Hey folks, Harry here. I don't know too much about this film yet. Robert was locking himself away to finish the script, doing the design work and getting everything tip top so that this winds up being that rare case of the sequel being better than the original. I'm going to the set this Monday. Robert tells me that there is an actor shooting on this movie of such immense epic god-status that I would hate him forever if I didn't come down to meet him and watch him work. I'll let y'all know who it is when I get back from set. Currently I'm going through my memory of all the Immense Cool Uber Gods in Robert and mine's pantheon... Who is it? Well, I'll see Monday. Until then here's the lowdown on SPY KIDS 2!!!
SPY KIDS 2: THE ISLAND OF LOST DREAMS
The movie opens in the same manner as any good Bond movie does: we have our hero (or heroes in this case) in the middle of one mission, but something unfolds along the way that leads them to a more important, and of course, exciting assignment. So where on earth would a pair of spy kids have a mission? Disneyland...where else?! (HARRY NOTE: It no longer is set at DISNEYLAND, Rodriguez created his own Amusement Park for the film!!!)
The kids are keeping an eye on ALEXANDRA, the President's daughter, who is visiting the famed theme park. She decides that she wants to ride a brand new experimental attraction. She sabotages the ride so that she is stuck in it. She does this because she claims that her father isn't paying her enough attention, and she just wants to talk to him.
Now, of course, the normal Secret Service assigned to the President's daughter are too large to scale the somewhat precarious device where she is now perched on top of. So in step our pint sized heroes, JUNI and CARMEN. However, this time they have competition in the form of two more new spy kids: GARY (age 15) and GERTI (age 10) GIGGLES. These two are a snotty, stuck up version of Juni and Carmen who want nothing more than to upstage their rivals.
The rescue mission takes a turn when we discover that the President's daughter has stolen something called the TRANSMOOKER DEVICE from her father which the secret service now seem more concerned about than her. The four OSS agents then engage in a competition to retrieve not only the girl, but also the important little gadget. Juni is the one who eventually gets Alexandra to safety, but Gary ends up taking all the credit for recovering the device. Once this situation is resolved, the film’s major storyline gets underway.
After your standard flashy credits sequence, the film takes us back to the Cortez estate, where the family is getting ready for an OSS awards banquet. The kids and their parents, GREGORIO and INGRID, engage in the same sort of humorous banter that we saw in the first movie. At one point during a conversation between Juni and his father, we are introduced to a new gadget of his named R.A.L.P.H. that not only performs simple tasks, but is also his little friend.
Later at the awards banquet, some familiar faces make an appearance. Both Gary and Gerti are there, but more importantly, we are re-introduced to their father, DONNAGON, who was one of the captured/rescued OSS agents from the first movie. Also in attendance are the President, his daughter, and a score of members of the newly formed spy kids division. There are some funny sibling rivalry moments here. Juni gives his sister a hard time when she tries to dance with Gary, who she has a bit of a crush on, and who Juni hates with a passion. During all of this, Juni is suspiciously watching the waiters who are serving the parents and the other adults champagne.
The President then takes the podium and proceeds to commend Gary and Gerti Giggles for not only retrieving the Transmooker Device, but also for saving his daughter. Juni, of course, is steamed that they are getting all the credit. Donnagon then stands up and announces that Gary and Gerti have been awarded with a special mission...something called the UKATA ASSIGNMENT. The crowd then toasts the spy kids, and the adults all drink their champagne at once. Suddenly, they all fall asleep, victim to something placed in the drinks. The mysterious looking waiters reveal to be what the script calls TROGS, and they are after the Transmooker Device which the President had in his hand. The only ones left to fight them off are those who couldn't drink any champagne: all of the spy kids! A massive, elaborate fight ensues between the TROGS and the kids, while Gary and Juni fight amongst themselves over the Transmooker Device. When the TROGS get away with the device, Juni is the one that gets the blame and is eventually disavowed.
Determined to clear his name, Juni hacks into the OSS main computer system (with the help of his hacker sister) and sends Gary and Gerti on a bogus mission. They do this so that they can go on the UKATA ASSIGNMENT, which they learn is related to the stolen device. The mission takes them to the middle of the Bermuda Triangle where they find...A HIDDEN ISLAND. There they meet a strange scientist named ROMERO who lives inside a volcano, and who has created a variety of genetically cross-bred animals that inhabit the island. With the help of this scientist, the kids uncover a plot that could put the entire planet in danger.
What am I leaving out? Well, we have a double-cross or two; we see some more familiar faces like MACHETE and FELIX; and we are introduced to another generation of spies: SPY GRANDPARENTS! And wait till you see Robert Rodrguez's tribute to Ray Harryhausen (here's a hint: it involves skeletons). By the way, I heard Steve Buscemi is going to be in this movie. Could he be playing the crazy scientist Romero? Sure does sound like he would fit the bill. And will Mike Judge be reprising his role as Donnagon? It's kind of a major part in the script. I've only seen him with minor roles in flicks like his own "Office Space", and of course the first "Spy Kids", so I wonder if he can pull off such a big part. As I was reading the script, I assumed Donnagon was the George Clooney character, but I was wrong (he was Devlin in the first flick).
Overall, it was an entertaining read. Some of the humor was a bit childish, but... well, it IS a kids flick essentially. The ending has a bit of a surprise, but in general it's another happy conclusion to this potentially successful franchise (although I'm more looking forward to the next chapter in Rodriguez's other series: "Once Upon a Time in Mexico").
MacGuffin out.
