AGW Entertainment reporter Lynn B. saw a new adventure film. Here are her thoughts on....

SPY KIDS 2: THE ISLAND OF LOST DREAMS

Miramax/Dimension films

According to the actors, the cast of Spy Kids 2 had a blast shooting for two weeks in Costa Rica where they played tag in the jungle, body surfed, played video games with director Robert Rodriguez and generally raised heck! Hey, when your chief nemesis is Mike Judge (the guy who created Bevis and Butthead and King of the Hill) you've gotta escape somehow!

When we last saw the super-spy Cortez kids, they had rescued their parents and joined the family business. Now, in Spy Kids 2, there is a whole new division of Junior Spies in the OSS organization and Carmen (Alexa Vega) and Juni (Daryl Sabara) must vie with another duo Gary and Gerti Giggles (Matt O'Leary and Emily Osment) for plumb assignments.
The rivals even swoop in and rescue the President's daughter before Carmen and Juni can pull off their own rescue. The Cortez kids make sure their rivals don't get the next assignment. In search of "the transmooker device" which can shut down all the electronics on the planet, the kids investigate a mysterious island where they discover a mad genetic scientist (Steve Buscemi) who has stocked the place with weird, hybrid animals. Gerti and Gary soon arrive in the hope of recovering the device for their own glory.

Since an electronic shield is produced by the transmooker, mom and pop Cortez lose track of their kids, worry and come to the rescue with Ingrid's parents (played by Ricardo Montalban and Holland Taylor). The two sets of spy kids have to work together briefly to survive the evil plans of the true mastermind of the "take over the world" scheme. The entire Cortez family has to cooperate to save the day.------------------

When Texas wunderkind Robert Rodriguez gave us the first Spy Kids, a money-making, charming, action-packed family film on a shoestring budget, Hollywood fell in love with the jack-of-all-trades. The director of previous, more adult actioners like El Mariachi, Desperado, From Dusk Till Dawn and The Faculty, Rodriguez, who is centered in his own strong home life, lays on the family unity messages in this sequel. It could be considered a gooey, sentimental theme in these tough times to focus on the strength of family cooperation but the director/writer/D.P./Production Designer/Editor/Visual Effects Supervisor/Sound designer/mixer/composer
is determined to share his own strong convictions including the idea that a rubber band and ingenuity can save the world better than the highest tech gadget. It's the most innocent of notions that intrigues this unique filmmaker. In his world, frightening animals just want the love of their creator and the extended family that kicks fanny together, triumphs.

Visually, Spy Kids 2 is a comic book with glaring, unrealistic bright colors and a plethora of holographic whirligigs, thing-a-ma-bobs and hybrid creatures that any kid would kill for. Rodriguez pays tribute to his childhood favorites with a skeleton battle straight from Jason and the Argonauts, far from real-looking monsters that could have leaped from the voyages of Sinbad and a copy of the gold statue from Raiders of the Lost Ark. But, considering the subject matter, the production design fits perfectly.

Story wise, it would be impossible to achieve the charm of the original when two "regular" kids discovered the exotic and dangerous secret lives of their parents. There is little intrigue is this sequel. It's an open rivalry between a whole junior high full of mini-spies. None-the-less, Rodriguez manages the same family warmth when he includes the retired but still feisty Cortez grandparents in the mix. Pro actress Holland Taylor proves she's up for anything and the elegant but ailing Ricardo Montalban is still a commanding but warm presence even from his "flying' wheelchair. Banderas proves he can still laugh at his Latino heartthrob status, the kids won't win any acting awards with this one but that's not the intention. Veterans of Spy Kids one, Alan Cumming, Danny Trejo and Tony Shalhoub are back briefly as Floop, Machete and Minion and this makes for warm and fuzzy continuity. Steve Buscemi, with his odd looks and demeanor is perfect as a befuddled scientist, a "'God" afraid of his own creations. Mike Judge, known more for his cartoon creations Bevis and Butthead, is threatening as baddie daddy Donnagon.

Check out this fun sequel. You'll learn that you can put down the cell phone, playstation and laptop for a second, hug your parents, pick up a rubber band and save the world!

Official website: www.spykids.com