Critter Country 2 is a 2018 American computer-animated family film produced by Walt Disney Wonder Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures. It is the sequel to 2017's Critter Country, making it the second film in the Critter Country film series and the studio's first film since Disney In The House: Introduction to be followed by a sequel. It was directed by Tim Hill from a screenplay by him, Gary Krisel, Gary Marsh, Jonathan Aibel and Glenn Berger. In the film's ensemble voice cast, James Corden, Jason Segel, Oona Laurence, Russi Taylor, Kristoff St. John, Andy Dick, Kristen Li, Alan F. Horn, William J. Caparella, and Dee Bradley Baker reprise their roles from the first film. David Ogden Stiers, who voiced Park Parrot in the first film, died on March 3, 2019, so his role has passed on to Tim Curry. The returning cast is joined by Liu Yifei, M. Night Shyamalan, Fergie, William H. Macy, Kenneth Branagh, and Jonah Hill, who voice the new characters introduced. In the film, when an eagle plans to get rid of all critters, Lemy, Burrows, and their friends venture off to defeat him, and meet new friends along the way. Hans Zimmer composed the film's music.
| Critter Country | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Tim Hill |
| Produced by | Gary Marsh Gary Krisel |
| Screenplay by | Tim Hill Gary Marsh Gary Krisel Jonathan Aibel Glenn Berger |
| Story by | Elliot M. Bour Saul Andrew Blinkoff Gary Marsh Gary Krisel Bob Iger Derek Stephen Prince |
| Starring | James Corden Jason Segel Oona Laurence Russi Taylor Kristoff St. John Andy Dick Tim Curry Liu Yifei M. Night Shyamalan Fergie William H. Macy Kenneth Branagh Jonah Hill |
| Music by | Hans Zimmer |
| Cinematography | Jerrica Cleland Newton Thomas Sigel |
| Edited by | Margaret Hou |
| Production company | Walt Disney Pictures Walt Disney Wonder Studios |
| Distributed by | Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures |
| Release date | May 11, 2018 |
| Running time | 87 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $77 million |
| Box office | $205 million |
Before the first film was released, plans for a sequel to Critter Country were confirmed in December 2016. Hill handled directing duties, while he, Marsh, Krisel, Aibel, and Berger received screenplay credit. While the first film was shot in the 1.85:1 aspect ratio, the sequel was shot in the 2.39:1 aspect ratio. Most of the main cast returned, with new members being added in November 2017.
Critter Country 2 was released theatrically on May 11, 2018 in the United States, and grossed $205 million worldwide against its $77 million budget. Like its predecessor, Critter Country 2 received critical acclaim for its humor, animation, and performances. It was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature.
Plot
Four months after the events of the first film, Lemy the Lemur and Burrows the Meerkat prepare for Lemy and Batty Bat's date the next week. An eagle named Feet plots to destroy the critter population and repopulate it with his many chicks. A magical flying pony named Princess Lalaloopsy returns a crane egg to its mother, but is banished from the Pink Kingdom for causing damage. Lemy's pink and white zebra friend DJ Can and his buddy Tim the yellow cricket is also helping with the date. Lalaloopsy arrives in Critter Country.
Batty is suspicious of Lalaloopsy, but when she explains what happened, Lemy, Burrows, Batty, DJ Can, Tim, Hissy Snake, Park Parrot, Bext Beaver, Chippy Chipmunk, and the Chicks follow her to the trail towards Feet's cave to defeat him. Feet's companion, Beak the Hummingbird, chases them, but they get away. When they cross the river at night on board an automatic boat, Feet's jazz curse, CHATZ, hypnotizes them with smooth jazz, but Park kicks him into the river, breaking the spell.
When they arrive at the Pink Kingdom, they come across a red koala named FurNick. Lemy asks him to tell them where the river is, but he warns them that following the river is too risky, but they insure him that they are not afraid of danger. When Feet arrives, he kidnaps FurNick, and sends the critters out in bubbles. Lemy and Batty have a heated argument. Insisting that he can't be a good king if he does not listen to others, Batty walks away, abandoning Lemy.
