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Stuart Little 2

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Stuart Little 2
A mouse on a skateboard
Theatrical release poster
Directed byRob Minkoff
Screenplay byBruce Joel Rubin
Story by
Based onStuart Little
byE. B. White
Produced by
Starring
CinematographySteven Poster
Edited byPriscilla Nedd-Friendly
Music byAlan Silvestri
Production
companies
Distributed bySony Pictures Releasing[1]
Release dates
  • July 14, 2002(2002-07-14)(Westwood)
  • July 19, 2002(2002-07-19)(North America and United Kingdom)
Running time
76 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$120 million[3]
Box office$170 million[3]

Stuart Little 2is a 2002 American live-action/animated comedy film directed byRob Minkoffand starringGeena Davis,Hugh Laurie,andJonathan Lipnicki,and the voices ofMichael J. Foxas Stuart Little andNathan Laneas Snowbell the Cat. Although a sequel to the 1999 filmStuart Little,the plot bears more resemblance to theoriginal novelbyE.B. White,in which Stuart and Snowbell meet acanarynamed Margalo (voiced byMelanie Griffith).

Stuart Little 2premiered inWestwoodon July 14, 2002, and was released in theaters for the rest of North America and United Kingdom on July 19 byColumbia Pictures,and grossed $170 million against a $120 million budget, with it also receiving positive critical reviews.[3]It was followed by a third film, adirect-to-videosequel titledStuart Little 3: Call of the Wildin 2005.

Plot[edit]

Set three years after hisadoption by the Littles,Stuart Little has settled into family life with his parents, older brother George, and baby sister Martha, who has yet to say her first words. Stuart is becoming tired of his adoptive mother Eleanor's overprotectiveness due to his small size, and is finding himself lonely when George would rather play with his own friend, Will. When playing by himself, Stuart accidentally wrecks George's toy plane, prompting George to furiously throw it into a trash can. Stuart's adoptive father Frederick tells him there is a 'silver lining' to every bad situation, and encourages him to find a new friend of his own.

When driving home from school in his roadster, Stuart meets Margalo, a canary who falls into his car. Margalo states she has injured her wing being chased by a predatory Falcon, and Stuart takes her home to recover. Unbeknownst to the Littles, Margalo is in fact physically healthy, and is working with Falcon to steal precious items from households. However, she soon bonds with the Littles, and feels immense guilt over what she is planning to do; Falcon warns her that if she does not complete their plan, he will kill Stuart.

Margalo steals Eleanor's ring, prompting Stuart to venture down the Littles' kitchen drain in an unfruitful attempt to find it again. He soon finds himself in trouble, but Margalo rescues him; realizing the danger she is putting him in, she leaves the next morning. Stuart becomes convinced Falcon has kidnapped her, and sets off to find her with the family cat Snowbell, convincing George to conduct a series of elaborate (and extremely unconvincing) lies to Eleanor in order to cover for him.

Stuart and Snowbell seek out street-cat Monty, who tells them that Falcon lives at the top of the Pishkin Building, and warns that he is an extremely dangerous foe. Stuart uses a balloon to fly to the summit of the Pishkin Building, but is taken aback when Margalo reveals her alliance with Falcon. Falcon traps Margalo in a paint can, and attempts to kill Stuart by dropping him from the sky; Stuart instead lands in a garbage truck and is taken to a garbage barge out at sea. Initially devastated at the series of events, Stuart soon finds his silver lining by rediscovering and subsequently repairing George's broken toy plane, which he uses to fly back to land. Meanwhile, George, after being reprimanded by his parents for his deception and interrogated on Stuart's true whereabouts, confesses where Stuart is to them, prompting them to head out and look for him.

In the meantime, Snowbell has also ventured up the Pishkin Building, and frees Margalo from the paint can, only to become trapped in it himself. Margalo breaks free from Falcon's control, and flies away with Eleanor's ring, prompting Falcon to give chase. Stuart arrives in his toy plane, and a furious chase occurs through New York, with the Littles following from behind. Stuart ultimately wins the battle by using the ring to blind Falcon's vision, before jumping from the plane and allowing it to crash into Falcon as he falls into a trash can and is presumably eaten by Monty. The day saved, Frederick and Eleanor forgive Stuart for running away and George for lying to them, and tell them they are extremely proud of them for their bravery.

Later, Margalo fulfills her dream of flying south for the winter, planning on returning to the Little household in the spring. Martha stuns everyone by using her first words to say goodbye to Margalo.

