For the last couple of posts, Rich Reviews and associates have covered films that seem hauntingly apropos in the current climate of social distancing and isolation. Sometimes, when things are grim, films like “Oldboy” and “The Lighthouse” are required viewing material, not only because of their obvious cinematic achievements, but also for the sake of reminding their audiences that things can always get worse. Sometimes, a viewer needs dark reflections of reality in order to put things into perspective, since seeing isolation taken to its devastating extreme in film can truly enrich their pandemic-era media diets.
Sometimes, though, a viewer just needs to watch something simple and colorful with the younger members of their family.
Such was the void that the first “Trolls” film from DreamWorks filled back in 2016, and this is especially true of its sequel. Having seen both films, I can say that the “Trolls” films are best described as beautifully animated, chuckle-worthy, cinematic candy. Neither film is the type I’d go out of my way to watch again, but the first film especially is watchable, fun, and populated by amusing characters, so when I saw trailers for the sequel, in which other troll species based on multiple genres of music, I was mildly interested, if nothing else. The trailers alone showed how colorful and varied the animation and soundtrack was going to be, and with the addition of the Rock Trolls as despotic villains, I saw the potential for commentary on how music listeners are limiting themselves by swearing to just one genre. In other words, I expected to be passively entertained at the very least, and upon watching it with my brother and niece from the comfort of my home, I can happily say that “Trolls World Tour” succeeded in this… for the most part.
Set not too long after the first movie, “Trolls World Tour” once again follows the soon-to-be queen of the trolls, Poppy (Anna Kendrick), celebrating her successful start as the new monarch with her good friend, Branch (Justin Timberlake). Upon receiving a foreboding invitation from the Rock Troll queen Barb (Rachel Bloom), however, our two heroes learn of the divided troll lands, each separated by their own defining genres of music (Pop, Classical, Rock, Techno, Country and Funk) since times long past. When it becomes clear that Queen Barb seeks to steal the six harp strings from the other trolls and leave rock as the last remaining sound of the trolls, Poppy and Branch set out with their closest allies to warn the other tribes of the Rock armies, stop Queen Barb from taking over, and hopefully reunite the six main tribes after years of separation by their own differences. With so much on Poppy’s shoulders and a mix of unspoken love and doubt stewing in Branch’s heart, the two have a harrowing journey ahead of them.
Before giving the typical critique of this film, I want to first clarify that I have no deep-rooted resentment for animated films that simply seek to entertain. While I’ll gladly go out of my way to remind my readers that animation is a much more flexible medium than Hollywood and general audiences give it credit for, I’m okay with a major animated film being somewhat toothless if there’s at least something to enjoy. “Trolls World Tour” may be far from free of flaws, but I’d be lying if I said there wasn’t a lot of things to be amused by. Starting out with the obvious points, the animation and designs for the trolls and their respective musical tribes are poppy, cute, colorful, and varied. I’m especially impressed by how easy it is to identify a troll by their musical genre tribe, since a troll from each faction has a distinct unifying trait among them that can be spotted in spite of how distinct the individual trolls tend to be. The animation as a whole is also vibrant and energetic, and as with the musical numbers from the first movie, the choreography and direction is well-rendered and fun to look at. Something I saw as a highlight to this film’s animation, however, was how its comic timing actively enhances the movie’s sense of humor. The jokes in “Trolls World Tour” are very hit-or-miss, but the hits (specifically, those present in the snappy dialogue) are decently chuckle-worthy, and even the flatter jokes are somewhat saved by the expressiveness and energy of the characters’ movements. The characters are also still fairly likeable in spite of suffering from a bad case of diminishing returns, and it makes sense that the second in a line of animated jukebox musicals would have a message centering on the importance of having variety in one’s musical tastes. Musically, I’m a bit of a rock snob, but I appreciate the cheeky (albeit unsubtle) sub-textual message of not being bound to the “better” genre and keeping your horizons broad.
Unfortunately, that thematic beat, those wonderful visual gimmicks and those characters are only a small part of the movie as a whole, and the overall narrative to which these achievements are in service is what I’d call the biggest failing of “Trolls World Tour”. When the movie sticks to being a light, fun jukebox musical, it remains enjoyable, but when it shifts back into being a story of Poppy’s struggle to be a good queen and Branch’s inability to confess his love to her, it becomes an eye-rolling experience. Of course, every good film needs some conflict, but the interpersonal conflicts that arise in this particular movie are the kind of forced relationship strains that result from a complete lack of communication between our protagonists. There were numerous points throughout the movie that the two main characters could address both of these plot points, but since none of those points occur during the third act, their own issues are not addressed. I know this is far from a unique problem to “Trolls World Tour” (just see my review of “Frozen II” for proof positive of this), but the more I see it in family animated films in particular, the more it strikes me as hackneyed, and the fact this sort of narrative formula still exists in a year that includes the more emotionally mature “Onward” strikes me as a little sad. One could say I’m overthinking a DreamWorks movie, but that’s only because I know they’re capable of more than filling out the typical check-boxes, and I think it’s more intellectually honest to say that the writers of such films are under-thinking their stories.
All in all, “Trolls World Tour” is, as I said before, visual candy. It’s colorful, sweet at heart, and pretty to look at and listen to, but with other films available for streaming at a lower price than what we viewed it for, I’m not sure how enthusiastic my recommendation would be.
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