Son of the Mask
By Nell Minow,
Common Sense Media Reviewer
Common Sense Media Reviewers
Dumb, loud sequel has sex, comic violence.
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Son of the Mask
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Based on 5 parent reviews
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Horrible! not for 12 or under!
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What's the Story?
In this sequel, would-be animator Tim (Jamie Kennedy) lives with his wife Tonya (Traylor Howard) in a cartoony-looking little house. She wants a baby, but he's not ready. On his way to the office Halloween party, Tim finds the magic mask from the first film and decides to wear it, unaware it will unleash his hidden desires and remove all his inhibitions. Tim impresses the partygoers with his wild behavior -- everyone thinks he's testing out a new cartoon character. Back home, he's now willing to help his wife conceive. Nine months later, the baby is born with some of the mask's powers because Tim had the mask on when the baby was conceived. This comes to the attention of Loki (Alan Cummings), the Norse god of mischief and the mask's original owner. His father, Odin, orders him to get it back, so Loki begins checking out every baby born on Tim's baby's birthday. Tim is also hunting for the mask. He's unaware of his baby's unusual abilities; he needs the mask back to finish creating a new cartoon character. Tonya leaves town on a business trip, and Tim's on full-time daddy duty, just as the baby's transformational powers really start to take over and Loki finds what he was looking for. The movie then gets turned over to the special effects department for some cartoonish fun.
Is It Any Good?
SON OF THE MASK is both watered down and jazzed up, like a kid who's had too much sugar. This semi-sequel (all new characters except for Ben Stein's cameo) is directed at a younger audience, and despite some questionable material, it's more mild than wild. There's not much by way of imagination and few of the effects qualify as "special." Jamie may be many notches down the star pole from Jim Carrey (star of the original film), but he's a likable and funny guy. For some reason, though, this film fails to make the best use of the talents he does have, making him the straight man.
Kids will enjoy the silly humor, but parents may question the appropriateness of some of the material in the movie, especially for younger children. This movie is dumb and loud, which some kids will confuse with entertaining, but others will just find it overwhelming. It's a shame not to make better use of Kennedy's talents; he's mostly limited to reaction shots. It's a bigger shame to waste this technology and the goodwill left over from the first film on a dull story with forgettable characters.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about sequels. Why are sequels made? Was this one necessary? Why or why not?
Why do you think sequels are usually much worse than the original movie?
How does the movie attempt to use violence for the sake of comedy?
Movie Details
- In theaters: February 18, 2005
- On DVD or streaming: May 17, 2005
- Cast: Alan Cumming, Jamie Kennedy, Kal Penn
- Director: Lawrence Guterman
- Inclusion Information: Bisexual actors
- Studio: New Line
- Genre: Comedy
- Topics: Magic and Fantasy
- Run time: 86 minutes
- MPAA rating: PG
- MPAA explanation: action, crude and suggestive humor, and language
- Last updated: March 1, 2023
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