5.5/10

Director and writer Charles Martin Smith continues his telling of the real life story of an injured dolphin named Winter whose incredible rescue events were well documented in the 2011 original film. A Dolphin’s Tale 2 is a pretty safe bet when it comes to children and animal enthusiasts alike. Adults will find the film a little too safe and predictable to mix with the uneventful tone throughout this sequel. I personally have not seen the first film in this series, but i do know of the story and could understand why they thought to turn it into a major motion picture. A Dolphin’s Tale 2 feels like an unnecessary continuance of characters that have no conflict equal or greater to it’s predecessor. For the first 65 of 97 minutes during the film, it feels like a blending of nutty daily events that happen at the aquarium. It isn’t until the final half hour of the movie that we are faced with some kind of challenge for our characters, but because of a trailer that is very revealing we already know the outcome. The trailer itself makes it feel like the challenge of getting Winter to accept a new dolphin (Hope) is in the very beginning of the film, but it ends up being our final scenes for characters who feel untested by the adversity of a sequel trying to pinch it’s last few dollars. The dialogue is cheesy and corny with most of the film being concentrated on the characters i really didn’t care about. Morgan Freeman, Ashley Judd, and Kris Kristofferson feel completely wasted as they are given camera time when a scene needs cheesy side commentary to make the audience giggle. Freeman in particular appears and disappears for long stretches of time, and it makes it entirely obvious when he isn’t there to offer any kind of charm to the film. Not all of the performances were ignored however as Harry Connick JR was great as the operator of the aquarium. He is given the time to make his character feel like more than just another A list actor trying to accept a paycheck. The relationship between he and his daughter (Played by Cozi Zuehlsorf) is a genuine one with a girl ready to step out of the big shadow cast by her father. One of the things that the film does have going for it is the brilliant point of view camera shots from Winter’s angle. I think a POV is a thing of beauty in a film like this trying to communicate the responses between humans and wild animals. The underwater stunts by the dolphins are most authentic with very little CGI. It’s kind of impressive when you think about how unpredictable these animals really are. I give Smith credit for the patience and one of a kind documentation of time with his non human characters. Most films don’t treat animals with the kind of respect and screen time that Smith does, and if one thing is clear it’s that he is an absolute animal lover. There is a hint at a small romance between the two teenage characters, but it’s never capitalized upon. It’s almost like they laid the groundwork to open the eyes of each of these characters and then the ending completely changes everything. Exploring this relationship would’ve made our human characters even remotely as interesting as the animals that the film focuses it’s majority time on. As i said before, the film played off just a little too safe for me which is why it receives a grade in the middle. It wasn’t as bad as i was expecting it to be, but it failed to produce anything out of me that would warrant a second screening. I would only recommend this film during a family screening. It’s a safe bet to give your children enough smiles to leave a theater with. A Dolphin’s Tale 2 has good intentions with a lot of heart, but it feels too uninspired when compared to the original story that was a lot edgier than anything this sequel had to offer. The ending credits show the real camera documentary done on the real life rescue of these animals, and i wish this film would’ve rather been this documentary. I feel that the story itself was good enough to be shown from this pure angle, and didn’t need bland characters and situations to only drag it down. I think a DVD screeining is acceptable, but i don’t think i can even recommend a matinee showing of this.