The Angry Birds Movie 2

Directed by Thurop Van Orman and John Rice, The Angry Birds Movie 2 follows the series’ flightless birds and scheming pigs as they reluctantly team up after a new villain (Leslie Jones’ Zeta) arrives on the scene. Filmmakers Van Orman and Rice, armed with a script by Peter Ackerman, Eyal Podell, and Jonathon E. Stewart, deliver a distressingly ineffective sequel that grows less and less interesting (and more and more tiresome) as it unfolds, and there’s little doubt, ultimately, that the picture’s failure stems from its overly frenetic, geared-solely-towards-small-children sensibilities – with the arms-length atmosphere perpetuated by a narrative that rarely, if ever, slows down to develop the characters or just breathe (ie it’s all plot, this movie). And while Jason Sudeikis’ top-notch voice work remains a highlight, even if his character is given much less to do this time around, The Angry Birds Movie 2 progresses into an exhausting, interminable third act that contains little in the way of exciting or even interesting attributes and elements – which, when coupled with Jones’ woefully grating voice turn, confirms the film’s place as a perpetually lackluster followup that boasts little of the original’s charm and congeniality.

*1/2 out of ****