'Planes: Fire & Rescue' is no Disney masterpiece, but it builds nicely on the original to set up a third movie.
It could be argued that Planes (2013) was one of the worst Disney movies of recent times. Sure, it was great for say, toddler, but even the easiest pleased kids around saw through its goofiness. Now, the studio appears to have learned from its mistakes and the expected sequel Planes: Fire & Rescue appears to have hit the mark.
Planes: Fire & Rescue builds on the original
We re-join air racer Dusty Crophopper (Dane Cook) who learns that his engine is damaged, putting his career in jeopardy. He is forced to change things up and launches into the world of wildfire air attack, joining forces with veteran fire and rescue helicopter Blade Ranger (Ed Harris).
"Planes: Fire & Rescue is a good improvement over Planes, which Disney released last year. The story is stronger, there are some wonderful additions to the voice talent and the 3D cinematography is well-utilized," said Bill Zwecker of the Chicago Sun-Times.
"For the most part, Planes: Fire & Rescue is more about chuckles than big guffaws, coupled with thrilling 3-D flight and firefighting action scenes and lessons about friendship, respect and loyalty," wrote Linda Barnard of the Toronto Star.
Planes: Fire & Rescue could top the box-office this weekend
!What this Disney feature lacks in the title department it makes up for with fluid visuals and fast-moving action of the, yes, firefighting variety," said Kenneth Turan of the Los Angeles Times.
"In 3-D, the firefighting scenes are visually striking - with plumes of smoke and chemical dust - though the backgrounds, like other aspects of the film, lack dimension," wrote Ben Kenigsberg, cautiously in the New York Times.
Planes: Fire & Rescue has a reasonable chance of topping the box-office this weekend, with only the poorly reviewed Sex Tape and horror Purge: Anarchy for competition. It will almost certainly recoup its modest $50 million budget within the next couple of weeks, with a third movie likely to be confirmed in the near future.
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