They soon discover the path is blocked by a dam with a shredder. Lalaloopsy destroys the shredder, clearing the path. They whirl down the flowing water, and they make it to Feet's cave. Two rats, Twit and Twat, captures Batty and takes her captive, but she convinces CHATZ, Twit, and Twat to stop working for Feet and join Lemy's team. Feet has Beak injure Lemy, but Lemy challenges her into a fight. In desperation to kill all critters, Feet uses crocodile choppers, but Lemy armies the group against him. Lemy destroys the choppers, and the critters defeat Feet and Beak and freeze a giant wave, saving Critter Country. FurNick welcomes Lalaloopsy back into the Pink Kingdom. The group departs back home, and Lemy and Batty reconcile. The critters dance to DJ Can's pop music. With Critter Country safe, Lemy's role as king continues.
Cast
- James Corden as Lemy, a ring-tailed lemur and the king of Critter Country.
- Jason Segel as Burrows, a meerkat and Lemy's best friend.
- Oona Laurence as Batty, a fruit bat and Lemy's love interest.
- Russi Taylor as Chipper, a chipmunk who is good friends with Batty.
- Kristoff St. John as Bext, a nervous beaver.
- Andy Dick as Hissy, a stretchy, long, flexible blue snake.
- Tim Curry as Park, a confident-yet-grumpy great green parrot. He was previously voiced by David Ogden Stiers in the first film.
- Liu Yifei as Princess Lalaloopsy, a flying pony and the Princess of Pink Kingdom who was banished for accidentally doing damage.
- M. Night Shyamalan as DJ Cap, a zebra with pink stripes who likes pop music.
- Fergie as Beak, a hummingbird who is Longtooth's companion and a martial arts expert.
- William H. Macy as Feet, a villainous eagle who wants to remove the critters to make room for his huge load of tiger offspring.
- Kenneth Branagh as FurNick, a red koala and the ruler of the Pink Kingdom. Yoson An was offered the role, but due to his Chinese accent, he declined.
- Jonah Hill as Tim, a yellow bug and DJ Cap's best friend.
- Derek Stephen Prince as CHATZ, a master at smooth jazz who works for Longtooth.
- Gary Marsh and Gary Krisel as Tat and Twit, two rat brothers who reside in the Pink Kingdom.
- Kristen Li as Sticker, the leader of the Chicks.
- Alan F. Horn as Wow, one of the Chicks and Sticker's right hand.
- William J. Caparella as Ivite, an eager, lowly member of the Chicks.
- Dee Bradley Baker as Igo, the silent member of the Chicks who can only communicate through squealing.
Box office
Critter Country 2 opened on May 11, 2018, and grossed $60 million in its opening weekend. It grossed $101 million in the United States and Canada, and $104 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $205 million worldwide. Produced on a $77 million budget, it was a box-office success, like its predecessor.
Critical response
It was also met with universal acclaim, with a 98% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 133 reviews, a higher score than the original, which was scored 97%. The consensus reads, "Critter Country 2 is a sequel that arguably ranks as high as its predecessor, with the same funny humor, impressive animation, and an all-star voice cast". Metacritic calculated a score of 92 out of 100 based on 26 critics, indicating "universal acclaim", also a higher score than the original. Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film a grade of "A-" on an A+ to F scale.
Critics found it to be heartwarming. Caroline Westbrook of Empire praised the performance of M. Night Shyamalan as DJ Can the Pink Zebra, saying, "Filmmaker M. Night Shyamalan has a nice time of his life". Peter Rainer of The Christian Science Monitor wrote, "Like the first Critter Country, the second one has loads of the charm the first had: The good humor, the eye-popping-as-ever animation, and the hilarious antics of Lemy and Burrows. If the kiddos loved the first film, then they will love the sequel". Richard Roeper of Chicago Sun Times gave the film "Two Thumbs Up". A.O. Scott of The New York Times gave the film a positive review, saying, "More than good enough to live up to the original, Critter Country 2 is one of history's greatest sequels".