Lady and the Tramp II: Scamp's Adventure

I remember the first time I saw Lady and the Tramp, it was one of the first Disney movies to make me cry as a child. It was one of the most romantic films I ever saw, lol, well, I was a kid, so, give me a break, it's still a good love story. So, I figured to go ahead and give the sequel a look and I watched it today and over all, it's a decent sequel that's worth a look. Unfortunately, there are a lot of Disney sequels that really are not worth your while and are pretty cheesy, Lady and the Tramp 2 is typical where as the plot is always the same for every Disney sequel. They always take the plot from the first film and reverse the situation to the kids wanting whatever the parent had in the first film, but Lady and the Tramp 2 has it's moments that are just very sweet.

Pidge and Tramp are living the high life with their masters and 4 kids. 3 kids are girls and they are loving the pampered life of baths, 3 meals a day in a bowl, and a healthy home to live in. But Scamp's the boy that stands out, he wants to be a junk yard dog so badly and be free an wild. Tramp doesn't want that life for him, and certainly to not end up in the pound. But Scamp goes off with a girl dog, Angel, and other junk yard dogs to prove that he's just as tough, but it's a tough world out there and he may not have the chops to survive.

Lady and the Tramp II: Scamp's Adventure is definitely worth a look, it's not a waste of a sequel. Is it necessary? No, not really, but it's all good clean fun. The animation is colorful and the songs are catchy along with a cute little story that may be predictable, but is always a safe route to go with the kids. It's a cute family movie and is a nice Disney sequel. I would recommend it if you are a fan of the original Lady and the Tramp and also for the kids, it's a good clean cut movie to watch.

5/10

"Lady and the Tramp II" is a direct to video film during an awful era at Disney, as the studio put nearly all its efforts into unnecessary sequels instead of coming up with new material. Eventually, this sort of remake would disappear...to be replaced by live-action remakes with nothing new to offer. If it sounds like I have a low opinion of these films...well, you're right.

Now this does not mean I hated "Lady and the Tramp II" or think it's not worth seeing. It's not a bad film...but it's surely an unnecessary one. On the plus side, the animation isn't bad...though it isn't exactly like the 1955 classic. The story itself is also okay and enjoyable. But on the minus side, the songs are mostly forgettable and the film really drags after a while. Yes, we know that Tramp's son, Scamp, longs to be like wild dogs. And, it's no surprise that eventually he realizes this wild life really stinks. It also lacks the charm in the original movie...and it's certainly not a film you'll remember for long. Worth seeing? Perhaps. But it's not exactly a must-see either.

If regarded as an independent feature I can't say it's too bad at all but from where I'm standing this sequel and the original "Lady and the Tramp" don't agree with each other! They are two completely different movies with different style, different voice personalities, different narratives and about the only thing that they share with each other is the visuals (e.g. the town-house of Jim Dear, Darling, Lady and Tramp) and none of those have changed.

If you're seeking any kind of continuity years after the release of the original for those memorable songs like "Bella Notte" and "The Siamesse Cats Song" this sequel won't give you any at all! Just about every song has a little pop to it and those good old characters like Jock and Trusty, Jim Dear and Darling and Aunt Sarah and her cats may well be seen but they're seeming to be somehow replaced by new characters, not to mention Peg not appearing at all, whose voices are quite annoying. Even Lady and Tramp don't appear often enough and as for Scamp?! He is so spoilt! And treats his father Tramp with utter disrespect, then runs away with no remorse even after hearing how much he's being missed at home! And they called his shameless getaway an adventure! I'd say Scott Wolf truly brought out the abusive bad boy in Scamp wiping out the typical cute Disney animal. Even the old characters just drive you mad in this; Trusty sounds like Goofy sick in bed, Jock (Jeff-stupid-Bennett) - and his VOICE - sound neither Scottish nor worth hearing! Zap him off as far as possible to free our poor ears from his voice and as for the dumb, feather-brained, EXASPERATING JUNKYARD DOGS!!!!!! Somebody put them down!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

"Lady and the Tramp 2" isn't completely bad if you're not already having a tough day but I expect a lot more charm from a sequel to a true classic - Scamp is chavvy, so is his girlfriend Angel and there is a feeble storyline. Still, I think you should try it at least once because, as I say, there are much worse movies around.

Disney has a habit of re-hashing old movies and they don't generally work. Look at the videos in the Aladdin series. This time, however, they have successfully recaptured the characters from the original, and built an entirely new story around them. Granted, many of the voices from the original have passed on, but the new voices do pretty well.

PS -- the dogcatcher is NOT Don Knotts...

All in all, you could never really surpass the original Lady and the Tramp, one of Disney's best films ever. This movie seemed to lack charm. The music was good, but didn't feel like it belonged. The characters were nice, but the characterisation seemed a bit rushed. The voices were all done quite well by the likes of Mickey Rooney and Allysa Millano. The animation is of course superb. They were even able to throw some CGI in with traditional animation. I think it is probably a good thing this is a straight to video project, because that's where it belongs. If you are a true die hard Disney fan, you might enjoy this one, but most casual movie watchers will probably pass it up.