Mason Durbin

Journey 2: The Mysterious Island” is the kind of movie that makes you question how it even got past the script stage. While I didn’t expect Oscar-worthy storytelling, I at least hoped for something entertaining. Instead, what I got was a plot riddled with holes, an overuse of bad CGI, and dialogue so cheesy it belongs on a fast-food menu. The story is a mess. Nothing makes sense, and characters conveniently figure things out without any real logic. The “mystery” of the island is never fully explored, and the film constantly throws in forced action sequences to distract from how little the plot actually holds together. Also, how does a tiny bee suddenly become big enough to ride, yet characters don’t shrink at the same rate? The logic here is nonexistent. Visually, this movie is a disaster. The green screen is painfully obvious in almost every shot, making it feel more like a video game cutscene than a real adventure film. The CGI creatures are cartoonishly bad, completely pulling you out of the experience. And no matter where the characters go, the lighting never seems to match their surroundings, making it look like they were just pasted into different backgrounds. Even the charm of Dwayne Johnson and the rest of the cast can’t save this movie from being an eye-rolling, predictable mess. If you love bad CGI, weak storytelling, and a movie that never takes itself seriously, this might be for you. Otherwise, skip it.