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AGENT CODY BANKS 2
DESTINATION LONDON
Review by Chastity Campbell
Starring: Frankie Muniz, Anthony Anderson, Keith David,
Daniel Roebuck, Hannah Spearritt, Cynthia Stevenson
Director: Kevin Allen
Video: 2.35:1 Anamorphic Widescreen, 1.33:1 Standard Fullscreen
Audio: Dolby Digital 5.1
Studio: MGM
Features: See Review
Release Date: July 13, 2004
Film ***
It’s lurking out there, just waiting for the unsuspecting
consumer to come along. You know
what it is, the dreaded word that is feared by young and old alike…the sequel!
(ominous music plays in the background)
Okay, so not all sequels are bad, but believe me, I have
had the displeasure of viewing my fair share of second timers that fall short of
the benchmark set by their counterparts.
However, this summer will definitely go down in history as
the year of the sequel, with hits like Shrek 2, Spider Man 2, and third
installment of the Harry Potter franchise Harry Potter and The
Prisoner Of Azkaban making their way through theatres.
So it is with that in mind that I powered up my DVD player
and popped in the new kid friendly spy flick from MGM Agent Cody Banks:
Destination London. I have to
admit that despite my earlier worries, this sequel can visit my DVD player any
day of the week!
Cody’s grown up quite a bit since his last big screen
adventure, and we find him spending the summer at CIA boot camp…I mean Camp
Woody! All of the other cadets, I
mean campers, are in awe of Mr. Banks ability as an agent. Then again, it’s not surprising…he did save the world
after all! And let’s not
forget…he got the girl too!
In this installment, Cody is sent to London to retrieve a
stolen piece of technology. Last
time it was for honor, this time it’s personal, as Cody’s mentor and CIA
trainer is responsible for stealing a mind control device, and unwittingly agent
Banks helped him do it.
Cody’s mission is simple: retrieve the stolen technology
and bring his former mentor to justice.
His disguise? He’s a
clarinet virtuoso at a summer retreat for musical geniuses!! The problem: Cody
doesn’t know how to play the clarinet…or any other instrument for that
matter.
I was very disappointed at first to find out that Angie
Harmon would not be reprising her role as Cody’s handler.
However, that disappointment was short lived once I saw Cody’s new
handler in action.
Anthony Anderson plays the part of Derek, a CIA agent
busted to handler status for incompetence.
He’s a big kid at heart, and he refuses to ever grow up.
This sets the stage for him to get himself and Cody into more jams than
the people at Smucker’s can put in their jars!
Cody doesn’t like Derek’s loose attitude right from the
start, and besides, he shouldn’t need a handler anymore, he’s a big
boy…WRONG!! Turns out without
Derek’s help Cody would have ended up helping his ex-mentor take over the
world, one foreign leader at a time.
I really enjoyed seeing Frankie Muniz reprise his role as
the innocent looking teenage CIA operative.
Muniz has grown up in looks and character since his last big screen
appearance, but he hasn’t lost a single bit of his appeal.
It was refreshing for me once again to see a kid friendly movie that
didn’t rely on sex or foul language to boost the plot.
I’ve been watching Anthony Anderson on TV and the big screen for quite a few years now. Anderson’s big break was on the Saturday morning NBC show Hang Time. It was similar to Saved By The Bell in theme and style. Each week featured a different teenage crisis, and the perils of trying to grow up normally. Anderson graduated to the big screen in the 1999 film Life. However it wasn’t until his role in the 2000 Jet Li film Romeo Must Die that people sat up and took notice of his abilities.
I loved Anthony’s
relaxed attitude, quick wit, and zany antics.
He definitely helped this film take a giant leap over the original.
The action scenes in this film take up a bigger part of the
film. There’s more physical
action, which forced Frankie Muniz to start training six weeks before principal
photography began. The explosions
are louder (and bigger), and the sets and scenery are more realistic this time
around.
Fun, exciting, and action packed, this sequel delivered on
more levels than I initially gave it credit for. Grab your copy of Agent Cody Banks: Destination
London and take it for a spin today.
Video ***
This DVD contains a 2.35:1 Anamorphic Widescreen version
and a 1.33:1 Standard Fullscreen version. Both
versions were very sharp, crisp and clean. The colors were bright and vivid
without appearing overly bright or washed out.
I will admit that when it comes down to it that I typically
prefer Widescreen presentations to Fullscreen versions of a film.
I just feel like you get so much more from a movie when you see the whole
picture. However, every rule
has exceptions, and I have to say this DVD was really nice in both formats.
I didn’t feel like I was missing out on anything with the Fullscreen
version.
Audio ***
The 5.1 Dolby Digital Surround was powerful and balanced
and in true secret agent form, it blew me away!
The mix really does make good use of the surround speakers.
The sound seemed to flow around the room evenly without any of the
speakers feeling left out. There were no detectable flaws, just good solid audio, with a
really cool soundtrack to give it a leg up on the competition.
Feature: ***
This DVD takes you deep undercover with multiple versions
of the film that allow you to go behind the scenes and play different
interactive games.
First there is Agent Mode: Interactive Quiz, which allows
you to watch the movie and every so often Cody and his friends will pop up to
ask you questions on your quest to become a CIA operative.
Spy On The Set: Visual Cast Commentary takes a 3-D approach
to discussing to goings on behind the film.
The Back In Action featurette takes you into the minds of
the people behind Cody Banks 2. You
get to see what they were thinking with Cody Banks 1, and how all of that
factored into the making of this DVD.
There are some deleted scenes, a photo gallery, and the
original theatrical trailer for you to view.
Also the good folks over at MGM saw fit to include an
interactive page with DVD box covers that you can click on and view movie
trailers.
Summary: