Cute animated airplane Dusty Crophopper (Cook) is back in this follow-up to 2013’s Planes (itself a lower budget spin-off of Pixar’s movie Cars). This time around, the former crop duster turned racing plane finds he can no longer race due to a damaged engine, so instead he heads up to the mountains to train as an aerial firefighter under the tutelage of gruff Blade Ranger (Harris).
The plot is pretty straightforward – Dusty has to learn to work as part of a team, understand what it means to be a hero, and fight a dramatic wildfire that is threatening an exclusive mountain resort – but what sets this apart from the first Planes is the impressive animated fire effects and scenery that serve as a backdrop. And while the first film was just a retread of Cars (without so arrogant a central character, thankfully), this is much more of a fun adventure with likeable characters, nice sight-gags and a fast-paced little story that will engage younger viewers.
Is Planes 2: Fire And Rescue suitable for kids? Here are our parents’ notes...
While Dusty and his pals fight major fires, younger viewers won’t ever really worry that the planes are in danger.
If you like this, why not try: Planes, Cars, Cars 2, Monsters Inc, A Bug's Life,