Okay, another day, another DCOM review.
This was shown on the Disney Channel, at least in England, soon after the phenomenally successful release of High School Musical. Sharing a director in Kenny Ortega, people had high hopes for the Cheetah Girls 2.
Now, I'm not gonna say it disappointed, because I don't think it did, but it didn't do that great a job of keeping you happy either.
I have to say, this movie was an improvement on High School Musical (which I've also reviewed) in that the music was better in that everybody did their own singing. The songs were nicely multicultural, which was a good nod to America's Latina population (Chanel also served that purpose). They were fun, with good messages that JUST erred on the right side of cheesy.
The stereotypical vibes of the girls were a little annoying, as you could look at each one and know what they were all about. On the plus side, I adored the addition of Marisol and her psychotic mother to the mix, and as always, Galleria and Chanel's moms were a bunch of laughs. Luke seemed a little too nice to be true, but this is Disney we're talking about. You can't be TOO mean, else you will scare the target demographic. And we can't have that, now can we? (Pfft.) The plot was solid, and meaningful, with moments of humor and a nice bunch of little sub-plots. It had more substance that High School Musical did. You had to like the fact that it didn't dwell on one thing for too long. And can I just say that Juaquin(is that how you spell it?) is entirely too hot for this movie. He should blatantly be stripping somewhere...
Oh yeah, and I just HAVE to comment on the names. I realize every little girl would like to have their names, but they are among the stupidest I've ever heard. That's includes baby Apple. I mean, REALLY, Aquanetta, Galleria, Chanel (!), and Dorinda? Also, who calls their child Angel? A boy? He was fantastic apart from his idiotic name.
I know people didn't like that some of the songs had Spanish parts, or that there was a whole Spanish song, but I think it's a great way to encourage interest in another language and culture, especially since there are just so many Latina people living in America. A La Nanita Nane translates beautifully, and Angel (insert shudder) has a part in Strut which practically makes the song.
Other than the slightly silly and OTT ness of the movie it was solid and nice time consumer, you'll like it, but you won't go running everyone over on your way to the DVD store. Not by a long shot.
