The Croods: A New Age

The Croods: A New Age (also known as The Croods 2) is a 2020 American computer-animated adventure comedy film produced by DreamWorks Animation and distributed by Universal Pictures. The sequel to The Croods (2013), the film is directed by Joel Crawford (in his feature directorial debut) with a screenplay penned by Dan Hageman, Kevin Hageman, Paul Fisher, and Bob Logan from a story by the original directors Kirk DeMicco and Chris Sanders.[4] Nicolas Cage, Emma Stone, Ryan Reynolds, Catherine Keener, Clark Duke, and Cloris Leachman (in her final animated film role) reprise their roles from the first film alongside new additions to the cast including Peter Dinklage, Leslie Mann, and Kelly Marie Tran.

The Croods: A New Age
Theatrical release poster
Directed byJoel Crawford
Produced byMark Swift
Screenplay by
  • Dan Hageman
  • Kevin Hageman
  • Paul Fisher
  • Bob Logan
Story by
Starring
Music byMark Mothersbaugh
Edited byJames Ryan
Production
company
Distributed byUniversal Pictures
Release date
  • November 25, 2020 (2020-11-25) (United States)
Running time
95 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$65 million[1]
Box office$144.5 million[2][3]

A sequel to The Croods was first announced in 2013, with directors DiMicco and Sanders returning to helm the film. Its development continued through 2014 and 2015 until it was cancelled in November 2016 due to doubts in response to Universal's acquisition of DreamWorks. However, the project was revived in 2017 with Crawford replacing Sanders and DiMicco as director. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States, much of the final animations had to be done from the crew's homes.

The Croods: A New Age was theatrically released in the United States on November 25, 2020 after facing several delays from an original November 2017 release date, and was made available via premium video on demand on December 18. It has grossed $144 million worldwide against its $65 million budget, with critics calling it "a decent-enough follow-up" and praising the voice cast. It has a Golden Globe nomination for Best Motion Picture - Animated.[5]

Plot

Years ago, Guy's parents become trapped in tar. As they sink into it, they tell him to find somewhere called "tomorrow". He goes on a long journey and meets a young Belt before eventually coming across Eep, leading to the events of the first film.

The Croods, along with Guy and their pets Chunky and Douglas, are still searching for a place to settle down, all the while Grug acts annoyed at Eep and Guy's blossoming romance. One night, Grug comes across a giant wall and leads the whole pack to it. They are soon caught in a net and are released by the owners of the land, a couple named Phil and Hope Betterman and they are soon revealed to be friends of Guy's late parents and therefore, know Guy. The Bettermans welcome the Croods to their giant tree-home as house guests, where they meet their daughter and Guy's old friend Dawn who immediately befriends Eep.

Life with the Bettermans becomes degrading for Grug due to the Bettermans being better evolved. Simultaneously, the Bettermans are revealed to have prejudice towards cave people and believe that Guy is better off with them because of his greater evolution, so they hatch a scheme to get Guy to hook up with Dawn and to leave the Croods. Phil eventually takes Grug to his secret man-cave, a sauna-like place behind the waterfalls, where he manipulates him into believing Guy should leave their pack, and Hope gets on Ugga's bad side by demeaning her family's nature as cave people. During this, Guy immediately becomes accustomed to life with the Bettermans, adjusting to their ways but unintentionally drifting from Eep in the process.

Meanwhile, Eep discovers that Dawn has never been outside the wall, and, connecting this to the solitude she faced in her cave, uses Chunky to escape the land with Dawn and jump their wall for a joyride that ends with a bee stinging Dawn and having her hand swell up. When Eep takes her back home, Guy, upon finding out, chides her for her recklessness, ending with him insensitively calling her a "cave-girl". At dinner, tensions rise between the parents, Guy and Eep, especially when Dawn's swelling is revealed. Having enough, the Croods decide to leave, and Guy and Eep have a huge falling out, which results in Guy's decision to stay with the Bettermans. Grug reveals that he and Ugga have eaten an entire supply of bananas hoarded around the Bettermans land that Phil had forbidden him from consuming. This causes the land to be attacked by 'Punch-Monkeys', monkeys with human-like strength, whom Phil had sent the bananas to every day so that they would leave his family alone. Upset over the lack of bananas, the Punch-Monkeys kidnap Grug, Phil, and Guy and take them to their homeland.

