The new action-packed chapter from DreamWorks Animation’s acclaimed comedy-heist story, The Bad Guys, continues to follow the crackerjack crew of animal outlaws. The now-reformed Bad Guys are trying extremely hard to be good in The Bad Guys 2. Instead, they find themselves hijacked into a high-stakes, globe-trotting heist, masterminded by a new team of criminals they never saw coming: The Bad Girls. Without spoiling too much, pay attention to the McGuffin.
Sam Rockwell’s Mr. Wolf leads the returning cast from the first film, but three new characters join the fray. Danielle Brooks is the Bad Girls leader Kitty Kat, a dangerously clever snow leopard; Maria Baklova is Pigtail, a brilliant Bulgarian wild boar engineer; and Natasha Lyonne is Doom, a wry raven with a knack for deception.
Brooks brought a fierce and menacing villain with Kitty Kat, a contrast to Professor Rupert Marmalade IV from the first movie—who was more conniving than a force of nature. However, Marmalade’s return was both hilarious and disturbing. I never thought I would see a super buff hamster, but Marmalade’s new look reveal was like Smart Hulk’s introduction in Avengers: Endgame. The story used Marmalade like any espionage or heist movie series villains, such as Blofeld in No Time To Die or Loki in the second and third Thor movies.
Being the Good Guys now is tougher than ever, especially when no employers give world-renowned criminals a chance for new jobs. I had a soft spot for The Bad Guys 2’s story because screenwriters Yoni Brenner and Etan Cohen focused on the difficulties around ex-criminals trying to transition into a better life. The moral message of giving people the benefit of the doubt and second chances could not be accomplished in a better way than in this sequel movie. Overall, this is a sympathetic lesson to teach kids about these life difficulties.
“I had a soft spot for The Bad Guys 2’s story because screenwriters Yoni Brenner and Etan Cohen focused on the difficulties around ex-criminals trying to transition into a better life.”
The subplot between Mr. Wolf and Diane Foxington, aka The Governor, aka The Phantom Paw’s blossoming romance from The Bad Guys effectively progresses in The Bad Guys 2. I appreciate the realistic conflict between the two of them, recognizing the optics of a politician and ex-criminal being romantically involved. It is a very mature conversation that teaches children and tweens to balance work and life, and practice effective communication and understanding between potential dating partners.
For The Bad Guys 2’s face value story and twists, there were not many big reveals that felt clever. The story beats leading up to The Bad Girls setting up The Bad Guys could be seen a mile away since most of the first act is about the ex-heist crew struggling to adjust to the crime-free life. Also, The Bad Guys getting blackmailed to do one last job reminded me of almost every Fast & Furious movie, so it was not creatively revolutionary in any way. From an overarching Bad Guys story tree, the connections between the first movie and this one had some nice easter eggs and callbacks.
One of the big standouts of The Bad Guys 2 was its well-choreographed fights, primarily the fights between Diane and Kitty Kat. Yes, this is an animated feature, but sometimes animated action films do not invest in creative fights and pushing the medium to do what real-life actors could accomplish in reality. Diane and Kitty Kat are the series’ best fighters, and the fights show how each character expertly counterattacks, attacks, and blocks. Even though Kitty Kat has a muscular, stockier build compared to Diane’s slimmer, swift build, they both show off their strengths in the two fights. The camera work helps sell dynamic shots of their fights, too.
The Bad Guys 2 highlighted two instances with crowd animations: one involved a crowd that looked like a tidal wave, and the second contained inanimate objects moving through space. These two shots were the coolest I have seen from both The Bad Guys movies. The mass crowd chasing The Bad Guys in the second act was ginormous, heightening the tension of the chase scene.
“The Bad Guys 2 contained a bigger world, deeper messages/lessons, and the animation was pushed further in this sequel.”
The one-shot of The Bad Guys hopping onto the space rocket began the dynamic camera work, creating an awesome visual experience. In space, seeing the crowd simulations of the inanimate objects moving in different directions left me breathless. Whenever The Bad Guys 2 used these crowd sims, I felt claustrophobic. As an audience member, I felt what The Bad Guys were feeling when they were overwhelmed and feeling like everything was not going their way. Major props to Pierre Perifel, JP Sans, and the animation teams on these crowd sims.
An honourable animation mention goes out to character designer Taylor Krahenbuhl and whoever designed Kitty Kat. There is one scene where Kitty Kat is blacksmithing, and I appreciated the minor details. Kitty Kat bangs her hammer against the anvil or metal platform to find her rhythm when hammering the heated object out of the forge. This was a small detail because Kitty Kat casually talks to Mr. Wolf while working, but she naturally hammers like a pro blacksmith if you pay attention. Any other movie could have just had her hammering away.
To tie all the tension together, Daniel Pemberton returned to compose a thrilling score for The Bad Guys 2. Pemberton’s themes carried across from the first movie, and are reminiscent of David Holmes’ composing for Steven Soderbergh’s Ocean’s trilogy—fitting as this is also a heist series. It was cool to hear the Crimson Paw theme back every time Diane got up to her old ways. The use of the flute is very iconic to me now. Whenever Mr. Wolf revealed his plans and heist executions, they were edited to the music in a similar style to Soderbergh’s heist ensemble films, too.
The Bad Guys 2 contained a bigger world, deeper messages/lessons, and the animation was pushed further in this sequel. With every sequel movie, the stakes have to be raised, and the story has to work well within the first movie’s world. This film productively accomplishes these sequel expectations, and branches out The Bad Guys world with imaginative methods. By the end of the movie, audiences will be treated to a setup for a highly potential third film. Stay back for one post-credit scene and a fun, short second one after all the credits have rolled.