Cast[edit]

Main article:List of Stuart Little characters

Live-action cast[edit]

  • Geena Davisas Mrs. Eleanor Little, the mother of the Little family and Frederick's wife.
  • Hugh Laurieas Mr. Frederick Little, the father of the Little family and Eleanor's husband.
  • Jonathan Lipnickias George Little, the eldest son of the Little family and Stuart's older brother.
  • Anna and Ashley Hoelck as Martha Little, the infant daughter of the Little family and Stuart and George's younger sister.
  • Marc John Jefferiesas Will Powell, George's loyal best friend.
  • Jim Doughanas Stuart and George's soccer coach. Doughan previously voiced Lucky and played the role of Detective Allen inStuart Little.
  • Brad Garrettas Rob, aplumbercalled to find Eleanor's ring in the kitchen sink's pipes.
  • Amelia Marshallas Rita Powell, Will's mother.
  • Ronobir Lahiri as the unnamedIndian-Americantaxi driver
  • Maria Bamfordas Stuart and George's teacher
  • Angelo Massagli as Wallace, one of Stuart and George's soccer teammates.
  • Keir Gowan as Irwin, another of Stuart and George's soccer teammates.

Voice cast[edit]

  • Michael J. Foxas Stuart Little, a younganthropomorphicmouseadopted as part of the Little family.
  • Melanie Griffithas Margalo, a young anthropomorphiccanarywhom Stuart meets on his way home from school and becomes his love interest, though it is revealed that she is actually in cahoots with a falcon, who adopted her when she was only a fledgling and forced her into slavery to steal objects from households in exchange for a home.
  • Nathan Laneas Snowbell, the family'sPersian catwho is Stuart's friend.
  • James Woodsas Falcon, a sadistic, greedyperegrine falconwho served as Margalo's master and the main antagonist of the film.
  • Steve Zahnas Monty, Snowbell's graytabby catfriend.

Puppeteers[edit]

Production[edit]

After theSeptember 11 attacks,parts of theTwin Towerssoon ended up digitally removed and scenes were reshot.[4]However,World Trade Center Building 7still appears in some parts of the film.

Reception[edit]

Box office[edit]

The film had an opening weekend gross of $15.1 million, ranking in second place narrowly behindRoad to Perdition.[5]The domestic total was $65 million and the worldwide total was $170 million against an estimated production budget of $120 million, less than its predecessor.[6]

Critical reception[edit]

On review aggregatorRotten Tomatoes,the film holds an approval rating of 81% based on 124 reviews, with an average score of 6.90/10. The critical consensus reads, "Stuart Little 2is a sweet, visually impressive sequel that provides wholesome entertainment for kids. "[7]OnMetacritic,the film has aweighted averagescore of 66 out of 100 based on 29 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[8]Audiences surveyed byCinemaScoregave the film an average grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale.[9]

Ann Hornaday wrote a positive review inThe Washington Post,noting how the film's idealized setting makes it family-friendly. Hornaday praised the vocal performances of Fox, Griffith, and Woods in their roles as Stuart, Margalo, and Falcon, respectively, as well as the characters' computer animation: "The animated characters engage in such natural movements and, more important, exude such subtle emotional expression that they mesh seamlessly with their live-action counterparts."[10]Tom Shen of theChicago Reader,described the film as "fairly formulaic", but praised its jokes as "hilarious", especially those coming from the character of Snowbell, the Littles' cat.[11]

Soundtrack[edit]

The soundtrack,Music from and Inspired by Stuart Little 2,was released byEpic RecordsandSony Music Soundtraxon July 16, 2002 onAudio CDandCompact Cassette.The tracks in bold do not appear on the film and the final two tracks are score cues composed byAlan Silvestri.[12]

Another album features the entirety of Silvestri's orchestral score for the film.

No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."I'm Alive"(Celine Dion)Kristian Lundin,Andreas CarlssonKristian Lundin3:28
2."Put a Little Love in Your Heart"(Mary Mary)Jackie DeShannon,Jimmy Holiday,Randy MyersVME3:09
3."Top of the World" (Mandy Moore)Jeff Cohen,Leah Haywood3:22
4."Another Small Adventure" (Chantal KreviazukfeaturingDrew Barrymore)2:57
5."One"(Nathan Lane)Harry NilssonRick Jarrard2:18
6."What I Like About You"(The Romantics)Wally Palmar, Mike Skill, Jimmy MarinosPete Solley2:56
7."Hold on to the Good Things"(Shawn Colvin)Roxanne Seeman,Holly Knight3:30
8."Count on Me"(Billy Gilman)3:42
9."Smile"(Vitamin C)Josh Deutsch, Colleen FitzpatrickJosh Deutsch, Garry Hughes3:58
10."Alone Again (Naturally)"(Gilbert O'Sullivan)Gilbert O'SullivanGilbert O'Sullivan3:38
11."Born to Be Wild"(Steppenwolf)Mars BonfireGabriel Mekler3:30
12."Little Angel of Mine"(No Secrets)Orrin Hatch[13]3:47
13."Falcon Finito" (Alan Silvestri)6:51
14."Silver Lining" (Alan Silvestri)4:21
Total length:51:27

Video game[edit]

Video games based on the film were released for thePlayStation,Game Boy Advance,andMicrosoft Windows.

