Cast and crew err on the side of silly in “Journey 2: The Mysterious Island,” the amusingly childish sequel to “Journey to the Center of the Earth.” They’ve rendered Jules Verne’s novel into a lark, with wisecracks, comic sidekicks and everybody riffing on the ginormous lizards, humungous spiders and the like. For those who have forgotten the conceit, the idea here is that while “most consider” the stories of novelist Jules Verne “works of science fiction, Vernians know otherwise.”
Sean Anderson (Josh Hutcherson) certainly does. He lost his dad on an epic “Journey to the Center of the Earth.” Now, years later, living with mom (Kristin Davis) and an over-compensating stepdad, Hank (Dwayne Johnson), the teen gets a coded radio message from his grandpa. Since contractor Hank used to be a Navy code breaker, they quickly realize the message is “The island is real.” And they know where it is. That sets the stage for a stepfather/son bonding trip to the South Pacific, where they hire a low-rent chopper pilot (Luis Guzman) and his daughter to take them there. They find the place, all right. Along with grandpa, played by Michael Caine in “Indiana Caine” mode – a grizzled joker stranded in the jungle. The most brilliant thing you’ll see in “Journey 2” is the new computer-animated Looney Tunes romp attached to the beginning. “Daffy’s Rhapsody” uses an old record the late Mel Blanc made as Daffy Duck back in the 1950s – Daffy singing about why he’s so “gosh-darned riff-raffy” to the tune of Franz Liszt’s “Hungarian Rhapsody #2” on stage as Elmer Fudd blazes away at him. It’s a hoot, because the little black duck was made for 3-D.