As the men are taken, the women, Thunk, and Chunky attempt to rescue them. During their time together, Hope vents out her frustrations with the Croods but grows to accept the Croods after she gets marooned on an island full of Wolf-Spiders, and the family makes peace with them. They eventually form a team called the Thundersisters, which was an old girl-group Gran was in when she was younger, to mount a rescue. At the Punch-Monkey home, Grug, Guy, and Phil soon discover that Phil unintentionally deprived the Punch-Monkeys of their water resource and that the Punch-Monkeys need the bananas not only to eat themselves, but to offer to a tyrannical Spiny Mandrilla in hopes of appeasing its appetite. The monkeys make Grug and Phil fight gladiator-style to see who will be the sacrifice and when they wear each other out, they exchange their bitter feelings with each other, making Guy realize and regret the effects his words had on Eep.

Soon, the monkeys dress all three men as bananas to sacrifice to the giant Spiny Mandrilla. Grug and Phil apologize for their behavior before the Thundersisters show up to rescue them. A long and perilous battle soon ends with Guy and Eep using a giant skull-chandelier to defeat the Spiny Mandrilla and send it falling into the abyss below when it pulls off Eep's "peanut toe", which she used as a prosthetic limb, allowing the families to escape. Afterwards, Guy realizes that Eep had always been his "tomorrow".

With their differences finally settled, the Bettermans allow the Croods to live in their land as neighbors along with the monkeys grateful to the humans for killing the Mandrilla, and tear down the wall surrounding their land. Guy and Eep start to live together, and all the families continue to grow closer to each other.

Cast
  • Emma Stone as Eep Crood, a cave girl, Grug's oldest daughter and Guy's girlfriend.
  • Ryan Reynolds as Guy, a cave boy who lives with the Croods and is Eep's boyfriend.
    • Gabriel Jack voices a younger Guy.
  • Kelly Marie Tran as Dawn Betterman, Phil and Hope's daughter and only child who befriends Eep and is Guy's old friend.
  • Nicolas Cage as Grug Crood, a caveman and the patriarch of the Croods.
  • Catherine Keener as Ugga Crood, a cavewoman and Grug's wife.
  • Clark Duke as Thunk Crood, a cave boy and Grug's son.
  • Cloris Leachman as Gran, an old cavewoman who is Ugga's mother and Eep, Thunk, and Sandy's grandmother. This was Leachman's last animated feature before her death in 2021.
  • Peter Dinklage as Phil Betterman, the patriarch of the Bettermans who had a history with Guy's parents.
  • Leslie Mann as Hope Betterman, the matriarch of the Bettermans and Phil's wife.
  • Kailey Crawford as Sandy Crood, a cave girl and Grug's 5-year-old daughter. Her vocal effects were previously performed by Randy Thom in the last movie.
  • Chris Sanders as Belt, Guy's pet sloth.
  • James Ryan as Sash, Dawn's pet sloth.
  • Melissa Disney as Guy's Mom, the unnamed mother of Guy who died in the tar pit.
  • Joel Crawford as Guy's Dad, the unnamed father of Guy who died in the tar pit.
  • Januel Mercado as Shaman Monkey
  • Ryan Naylor as Creepo Monkey
  • Artemis Pebdani as Additional voices

Production

Development

In April 2013, DreamWorks Animation announced a sequel to the film The Croods, with Chris Sanders and Kirk DeMicco set to return as directors and writers.[6] According to DeMicco, the sequel would focus on Ugga and motherhood, making it "the first chapter of society," expanding on the first film, which he said is about "the last chapter of the caveman."[7]

On June 12, 2014, it was announced that the sequel would be released on November 3, 2017.[8] On August 21, 2014, the film was pushed back to December 22, 2017.[9] On August 9, 2016, nearing Comcast's impending acquisition of DreamWorks Animation, 20th Century Fox removed the film from the release schedule. The film would be instead released by Universal Pictures sometime in 2018.[10] On August 23, 2016, it was reported that Kevin and Dan Hageman were hired to rewrite the script.[11]