Accolades[edit]

Year Awards Category Nominee Result
2002 BAFTA Children's Award Best Feature Film Douglas Wick
Lucy Fisher
Rob Minkoff
Bruce Joel Rubin		 Nominated
2003 Golden Trailer Award Best Animation/Family Film Nominated
Visual Effects Society Award Best Character Animation in an Animated Motion Picture Tony Bancroft
David Schaub
Eric Armstrong
Sean Mullen		 Won
Best Visual Effects Photography in a Motion Picture Earl Wiggins
Mark Vargo
Tom Houghton
Anna Foerster		 Nominated
Young Artist Award Best Family Feature Film Rob Minkoff Nominated

Home media[edit]

Stuart Little 2was released in the United States onVHSandDVDon December 10, 2002, byColumbia TriStar Home Entertainment,and in the United Kingdom on November 25, 2002. In 2008, the film was re-released as part of a double feature withStuart Little.Stuart LittleandStuart Little 2were released in a combo onSonyPSP'sUMDformat on January 3, 2006. ABlu-ray/DVDcombo pack was released on June 28, 2011, alongside the first film by Sony Pictures Home Entertainment.[28]

References[edit]

  1. ^ab"Stuart Little 2".AFI Catalog of Feature Films.American Film Institute.RetrievedAugust 13,2018.
  2. ^Laporte, Nicole (May 13, 2004)."Red Wagon raises Shane".Variety.RetrievedAugust 13,2018.
  3. ^abc"Stuart Little 2 (2002)".Box Office Mojo.RetrievedOctober 1,2012.
  4. ^Youngs, Ian (September 9, 2002)."Has Hollywood forgotten 11 September?".BBC News.Archivedfrom the original on November 17, 2020.RetrievedNovember 17,2020.
  5. ^Gray, Brandon (July 22, 2002)."'Road to Perdition' Squeaks Past 'Stuart Little 2' in Photo Finish ".Box Office Mojo.Archivedfrom the original on May 15, 2023.RetrievedMay 15,2023.
  6. ^"Stuart Little 2 (2002) - Financial Information".The Numbers.
  7. ^"Stuart Little 2".Rotten Tomatoes.RetrievedJanuary 12,2020.
  8. ^"Stuart Little 2".Metacritic.
  9. ^"STUART LITTLE 2 (2002) A".CinemaScore.Archived fromthe originalon December 20, 2018.RetrievedNovember 7,2018.
  10. ^Hornaday, Ann (July 19, 2002)."'Stuart Little 2': Cute as a Button ".The Washington Post.RetrievedJuly 27,2016.
  11. ^Ted, Shen (August 14, 2012)."Stuart Little 2".Chicago Reader.Sun-Times Media.RetrievedJuly 27,2016.Date is according toRotten Tomatoes.
  12. ^"Stuart Little 2 - Original Soundtrack".AllMusic.RetrievedApril 22,2014.
  13. ^"Music bill puts Kid Rock, Mike Love, Donald Trump and Orrin Hatch on the same stage".Deseret News.RetrievedOctober 11,2018.
  14. ^"Stuart Little 2 for Game Boy Advance Reviews".Metacritic.RetrievedOctober 23,2020.
  15. ^"Stuart Little 2 for Playstation Reviews".Metacritic.RetrievedOctober 23,2020.
  16. ^Beam, Jennifer."Stuart Little 2".AllGame.Archived fromthe originalon November 14, 2014.RetrievedOctober 23,2020.
  17. ^Beam, Jennifer."Stuart Little 2".AllGame.Archived fromthe originalon November 17, 2014.RetrievedOctober 23,2020.
  18. ^Beam, Jennifer."Stuart Little 2".AllGame.Archived fromthe originalon November 14, 2014.RetrievedOctober 23,2020.
  19. ^Shoemaker, Brad."Stuart Little 2 Review".GameSpot.RetrievedOctober 23,2020.
  20. ^Hollingshead, Anise (August 8, 2002)."Stuart Little 2".GameZone.Archived fromthe originalon October 19, 2002.RetrievedOctober 23,2020.
  21. ^Cowboy, Code (July 29, 2002)."Stuart Little 2".GameZone.Archived fromthe originalon August 3, 2002.RetrievedOctober 23,2020.
  22. ^Harris, Craig (July 22, 2002)."Stuart Little 2".IGN.RetrievedOctober 23,2020.
  23. ^Nix (July 30, 2002)."Stuart Little 2".IGN.RetrievedOctober 23,2020.
  24. ^"Test: Stuart Little 2".Jeuxvideo.com(in French). November 14, 2002.RetrievedOctober 23,2020.
  25. ^Kosmina, Ben (December 10, 2002)."Stuart Little 2".Nintendo World Report.RetrievedOctober 23,2020.
  26. ^Wint, Dominic (August 2002). "Stuart Little 2".Nintendo Official Magazine.No. 119. p. 79.
  27. ^Ogilvie, Tristan (August 2002). "Stuart Little 2".Official PlayStation 2 Magazine-Australia.No. 5. p. 76.
  28. ^"Jumanji, Stuart Little 1 & 2, and Zathura: A Space Adventure Coming to Blu-ray".Blu-ray.com.April 17, 2011.RetrievedAugust 13,2018.

External links[edit]

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