कुकून: द रिटर्न

All the major players return for this disappointing sequel, but director Ron Howard's absence sends shockwaves through this unappealing second installment. Those who left Earth at the conclusion of the first (Don Ameche, Wilford Brimley and company) return, but all start to have serious thoughts about their true places in the universe. Once again the comedy and drama seem to get in the way of each other and in the end the film is just really a cheap rip-off of the original. By-the-numbers mess. 2 stars out of 5.

The only reason this movie was made, was to capitalize on the success of the first Cocoon (1985) and make money. Pointless; witless; inane; formulistic; vapid; moneygrubbing to the point of pandering. A loathsome movie!

Sad follow up to tender 1985 hit with Petrie dropping the ball as director, lacking Howard's polish and care for the material. Ameche and group return once again, but the magic is lost.

Sequels are usually not as good as the original, unless the sequel happens to be called "Godfather II," so "Cocoon: The Return" is no exception.

On the other hand, I didn't find it ghastly (though a few others on this board did). It has the same terrific cast, which includes Don Ameche, Jack Gilford, Maureen Stapleton, Gwen Verdon, with the addition of Elaine Strich in the old folks' department, and Tawnee Welch, Tyrone Power Jr., and Steve Guttenberg with the addition of a very young Courtney Cox in the young folks' department. Brian Dennehy makes a brief appearance at the end of the film.

The Anterians need to return to pick up some cocoons, so the old folks come back to catch up with friends and family, with some interesting results.

Another plot concerns scientists taking one of the cocoons and studying it, while the Anterians attempt to rescue it before it's too late.

The movie actually has some very sweet moments - it probably would have been lousy without the same cast, but they're all very likable.

Okay, not great, and anyone under 55 probably won't want to be bothered. By the way, I cried during some of it. Guess my age.

I had hesitated on watching this sequel because it good bad reviews, but I really enjoyed it. They had to come back for the cocoons, right? What makes this movie worthwhile is that all of the Seniors struggle with whether they want to leave Earth again. Immortality isn't all it's cracked up to be.