On November 11, 2016, DreamWorks announced that production for the sequel was cancelled.[12] According to reports, there had been doubts about proceeding with the project before Universal's acquisition of DreamWorks, and it was DreamWorks' decision to cancel the film.[12] However, in September 2017, DreamWorks and Universal revealed that the film was back in production with a release date scheduled for September 18, 2020. It was also revealed that both DeMicco and Sanders would not be returning.[13] In October 2017, it was reported that Joel Crawford would replace both DeMicco and Sanders as director and Mark Swift would replace both the first film's producers Jane Hartwell and Kristine Belson as the producer of the film.[14]

Production of the film done and shifted to work remotely during the COVID-19 pandemic.[15]

Casting

In September 2013, it had been confirmed that Nicolas Cage, Emma Stone, and Ryan Reynolds would reprise their roles in the sequel as Grug, Eep, and Guy from the first film.[16] On May 21, 2015, Leslie Mann and Kat Dennings had joined the voice cast. Mann would lend her voice to an upscale mother of a rival family named Hope Betterman, while Dennings was set to voice her daughter, Dawn. It was also reported that Catherine Keener and Clark Duke were reprising their roles as Ugga and Thunk.[17] In September 2017, it was confirmed that the original actors would reprise their roles.[18][19] In October 2018, Peter Dinklage was cast in the film to voice the character Phil Betterman.[20] In October 2019, DreamWorks revealed that Kelly Marie Tran had replaced Dennings as Dawn.[21]

Music

In September 2020, it was announced that Mark Mothersbaugh had composed music for the sequel. The original 2013 feature was scored by Alan Silvestri.[22] Jack Black's band Tenacious D also performed the cover song "I Think I Love You". Jack Black and Haim also performed "We Are Here Together".

Release

The Croods: A New Age was theatrically released in the United States on November 25, 2020 by Universal Pictures, which was then followed by a PVOD release on December 18.[23] It was previously scheduled to be released on November 3, 2017, December 22, 2017, September 18, 2020, and December 23, 2020.[8][9][18]

The studio spent about $26.5 million promoting the film.[24]

Home media

The Croods: A New Age is scheduled to be released by Universal Pictures Home Entertainment on Digital HD and on DVD, Blu-ray,Blu-ray 3D and 4K Ultra HD on February 23, 2021.[25] All the releases include the short film To: Gerard, DreamWorks Animation's Experimental Short Film Collection, Doodlebops Rockin' Road Show bonus episodes, and deleted scenes.

Reception

Box office and VOD

As of February 3, 2021, The Croods: A New Age has grossed $44.1 million in the United States and Canada, and $100.4 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $144.5 million.[2][3]

In the United States, the film made $1.85 million from 2,211 theaters on its first day, $2.7 million on its second (a 47% increase, opposed to the normal 40% drop seen on Thanksgiving Day), then $4 million on its third. It went on to debut to $9.7 million in its opening weekend (a five-day total of $14.3 million), the biggest opening weekend since Tenet over two months prior.[24] The film remained in first the following two weekends, grossing $4.4 million and $3 million, respectively.[26][27] It was dethroned by Monster Hunter in its fourth weekend.[28] That same weekend, the film was the most-rented on FandangoNow, Apple TV, and Google Play.[29] In its fifth weekend the film grossed $1.7 million over the Christmas frame.[30] It also remained number one on all digital rental platforms. IndieWire estimated the film had made about $20 million from PVOD sales up to that point (of which Universal would keep 80% of).[31]

The film earned $3 million on its opening day in China, which is the third biggest for a Hollywood film in 2020, behind Tenet and Mulan.[32] It went on debut to $19.2 million in China, and a total of $21.6 million internationally.[33] By its third weekend of release the film crossed $46 million (RMB 300 million) in China, becoming the second-biggest Hollywood title of the year in the country behind Tenet ($66.6 million).[27] It made $3.2 million in its fourth weekend of international play, pushing its running total above $57 million. [34]

