The film's predecessor, "A Dog's Mission" (hereinafter referred to as "Dog 1"), was released in 2017 and received more than 600 million box office in the mainland, which can be regarded as a very good result.
This sequel is obviously not as good as its predecessor.
So, what kind of movie is "A Dog's Mission 2"? Why does the box office score lag behind the previous one?
anthropomorphic dog
One of the difficulties in pet movies is how to express the emotions of these cute creatures. After all, they can't speak, and the audience can only understand what they are thinking through their behavior or interaction with humans.
The series "A Dog's Mission" has taken a different path from ordinary pet movies. The dog Bailey in the film is dubbed by a human voice.
This also determines the style of the series, Bailey the dog will be somewhat "closer" to humans than the pets in other films.
But in fact, making dogs too anthropomorphic is not a good thing, because pets are always pets, and their thoughts and emotions are not as complicated as human beings. If this is not handled properly, the whole movie will fall into an extremely routine. swirl.
"Dogs 1" handled this very well, but "Dogs 2" ended up falling into this quagmire.
mission
Mission is the theme that runs through the series "A Dog's Mission".
"Dog 1" and "Dog 2" take the opposite way of expressing this theme.
In "Dog 1", Bailey's "mission" is actually to reunite with the first owner, Ethan.
But throughout the film, this is deliberately downplayed.
Bailey's reincarnation after his first death was actually someone else's dog. He wasn't eating the owner's dog food while still "going around".
In the end, its reunion with Ethan was quite accidental. If Bailey's new owner had not abandoned it, it would never have met Ethan again.
But this kind of "mission" that is not deliberately emphasized is the biggest highlight of "dog 1". Bailey has been a dog of many people in reincarnation. The dog's Ethan, Ethan also became Bailey's master again.
"Dog 2" puts more emphasis on the theme. From the beginning of the film, Ethan gave Bailey a task: protect my granddaughter CJ.
Thus, Bailey's "mission" was set.
In order to complete this mission, Bailey is looking for CJ no matter how many times he reincarnates. Although this allows the audience to see Bailey's dedication to his mission, it also aggravates the routine of the story - no matter how Bailey reincarnates , to whose hands, the audience knows that it is always going to find CJ.
Trouble is, an overly explicit "sense of mission" taints the loyal quality that dogs have long been known for.
For example, Bailey's second reincarnation in "Dog 2" became the dog of Joe, the owner of a gas station convenience store. Joe loves Bailey very much and will give him anything delicious immediately.
But after Bailey accidentally met CJ, he directly ignored Joe and followed CJ, even if he ended up spending his life in Joe's house, he was unhappy.
Bailey is loyal to Ethan because Ethan is its owner, but in this reincarnation, Joe is its owner . While eating the ham that Joe gave it, he is thinking of other owners? If there is even a chance to leave Joe right away?
The theme of the movie is a mission, but it would be unsatisfactory to change even the most beloved qualities of the dog itself for that mission .
The previous work "Dog 1" has done a good job in this regard. Bailey has reincarnated twice. It still remembers Ethan, but it is loyal to the current owner. It can dedicate its life for the second owner. , it will also accompany the third master until his own death.
After all, no matter how "anthropomorphic" dogs are, they are also pets, and the most eye-catching thing about them is not that the lines "I must protect CJ" with a few human voices can be changed.
Protect CJ
In "Dog 2", because of Ethan's instructions, Bailey has to be both a father and a mother in several reincarnations, and has been "leading" CJ's life intentionally or unintentionally.
In fact, this is another way of expressing Bailey's "personification".
For example, the first generation of reincarnation did not hesitate to bite CJ when the punk Sean was pursuing him.
The third generation of reincarnation, because he felt that CJ's childhood sweetheart Trent was a good man, so he made all kinds of troubles with CJ's current male ticket.
It all looks like traditional parents worry about their children, "everything is arranged for you, just follow the script".
In this mode, the audience can feel the dog's good intentions. It has always been trying to protect CJ , and has always fulfilled its mission. To prevent CJ from encountering bad people, give her the best.
This is one of the highlights of this film.
But unfortunately, this bright spot is also accompanied by more obvious flaws.
Because of this "arranged" story framework, it is actually very easy to fall into a quagmire, that is, it will make most of the characters in the plot become facialized , completely become a tool for creating dramatic conflicts , and even lose a certain logic. .
In "Dog 1", Ethan finally reunites with Hannah, a female ticket from her school days, but Hannah had lost her husband at that time, and the children had grown up. Marrying Ethan actually made up for the regrets of both parties in their school days. After all, the reason for their separation in the first place was not a broken relationship.
But in "Dogs 2", CJ and Glenn's "emotional reunion line" did not have the natural feeling of Ethan and Hannah.
CJ's boyfriend, Barry, had a dog at home at first. After CJ brought Bailey back, he didn't object, but after Bailey's countless troubles, he scolded CJ angrily, and then the two broke up. .
Glent already has a girlfriend Lisa, and it seems that the two are very affectionate, but he let CJ stay at home, and when the three went out for a walk, he also walked with CJ in front, and let his girlfriend one People follow.
Then even Lisa, who was just complaining, left without hesitation after learning that Glenn had cancer.
After all, CJ and Glenn are not single. In order to make them continue their relationship, the plot can only use various means to make them back to one person.
Therefore, not only CJ's male ticket Barry and Glenn's female ticket Lisa have become typical "assist players", but even Glent's personality has collapsed because of this (living with childhood sweethearts when he has a girlfriend, then The meticulous care is real....)
And Bailey also acts as a driving tool in it. This overly purposeful plot routine makes the whole movie look a bit more forced .
On the whole, "A Dog's Mission 2" is still a passing pet movie, but it has many flaws, and it is indeed a step backward compared to the previous work.
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