DreamWorks Animation tends to favor the easier sales of animation for kids. 2016’s Trolls is the most blatant of the bombastic yet predictable. It was a musical fantasy loaded with enough color and peppy pop music that one would vomit rainbows if only to remove it from their eyes. Thankfully, it appears that World Tour has wretched the fat and found a little more within its colorful and manic world.
More Trolls, More Music
What brought great relief to this weary parent’s eyes was the discovery of different trolls in this animated farce. Not bound by pop music only, trolls have apparently existed in all genres of music. The likes of Rock, Funk, Country, Classical, and Techno all come in different troll forms with different troll lands. Where were they during the first film? That’s a 2016 question.
This new information is exciting to Queen Poppie (Anna Kendrick), eager to expand her love in other territories. Less excited is her best friend Branch (Justin Timberlake). They clash on how to lead, be it freewheeling or fearsome. Poppie wants to greet with hugs while Branch favors caution.
The Trolls Who Totally Rock
The trolls who present the biggest threat is that of Rock. Led by Queen Barb (Rachel Bloom), they seek to eliminate all genres by stealing their essence. That essence is embodied in strings, perfect for making a rock guitar. If Barb succeeds, only Rock will rule the trolls.
Barb represents a rejection of variety, a tone favored among the many troll colonies. When Poppie ventures to the newly discovered collectives, she is greeted with fear and uncertainty. Their clashing perspectives on culture makes them more interesting for their ideals than their personalities.
The Spice of Troll Life
A lot of new and welcoming ingredients have been thrown into the mix. The various troll worlds are rather unique in their style and features. The country trolls are essentially centaurs that reside in a sleepy country town. The funk trolls are more quadruped and occupy a psychedelic starship of wild colors. I even dug the mercenary troll sects of smooth jazz and K-pop.
The rock trolls are somewhat predictable as black-brandishing misfits. Their world, of course, is decked out in lava and skulls but there are still a few fun bits. Highlights include a gag about tattoos and questioning of rebellion. Pretty par for the course but still smile-worthy. Of course, the numerous factions contain notable names of their genre, such as the Country Troll leader voiced by Kelly Clarkson and the Funk Trolls predictably guided by George Clinton.
A Few Fumbling Notes
What perhaps hinders the film is how a number of twists come fairly expected. To make Poppie’s mission of uniting the trolls more complex, a dark secret of her pop trolls is unearthed. To make the adventure more surprising, a double-cross occurs. Even the inevitable all-music ending comes right on schedule, fulfilling the prophecy all ho-hum animated films ending with a song and dance number, grand though it may be.
I had reminded myself that this was for kids who may not be as astute to see the twists coming. It is the same mindset one must set for the humor as well. The rock trolls make a bit out of tattoos possibly hindering office jobs. Do the trolls have offices? Who knows? More importantly, who cares? This Trolls we’re talking about here and I’m honestly not prepared or willing to go down that hole of scrutiny for a rather simplistic adventure.
Conclusion: Trolls World Tour
For a return to the routinely colorful world of Trolls, World Tour offers just enough allure to be a bit more enticing. The songs are pleasantly pitched for essentially being covers. The computer animation is vibrant and all its own style, even if the bright hues are bombastic at times. There’s nothing present that launches DreamWorks out of its made-to-order manic silliness, but nothing to give me a headache either. Any film that brushes its gums with sugar that accomplishes such a feat is a mild win.
What did you think of Trolls World Tour? Was it worth the VOD stay-at-home price? Was it better than Onward? Let us know in the comments below.
The Review
Trolls World Tour
A mildly more amusing musical that warrants a return to a rather routine world of fantasy and adventure.
PROS
- Clever concept of troll music genre worlds.
- Decent covers.
- Unique animation.
CONS
- Predictable all-loving premise.
- Meanders more than explores.
- Some covers are bland.
