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Cars 2

Release Date 22 Jul 2011 11 Nov 2011

  • User rating
  • Currently 2/5 Stars.
  • Critic rating
  • Currently 3/5 Stars.

  67% of raters want to see this movie

Certificate: G

Genre: Animation

Star racecar Lightning McQueen and the incomparable tow truck Mater take their friendship to exciting new places in "Cars 2" when they compete in the first-ever World Grand Prix to determine the world's fastest car. But, the road to the championship is filled with plenty of potholes, detours and hilarious surprises when Mater gets caught up in an intriguing adventure of his own: international espionage. Torn between assisting Lightning McQueen in the high-profile race and towing the line in a top-secret spy mission, Mater's action-packed journey leads him on an explosive chase through the streets of Japan and Europe, trailed by his friends and watched by the whole world.

Cast:
Owen Wilson | Larry The Cable Guy | Michael Caine | Emily Mortimer | Bonnie Hunt | Tony Shalhoub | Cheech Marin | Jason Isaacs | Joe Mantegna | Peter Jacobson

Writers:

Producers:
Denise Ream

Directors:
John Lasseter

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  • Critic rating
  • Currently 3/5 Stars.

Movies.ie Critic Review

Pixar’s revved-up sequel sees Nascar pin-up Lightning McQueen (voiced by Wilson) being challenged to a globe-trotting World Grand Prix showdown by the arrogant Italian Formula 1 champ Francesco Bernoulli (Turturro, clearly channeling his sleazy, arrogant Jesus Quintana from The Big Lebowski).

And so it is that Lightning takes his Radiator Springs buddy, Mater (Larry The Cable Guy), with him to Tokyo, London and Monte Carlo. Only trouble is, country hick Mater soon proves an embarrassment to Lightning. When he’s not busy being The Truck Who Knew Too Little that is, the dopey tow-truck having gotten himself tied up in an international espionage caper alongside Finn McMissile (Caine) and his sidekick, Holley Shiftwell (Mortimer).

THE VERDICT: It’s hardly surprising that this is the first Pixar release to get a kicking from the critics, Cars 2 scoring a mere 35% on rottentomatoes.com. The 2006 original made the least of all the Pixar movies, scoring $461.9m at the box-office, but it did make the most of any single movie when it came to merchandising - $10b, according to the LA Times. So, coupled with the fact that the Cars movies are directed squarely at kids, the critics weren’t about to take another dose lying down. Truth be told, this is a better movie than that first Capra-esque outing, spoofing the spy genre with gusto. It’s Pixar’s Magical Mystery Tour, the one that doesn’t quite live up to the others. But it’s still Pixar.

Review by Paul Byrne 

  • Avg User rating
  • Currently 2/5 Stars.

User Reviews

    • Currently 4/5 Stars.

    phoebe

    Totally different from the first Cars movie. This is more of a James Bond spy movie with Mater as the main character. Some of the scenery is amazing, Pixar do this so well, and there is some great humour throughout.

    • Currently 2/5 Stars.

    moorele

    Nowhere near as good as first movie. Leaves a lot to be desired.

    • Currently 3/5 Stars.

    Jenfiction

    Cute kids film, I really enjoyed all the "car puns" and the animation is amazing. All the locations look spectacular.

    • Currently 2/5 Stars.

    mart

    Although it would be unfair to label Cars 2 as unwatchable, it is surprisingly tedious in parts and not as satisfying as one might expect.

    • Currently 2/5 Stars.

    darthrodney

    First off for the record I love the Pixar movies and I thought “Cars” was a wonderful addition to the Pixar stable. Sadly however “Cars 2” is a bit flat and feels more like a direct to DVD sequel than a cinema release. Firstly the movie shifts completely from Lighting McQueen centric to Mater being the centrepiece … so basically the character that was the comic relief in the original is now the star. Secondly the tone of the movie completely shifts also instead of the movie being set in one spot being centred around a race its now a bond-esque spy movie flick with a hint of racing. Sadly it reeks of clumsy merchandising being the driving force behind this sequel rather than a good honest story that Pixar do so well. Even the upgrade to the CGI and the 3D which are visually beautiful can’t save this movie … even the movies target audience got bored in the viewing I was at … groups of 5 -10 year old boys more intent on playing in their aisle than watching the screen I think is a sad but accurate review of the movie. As a comparison I recall seeing “Wall-E” and a little girl in the row in front of me stood transfixed at the screen leaning forward to be closer to the screen for the entire length of the movie. Definelty one of the weakest Pixar outings.

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