The Croods: A New Age (2020)

November 25, 2020

November 25, 2020

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. A sequel to The Croods, the film was directed by Joel Crawford (in his feature directorial debut) with a screenplay by Dan Hageman, Kevin Hageman, Paul Fisher, and Bob Logan from a story by the original directors Chris Sanders and Kirk DeMicco. It features the returning voices of Nicolas Cage, Emma Stone, Ryan Reynolds, Catherine Keener, Clark Duke, and Cloris Leachman, with new cast members Peter Dinklage, Leslie Mann and Kelly Marie Tran.

A sequel to The Croods was first announced back when the original film was released in 2013 with original directors Chris Sanders and Kirk DiMicco returning to helm the film. Its development continued through 2014 and 2015 until it was cancelled in November 2016 due doubts of proceeding with the project in response to Universal Pictures' acquisition of DreamWorks Animation. However, the project was revived in Septmeber 2017 with Joel Crawford replacing Sanders and DiMicco as director.

The Croods: A New Age was theatrically released in the United States on November 25, 2020 after facing several delays due to the COVID-19 pandemic from an original November 2017 release date, and will be made available via Premium VOD on December 25. Critics called the film "a decent-enough follow-up" and praised the cast, although the story was lamented.

Storyline

The Croods, Guy, and their pets Belt, Chunky, and Douglas roam their new homeland, fighting off dangerous creatures as they look for a place to permanently settle. Grug, the family patriarch, is increasingly concerned about the budding romance between Guy and his daughter, Eep, fearing they might leave the rest of the family behind.

The Croods' journey takes an unexpected turn when Grug discovers a massive wall and leads the family over it into a paradise-like land on the other side. They are quickly captured by the land's owners, Phil and Hope Betterman, modern humans who were friends with Guy's late parents and are now technologically advanced. They release the Croods, but behave condescendingly towards them. Believing that Guy would be better off with them, Phil and Hope devise a plan to get him to leave Eep and the Croods.

Grug's time with the Bettermans becomes uncomfortable. As Phil takes him into his man cave, a sauna, he is manipulated by Phil who believes that Guy should stay with them while Eep stays with her family. Hope also tries to manipulate Ugga, Grug's wife, but fails, and Grug and Ugga consider leaving. Eep discovers that Phil and Hope's daughter, Dawn, has never been outside the walls. Eep persuades Dawn to escape with her for a joyride using Chunky, but their adventure goes awry, leaving them both disheveled. Upon their return, Guy scolds Eep for her recklessness, leading to a falling out between them.

During dinner, tensions escalate, and Grug accidentally reveals some of his conversations with Phil. Fed up with the Bettermans' condescension towards their differences, the Croods decide to leave, while Guy opts to stay behind. However, their departure is disrupted by Punch Monkeys, who are angry for not having the bananas that Phil usually provides as a daily offering due to Grug and Ugga having eaten all of them. The Punch Monkeys capture Grug, Phil, and Guy, taking them to their lair, while the remaining Croods and Bettermans follow their scent.

At the lair, it is revealed that one of Phil's irrigation projects deprived the Monkeys of their water supply; the monkeys demanded the bananas as repayment because they needed extra food to offer to a monstrous Spiny Mandrilla to maintain their peace with it. Meanwhile, the remaining Croods and Bettermans lose the boys' scent and find themselves marooned in a frozen wasteland, where they encounter giant wolf spiders. Hope finally comes to terms with her prejudice against the Croods; she and the others accept each other as equals and decide to call themselves "The Thunder Sisters". They eventually locate Grug, Phil, and Guy just as the Punch Monkeys prepare to sacrifice them to the Spiny Mandrilla. Guy and Eep reconcile and use a giant skull chandelier to knock the Spiny Mandrilla into a chasm, where it plummets to its death while the two families escape.

With their differences resolved, the Bettermans invite the Croods to live as neighbors on their land. Guy and Eep choose to share one of the Bettermans' bedrooms, and the Punch Monkeys become their next-door neighbors.

Also See

Movie Trailer

  • The Croods: A New Age (2020) (Trailers)

Sound Effects Used

Image Gallery

Audio Samples

External Links