Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		5.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.0

The Nut Job 2: Nutty by Nature Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman November 14, 2017

The Nut Job 2: Nutty By Nature: semi-cool title, semi-bland movie. This sequel follows up on, of course, the 2014 film The Nut Job, a poorly reviewed picture that still made a bundle thanks to its colorful characters and animation antics. That film aspired to accomplish little more than to put rear ends into theater seats and sell home videos, and the sequel aspires to the same modest heights. This film's dearth of creativity is evident in every recycled scene and point of character construct. It's a simple, crude, and (for the more demanding, mature audience) lacking even a smidgen of creativity, content to merely recycle genre trope, character qualities, and action scenes. The film builds entirely on surface presentation, its story only present to facilitate movement, sound, and color. Little ones with an appetite for all things talking animals and zany adventures should find it agreeable enough, but it's no surprise the film bombed with critics: it's just about as vacuous and predictable as these sorts of films come.

The animals are living in a manmade paradise, an abandoned store filled with a seemingly endless supply of fresh, easy-access nuts. They are thriving, no doubt living in excess, led by Surly (voiced by Will Arnett) who is living it up in nut-heaven. But not all animals are keen on the idea. Andie (voiced by Katherine Heigl) believes that the squirrels are losing their natural hunting and gathering instincts, a critical skill in feast and particularly in famine. "Easy doesn’t build character. Easy doesn’t last,” she says. And she is right. When the store holding the nuts accidentally explodes, the food supply instantly vanishes. To make matters more complicated, the town's rotund and greedy mayor (voiced by Bobby Moynihan), in search of ever-growing profits to feed his waistline and ego, declares Liberty Park, where the animals live, a loser for the city. He intends to bulldoze it and erect an amusement park that will make sure the land turns a tidy profit. The animals, led by Surly, have different plans for their home and have no choice but to stand up against the coming destruction.

There's really not much here to cover. The film is painfully simplistic, effective at its very core as a colorful, fast-moving, and agreeably populated animated kid's film, but the absolute absence of anything resembling creativity beyond the very specific plot ebbs and flows (which are also borrowed from other sources) wears the seasoned viewer down quite quickly. Whether the generic burgeoning relationship between the two lead characters, the fluffy comic relief brigades, the slimy land-grabbing politician and his self-centered daughter, or the recycled action scenes, most anything here could simply be dropped into another movie, or parts of others inserted here, and with only a few digital tweaks nobody would be any more the wiser. It's a film that simply wants its piece of the very popular and lucrative pie, of the mindset that merely replicating, rather than innovating, will bring audiences in. This film, however, failed to find the same financial success as its predecessor, still turning a modest (by Hollywood standards) profit but perhaps it's a sign that audiences are fatiguing on the generic and are yearning for something more substantial.

To the film's credit, it does get its superficialities right. The movie looks and sounds fantastic, which is itself not a major accomplishment in a world where movies like Cars 3 exist, but for a smaller film with less-than-lofty ambitions, there's no mistaking the stout, sturdy construction that breathes life into its characters and world and various adventures with seemingly effortless attention to detail and fluidity. The Nut Job 2 is well voiced, with each actor finding an agreeable cadence and sense of character that allows the less-than-complex roster to find enough momentum to perhaps not thrive but to at least carry the film where there's not any sort of substantial characterization happening. The actors are appropriately enthusiastic and are more than capable of finding the right inflection and cadence to carry any scene, whether zippy action or quiet character building moments.

The Nut Job 2: Nutty by Nature Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The number-crunchers at Universal decided that a UHD version of The Nut Job 2: Nutty by Nature wasn't a feasible release, but it's hard to imagine the UHD format improving significantly on the studio's Blu-ray presentation. The 1080p transfer offers the best the format has to offer, presenting both textural abundance and rich color with ease. Fur is beautifully complex and flowing. Environments are crisp and super-detailed even at distance. Small nuanced details are plentiful, and it would seem that the Blu-ray has squeezed out pretty much every last detail that the digital animators have created onto the screen. Colors are even more impressive. They're perfectly saturated, deep, vibrant, varied, and a pleasure in every scene. Lush natural greens are the unequivocal highlight, with diverse character colors exploding off the screen with nearly unmatched vitality. The image is super crisp and clear with precious few, if any, source or encode issues. They don't get much better than this.

The Nut Job 2: Nutty by Nature Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Nut Job 2: Nutty by Nature features an active and energetic DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack. The presentation is often aggressive and very fun, throwing various chaotic action sounds around the stage with no lack of range or excitement but also no shortage of clarity. There's a tangible, perfectly attuned balance as elements zip and maneuver around, perfectly matching up to the on-screen action. Whether heavy equipment rumbling through the stage, big winds blowing through at the 50-minute mark, or any of the film's other examples of large, intense elements, the track never wants for much more in the way of raw sonic information moving through the listening area. Light atmospherics are well integrated and serve as critical balance components. Music is clear and robust, wide and enveloping. Dialogue is firm, detailed, and well prioritized.

The Nut Job 2: Nutty by Nature Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The Nut Job 2: Nutty by Nature contains a few extras, including an audio commentary track. A DVD copy of the film and a UV/iTunes digital copy code are included with purchase.

• Deleted Scenes (1080p): A single scene. With optional Director/Co-Writer Cal Brunker introduction (1:16 with intro, 0:33 without).
• Animation Progression Reels (1080p): Four in-motion images -- Storyboard, Previz, Animation, and Lighting -- Juxtaposed on the screen. With optional Director/Co-Writer Cal Brunker introduction. Included are Hurricane (2:10 with intro, 1:31 without) and Mr. Feng Suit Fight (1:43 with intro, 1:13 without).
• Concept Art Reel (1080p, 2:56): A collection of auto-advancing images set to music.
• Audio Commentary: Director/Co-Writer Cal Brunker and Producer/Co-Writer Bob Barlen cover the usual assortment of animated movie insight, with emphasis on the writing process, technical details, music, story details, voice work, and more.

The Nut Job 2: Nutty by Nature Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The Nut Job 2: Nutty by Nature isn't a "bad" film in the traditional interpretation. It's not repugnant or repulsive. It's just completely generic, entirely disposable, and pointless beyond its ability to turn a modest profit. Neither story nor characters excite and neither colors nor sounds are enough to entice. It's a simple, crude (technically well made but narratively crude) film that will probably appeal to less-demanding young ones, but for those who have come to love the digitally animated film's finer side, it's best to pass over this one. Universal's Blu-ray does offer wonderful video and audio as well as a few extras. Rent it.