Journey 2: The Mysterious Island

On the short list of movies that actually deserve sequels, I don't think anyone had 2008's gimmicky Journey to the Center of the Earth on their list. That was the movie that officially kicked off the 3D boom Hollywood is currently going through, and featured Brendan Fraser and Josh Hutcherson as adventurers who found out that the classic Jules Verne story was real. Journey 2: The Mysterious Island takes its inspiration from another Verne tale, but only Hutcherson returns. Fraser, for reasons unknown, sat this one out, and there is no mention in the movie of what happened to his character. (Perhaps Fraser is holding out for Monkeybone 2?)

Instead of Fraser, we get Dwayne Johnson as the adult lead. He plays Hank, the new stepfather of teen hero Sean (Hutcherson). Sean has grown up to be quite the rebellious kid, riding motorcycles, and breaking into satellite buildings in the middle of the night. Turns out all Sean wanted to do was to boost the power on a radio signal he had received, which he thinks is a message sent to him from his grandfather, Alexander, who disappeared years ago while searching for the Mysterious Island mentioned in Verne's novel. Hank and Sean unlock the coded message in a matter of seconds, which brought back memories of the National Treasure movies, where Nicolas Cage's character can crack centuries-old riddles and mysteries seemingly just by glancing at them for less than a minute. As Sean guessed, the message reveals that grandpa is alive, and has found the fabled island. This is some island Grandpa Alexander has found, as not only was it the inspiration for Verne's Mysterious Island story, but also 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (also by Verne), Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson, and Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift.

So, all these authors were actually writing about the same fabled island that they were somehow able to discover, and inspired their grand adventure stories. Hank and Sean track the location of the island as being just off of the island of Palau, where they hitch a ride on a ramshackle helicopter piloted by comic relief character, Gabato (Luis Guzman), and his teen daughter, Kailani (Vanessa Hudgens). They fly out to sea in search of the island, only to find themselves trapped in a terrible cyclone storm. Turns out that cyclone is the only way to reach the Mysterious Island, and so after a bumpy crash landing, they find themselves washed ashore on the legendary island where elephants are about the size of a chihuahua, birds and bees are the size of a city bus, giant lizards guard their eggs (which our heroes initially mistake for giant rocks) fiercely, and even the lost city of Atlantis is discovered there. And of course, they find Grandpa Alexander (Michael Caine), who is living comfortably in a massive tree hut he made from the wrecked boat he sailed to the island on, and even has a radio made out of assorted junk.

It's probably fitting that I saw Journey 2 on a Saturday afternoon, as the movie reminded me greatly of those cheesy 1970s Saturday morning adventure shows, like Land of the Lost or Danger Island. I also have to give the filmmakers (and the actors) credit for treating this material seriously, and without a hint of irony. It can't be easy to take a plot seriously when it involves the island is sinking, so our heroes have to track down the legendary submarine the Nautilus (yes, the one that Captain Nemo made famous) if they want to escape. And when they find the Nautilus, it turns out the engine is dead, so they have to lure a giant electric eel who just happens to be swimming nearby over to the ship, and use its jolt to jump start the ship's engine. I admired the silliness some of the time, but it also gets to be a bit much, such as in a scene that goes on way too long, where Sean, Hank, and the others have to ride on the backs of giant bees, and dodge giant hungry birds that are chasing them. And since this is a kid's movie with giant birds, it's perhaps inevitable that the comic relief character ends the scene being covered in white bird poop.

As for the cast, Dwayne Johnson displays his usual likability, and even scores a couple good laughs, such as when he sings "What a Wonderful World" with altered lyrics to match the experiences they've gone through so far. Michael Caine, as the adventurous grandfather who kicks start the story, seems to be channeling Sean Connery in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade just a little, which I guess fits for this kind of movie. Luis Guzman cracks a lot of one-liners that had the kids roaring and the adults groaning, while Vanessa Hudgens as his daughter seems to oddly see her role in a kid's movie as a sex object, considering she keeps on wearing low cut shits that emphasize her breasts. The only actor who seems kind of bored is Josh Hutcherson, which is strange, considering he's the only one from the original who came back. Maybe he's hoping to hit it big in The Hunger Games next month, so he doesn't have to sign on for the next sequel that this movie's ending sets up.

Journey 2 didn't entirely win me over, but then, this movie is not for me. It's for the 11 and under crowd, who I'm sure will have an easier time handling the many ridiculous curves that the plot throws their way. I kind of admired it in a silly sort of way, but not enough to fully recommend. Still, I have a feeling that if I was the right age, you would be reading a much more enthusiastic review right about now.

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