Critical response

Critics praised The Croods: A New Age as "a decent-enough follow-up" and commended the cast.[35] On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, 77% of 129 critics gave the film a positive review, and an average rating of 6.4/10. The website's critics consensus reads: "Another agreeable outing for the titular prehistoric clan, The Croods: A New Age may be the missing link for parents between more elevated family-friendly fare."[36] According to Metacritic, which calculated a weighted average score of 56 out of 100 based on 26 critics, the film received "mixed or average reviews".[37] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale (the same score as the first film), and PostTrak reported 83% of those gave the film a positive score, with 59% saying they would definitely recommend it.[24]

Kate Erbland of IndieWire gave the film a "C+" and said, "It's a little silly, very colorful, and entertaining enough to deliver some good-hearted ideas that aren't beholden to any period in time. Worth nearly a decade of push-pull to get here? Probably not, but on its own merits it's a charming throwback".[38] Alonso Duralde of TheWrap gave the film a positive review and wrote, "You may never have thought you needed or even wanted a sequel to The Croods, but you may find it a pleasant surprise in a year where most of the surprises have been anything but."[39]

References
  1. Watson, R.T. (October 19, 2020). "Universal Tosses Cinemas a Lifeline While Testing New Distribution Model". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved October 19, 2020.
  2. The Croods: A New Age at Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Retrieved February 4, 2021.
  3. The Croods: A New Age at The Numbers. Nash Information Services, LLC. Retrieved February 4, 2021.
  4. https://www.cartoonbrew.com/reviews-2/the-croods-a-new-age-review-class-conflict-meets-crazed-comedy-in-new-caveman-caper-199061.html
  5. https://www.npr.org/2021/02/03/963580003/2021-golden-globe-nominees-announced-netflix-leads-the-pack
  6. "The Croods 2 in the Works at DreamWorks Animation". ComingSoon.net. April 17, 2013. Archived from the original on October 6, 2014. Retrieved October 7, 2018.
  7. Giardina, Carolyn (February 24, 2014). "'The Croods': Exploring Family Dynamics -- And What's Next for the Sequel". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on October 7, 2018. Retrieved October 7, 2018.
  8. "Dates Set for Madagascar 4, The Croods 2, Puss in Boots 2, Captain Underpants, and Hitman". ComingSoon.net. June 12, 2014. Archived from the original on October 6, 2014. Retrieved October 7, 2018.
  9. "DreamWorks Animation Shifts Two Sequels Back Slightly". ComingSoon.net. August 21, 2014. Archived from the original on August 24, 2014. Retrieved October 7, 2018.
  10. McClintock, Pamela (August 9, 2016). "'Croods 2' Release Delayed Amid DreamWorks Animation Sale". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on December 14, 2018. Retrieved October 7, 2018.
  11. Busch, Anita (August 23, 2016). "DreamWorks Animation's 'Croods 2' Gets Rewrite With Hageman Brothers". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on October 7, 2018. Retrieved October 7, 2018.
  12. Rainey, James (November 11, 2016). "DreamWorks Animation and Universal Kill 'Croods 2' (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Archived from the original on January 3, 2019. Retrieved October 7, 2018.
  13. Kilday, Gregg (September 9, 2017). "DreamWorks Animation's 'The Croods 2' Back on Track for 2020 Release". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved October 7, 2018.
  14. Giardina, Carolyn (October 18, 2017). "'Croods 2' Finds Its Director (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on June 21, 2018. Retrieved October 7, 2018.
  15. D'Alessandro, Anthony (May 8, 2020). "How Animated Pics Like 'Tom & Jerry', 'SpongeBob Movie', 'Sing 2', Skydance's 'Luck' & More Are Working Through The COVID-19 Crisis". Deadline. Archived from the original on May 13, 2020. Retrieved May 25, 2020.
  16. "Nicolas Cage, Ryan Reynolds and Emma Stone Confirmed for The Croods 2". ComingSoon.net. CraveOnline. September 9, 2013. Archived from the original on April 22, 2014. Retrieved October 7, 2018.
