, he decides to try moving on from his family and goes to meet his television hero, Thunderbolt, who's visiting London in preparation for a new episode of "The Thunderbolt Adventure Hour". But, Patch gets more than he bargained for when Thunderbolt asks him for help in doing real-life heroics (secretly because he believes the producers are planning on replacing him).
Meanwhile, in a desperate attempt to sedate her obsessions with spots, Cruella de Vil turns to a French artist named Lars, who has a knack for creating paintings of spots.
After I did my review on the animated version Disney named in 1961 (the review itself being posted near the end of 2020), I felt that it'd only be fair that I review this movie at some point. Doing so was just a matter of finding the right time.
The funny thing is that I'm not a complete stranger to this film. Back when my family and I had a VCR, I had a VHS tape of this movie and used to frequently watch it. I haven't seen this movie in years, so making an analysis of it was what I found to be a perfect opportunity to take a trip down memory lane. How I revisited this sequel was by watching it on Disney+, which is what I'd like to call another great benefit to sharing an account with one of my family members.
So, what do I think of this movie after all these years?
Coming from a guy who saw it again recently, I will say that there was just one flaw in the movie I managed to pinpoint.
Throughout the motion picture, I noticed that there were many background settings and objects that seemed unfinished. It was like whoever was in charge of animating those elements didn't take the time to make sure they were either all the way colored in or blended with the rest of the animated aspects.
An example of what I'm talking about comes from the elements presented in this picture here:
Other than that, I found this sequel to be as enjoyable as I remembered it being as a kid.
For instance, despite the flaws I pointed out regarding the animation, I thought it was overall very impressive. It was amazing to see how the animators made the visualization as a whole as faithful to that of the original film as possible, and all with the use of modern technology too. The character animation was fun to watch, and the opening credits sequence was perhaps the most accomplished moment in the entire film.
The direction by Jim Kammerud and Brian Smith, the story by them, Temple Mathews, Dan Root, and Garrett K. Schiff, and the screenplay by Kammerud, Smith, and Mathews, were likewise nicely-worked.
When it came to creating a sequel that was faithful to its predecessor while still telling a completely different narrative, I thought the filmmakers did a great job doing so. It has its elements of nostalgia and there are things that both this movie and the first one have in common, yet it doesn't try to be uncannily similar to its predecessor either. The humor and comedic-timings were so entertaining that I couldn't find any fault with them, and the concept as a whole wasn't without heart, emotion, and meaningful morality. They even showcased a surprisingly brilliant knack for dialogue, because there were memorable quotes throughout the movie that were pleasurable in every way.
The music by Richard Gibbs was marvelous as well.
What I particularly admired about Gibbs's score for this movie was that it felt like the kind that George Bruns made for the film's predecessor. All of the material Gibbs made was his own, yet the melodies carried a sense that much of the spirit originated by Bruns was incorporated into this sequel's soundtrack. The songs that were made for the film were enjoyable too, and I'm surprised that they aren't available on iTunes.
Finally, the vocal performances, characters, and character development were outstanding.
Despite the movie not having the involvements of any of the previous movie's cast members, the people who voiced the original characters hit the nail on the head with their impressions, especially that of Susan Blakeslee as Cruella de Vil, Jeff Bennett as Jasper, and Maurice LaMarche as Horace. The filmmakers's willingness to give Patch a greater sense of depth and develop him throughout the movie was likewise admirable, and Bobby Lockwood's performance as the character was splendid.
The film's new characters were awesome additions, if I may add. And the people portraying them played their parts with terrific flavor and personality.
In the role of Lars, Martin Short not only stole the show and killed it with giving his character a French accent, but he helped Lars be as fully-realized and three-dimensional as possible. The character of Li'l Lightning wasn't the most likable guy around, but Jason Alexander portrayed his part perfectly. Both of the characters I mentioned weren't without development either.
On the subject of Thunderbolt, I will say that he wasn't the most likable character at first. As the film progressed, though, he grew on me because of his growing loyalty, friendship, and soft spot for Patch. Barry Bostwick likewise voiced the character with great personality and style, and the decision to upgrade Thunderbolt to someone with a larger role in contrast to the first movie was a great move on the part of the filmmakers.
In conclusion, "101 Dalmatians II: Patch's London Adventure" isn't a flawless sequel due to the animation errors I pointed out. But, it is a sequel that's undeniably worthwhile and delightful. The best part is that it doesn't feel like something Disney made just to make a profit off of.
So, I rate "101 Dalmatians II: Patch's London Adventure" 4½ out of 5 stars.
Ah memory lane I've still have both of vhs tapes of both of the animated versions and the live action versions.... Unfortunately my vhs player doesn't work anymore......
I've watched all four movies so many times, probably my most watched disney films still to this day.
I love the chase scene
I'll have to see it personally to make a proper judgment on it. And I'll probably be as positive about it as you were.
I just finished re-watching this film. In my opinion, it is one of the most generic and predictable direct-to-video Disney sequels I've seen.
While I’m happy you enjoyed it, I simply couldn’t enjoy it.
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That’s perfectly alright.
Can’t say that I’m surprised, really.