“Beverly Hills Chihuahua 2”
Directed by: Alex Hamm
Starring: George Lopez, Odette Yustman, Miguel Ferrer, Ernie Hudson, and Marcus Coloma
Studio: Walt Disney
Rated G – All Ages Admitted
Every time I review a Disney film I try to remind myself that it wasn’t necessarily made for me. I’m a 38-year old man. I highly doubt that my age bracket was even considered when the producers and studio got together to discuss a sequel to “Beverly Hills Chihuahua.” What they DID have in mind was little girls first, owners of Chihuahuas second, and little boys last. Once again, they hit their mark with “Beverly Hills Chihuahua 2.”
“Beverly Hills Chihuahua 2” tells the story of “puppy mayhem turn(ing) the lives of newlywed Chihuahua parents Papi and Chloe upside down when their rambunctious, mischievous puppies present one challenge after another. But when their human owners end up in trouble, the tiny pups will stop at nothing to save them – because in good times and hard times, the family always sticks together. So Papi, Chloe and the puppies embark on a heroic adventure, proving once again that big heroes come in small packages.”
I’ve got to say that I’m impressed with any director that can work with animals that probably cause him to have to re-shoot scenes close to over 20 times for every shot. That especially comes to light when you watch the bloopers they put in the special features. This time around the helm of the film was taken up by Alex Hamm, who has experience directing straight-to-DVD movies like “Inspector Gadget 2” and “Dr. Doolittle: Million Dollar Mutts.” He is also to blame for the Carrot Top movie “Chairman of the Board” and worked on TV movies like “Snow,” “My Date with the President’s Daughter,” and the series “The Haunting Hour.” Working with animals and humans to get good performances out of them like he did with “Beverly Hills Chihuahua 2” ALMOST gets him off the hook for the Carrot Top movie.
As it is with most straight-to-DVD sequels, we have some characters that have been replaced by other actors both voicewise and in person. Surprisingly, George Lopez is back in the role of Papi. Odette Yustman (“Cloverfield,” “You Again,” “The Unborn”) has replaced Drew Barrymore as the voice of Chloe. Susan Blakely (“Southland,” “Two and a Half Men”) takes over the role of Aunt Viv from Jamie Lee Curtis. Then, Erin Cahill (“General Hospital,” “Boogeyman 3”) takes the role of Rachel over from Piper Perabo.
The CGI team for “Beverly Hills Chihuahua 2” needs to be given props as well. It really looks like the dogs are talking in this thing. I applaud them for such a great job. This really is some good digital work.
Disney knows what they’re doing with these straight-to-DVD movies. They take way less of a budget to make and promote if the studio plays their cards right. I can only imagine there is a bigger margin of profit in the long or short run. “Beverly Hills Chihuahua 2” is a perfect example of this successful method. You really can’t tell a difference in quality between the original and this sequel.
I was sent the 2-Disc Combo Pack of “Beverly Hills Chihuahua 2.” It features the Blu-ray DVD Feature Film with Disney Enhanced High Definition Picture and Sound + Bonus material on the first disc. The special features include the “Beverly Hills Chihuahua” Challenge in which Papi guides you through an interactive game show that’s doggone fun for the whole family; Blooper Faux Paws which consist of the dogs running or moving in the wrong direction and drooling while on camera; and the “This is My Paradise” music video by Disney star Bridget Mendler (“Good Luck Charlie,” “Wizards of Waverly Place”) that pretty much sounds and looks like every new Disney theme we’ve heard or seen lately.
The second disc has the regular format DVD Feature Film + Bonus. The special features are the same on here minus the “Beverly Hills Chihuahua” Challenge game.
The technical specifications for the Blu-ray include 1080p High Definition; 1.78:1 Aspect ratio; English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, and French and Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital Audio; and English SDH, French, and Spanish Subtitles.
The technical specifications for the regular DVD format includes Widescreen 1.78:1 Aspect ratio – Enhanced for 16×9 Televisions; English, French, and Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital Audio; and English SDH, French, and Spanish Subtitles.
“Beverly Hills Chihuahua 2” comes in four different formats. There’s the “Beverly Hills Chihuahua 2” Regular Format DVD Single-Disc Format, the “Beverly Hills Chihuahua 2” Regular Format DVD Single-Disc Format in Spanish, the “Beverly Hills Chihuahua 2” Two-Disc Blu-ray / DVD Combo, and the “Beverly Hills Chihuahua 2” Two-Disc Blu-ray / DVD Combo in Spanish.
You can get the “Beverly Hills Chihuahua 2” Regular Format DVD Single-Disc Format right here.
You can get the “Beverly Hills Chihuahua 2” Regular Format DVD Single-Disc Format in Spanish right here.
You can get the “Beverly Hills Chihuahua 2” Two-Disc Blu-ray / DVD Combo right here.
You can get the “Beverly Hills Chihuahua 2” Two-Disc Blu-ray / DVD Combo in Spanish right here.