  17. Borys Kit (May 21, 2015). "Leslie Mann, Kat Dennings Joining 'Croods 2' (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. (Prometheus Global Media). Archived from the original on October 7, 2018. Retrieved October 7, 2018.
  18. Kroll, Justin (September 19, 2017). "'Croods 2' Revived as Animated Sequel and Jason Blum's 'Spooky Jack' Get Release Dates". Variety. Archived from the original on June 4, 2019. Retrieved October 7, 2018.
  19. Amidi, Amid (September 19, 2017). "Dreamworks Confirms 'The Croods' Sequel Is Back On, And Announces 'Spooky Jack'". Cartoon Brew. Archived from the original on May 13, 2019. Retrieved October 7, 2018.
  20. N'Duka, Amanda; D'Alessandro, Anthony (October 5, 2018). "Peter Dinklage Joins Voice Cast Of 'The Croods 2'". Deadline. Archived from the original on October 6, 2018. Retrieved October 7, 2018.
  21. Galuppo, Mia (October 29, 2019), Kelly Marie Tran Joins Voice Cast of 'Croods' Sequel, Hollywood Reporter, archived from the original on December 14, 2019, retrieved October 29, 2019
  22. "Mark Mothersbaugh Scoring DreamWorks Animation's 'The Croods: A New Age'". Film Music Reporter. Film Music Reporter. September 18, 2020. Retrieved September 19, 2020.
  23. Dela Paz, Maggie (September 16, 2020). "The Croods: A New Age Release Date Moves Up a Month". Comingsoon.net. Archived from the original on August 28, 2019. Retrieved September 16, 2020.
  24. D'Alessandro, Anthony (November 29, 2020). "'The Croods: A New Age' Opens To $14M+ 5-Day Domestic, $35M+ WW During Pandemic Thanksgiving Stretch – Update". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved November 29, 2020.
  25. "The Croods: A New Age DVD Release Date 2021". DVDs Release Dates. Retrieved December 14, 2020.
  26. D'Alessandro, Anthony (December 6, 2020). "Universal Continues To Dominate Paltry Pandemic Post-Thanksgiving B.O. As Town Reels From Warner-HBO Max Windows Bombshell". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved December 6, 2020.
  27. D'Alessandro, Anthony (December 13, 2020). "'Croods: A New Age' Tops December Weekend Sans Wide Releases; DWA Sequel Beats 'Mulan' In China". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved December 13, 2020.
  28. Lang, Brett (December 20, 2020). "Box Office: 'Wonder Woman 1984' Sputters in China, Grosses $38.5 Million Overseas". Variety. Retrieved December 20, 2020.
  29. Brueggemann, Tom (December 21, 2020). "'The Croods: A New Age' Beats Out 'Tenet' On VOD in Surprising Shakeup". IndieWire. Retrieved December 22, 2020.
  30. D'Alessandro, Anthony (December 27, 2020). "'Wonder Woman 1984' Hits $16.7M At Domestic B.O. In Face Of HBO Max Release; Record For Pandemic, But -84% Lower Than First Pic's Opening". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  31. Brueggemann, Tom (December 28, 2020). "'Croods: A New Age' Dominates PVOD Viewing as 'The Midnight Sky' Rises at Netflix". IndieWire. Retrieved December 30, 2020.
  32. Nancy Tartaglione (November 28, 2020). "'The Croods: A New Age' Dawning With $20M In China". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved November 28, 2020.
  33. Nancy Tartaglione (November 29, 2020). "'The Croods: A New Age' Dawns With $21M Offshore; 'Tenet' Tops $300M; 'Demon Slayer' Still Rising In Japan – International Box Office". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved November 29, 2020.
  34. Tartaglione, Nancy (December 20, 2020). "'Wonder Woman 1984' Lassos $38.5M In Offshore Debut; China Cuffs Expectations – International Box Office". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved December 20, 2020.
  35. Holmes, Adam (November 23, 2020). "' The Croods: A New Age Reviews Are In, Here's What Critics Are Saying". CinemaBlend. Retrieved November 26, 2020.
  36. The Croods: A New Age at Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved January 24, 2021.
  37. The Croods: A New Age at Metacritic. Red Ventures. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
  38. Erbland, Kate (November 23, 2020). "'The Croods: A New Age' Review: Long-Awaited Animated Sequel Is Low-Stakes Feel-Good Fun". IndieWire. Retrieved November 24, 2020.
  39. Duralde, Alonso (November 23, 2020). "'The Croods: A New Age' Film Review: The Laughs Keep Evolving in Animated Sequel". TheWrap. Retrieved November 24, 2020.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.