A deer and bear walk out of the woods…
Elliot and Boog are legends in the woods. So much so that Elliot wants to keep his legendary status going by marrying Giselle, his love from the first movie. But, when a wedding guest named Mr. Weenie (the wiener dog from the first film) gets dognapped, Elliot postpones his wedding to save his fido friend. With the help from his friend Boog and other animals in the woods, they aim to get their favorite German dog back in the woods. Regretfully, they’ll have to go up against domesticated dogs that are ready to fight against Mr. Weenie’s freedom.
There’s nothing wrong with the story, in general. My big problem with this movie isn’t about the story, which will probably make your kids laugh over and over again. The problem I have with this film is that the animation dropped considerably from the first one. Honestly, if you’re going to plan for Blu-ray, you have to maintain the same animation level as the first. There’s no excuse for this. The animals are a bit blocky (see the skunks for detail), the fur on the animals is the same way. There’s no flow to it, even Elliot suffers from this polygon issue. Would it honestly have cost much more to smooth this stuff out or use the same animation from the first film? No way it could have.
Aside from this, again, the story is good. It’s humorous and Crispin Glover gives a very strong performance as a poodle (honestly, did you really expect to hear that ever?). He’s vicious demanding and a bit over-the-edge. Yes, I’m just talking about Glover’s performance as the poodle (sheesh). Everyone seemed to give their all. Amazingly, Joel McHale came through as Elliot; he replaced Ashton Kutcher which alleviated some of the spaz of the character. Mike Epps replaced Martin Lawrence as Boog, which kept the character as even as it could be. Amazingly, Boog is cute and likable in the film, not so much of a bully. Overall, the actors did their jobs and did them well.
Boog on Blu-ray
The video is good, though it’s brought down by the shoddy animation. I am having a difficult time letting this go, as it should have been seamless. Anyway, the audio was really good and worked with the physical-animated comedy that the animals brought to the screen.
As for the features, here’s what you get:
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Going WILD! With the Voice Cast of Open Season 2
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How to Draw Your Favorite Characters: Boog, Elliot & Fifi
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“Wacky Weenie Arcade”, featuring five exciting, carnival-style games for kids to enjoy
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Elliot’s “Go Fetch!” – Frisbee Catch Game
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Track That Treat – Magic Shell Game
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Fix that ‘Do – Doggie Glam-Up Activity
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Boog’s Waterslide Maze Craze – Navigate Your Way Through A Wild Waterslide
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Doggie Strength Test – Ring Teat Bell!
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Deleted Scenes
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Forever AND Ever?
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Reilly’s Family Tree
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Bald Spot
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Going WILD! With the Voice Cast of Open Season 2
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How to Draw Your Favorite Characters: Boog, Elliot & Fifi
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Deleted Scenes
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Forever AND Ever?
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Reilly’s Family Tree
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Bald Spot
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BD Exclusive Game – Save Mr. Weenie! – In this zany frogger-style game, Boog and Elliot must cross busy streets avoiding hunters, speeding traffic, and innocent pedestrians.
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BD Live Enabled
These are some good features. Why? Well, these are entertaining for the kids, especially the Save Mr. Weenie! game. I think the features could possibly fair better than the film itself, but overall it’s good for kids on both sides of the coin.