The Fox and the Hound 2

The straight-to-video sequel franchise, a cannibalistic enterprise that the Disney studio has mercifully reframed from, is often a glimpse into piggybacking off borrowed shine. These films aren’t good or strong enough to stand on their own, so they shove already known entities into strange shapes to use brand name recognition to spruce up sales. If The Fox and the Hound 2 isn’t the worst offender, then it must be somewhere near the top of that list. Or is it the bottom? It’s hard to tell.

The Fox and the Hound is a minimalist morality play of outside prejudices and influences destroying the purity of a childhood friendship. It’s a heartfelt film that lingers in the emotional memory for the authenticity of its relationships and the powerful feelings it conjures up. The Fox and the Hound 2 is ersatz art in comparison to the film it is borrowing shine and prestige from, and on its own limited merits.

This midquel (is that even a word?) doesn’t entirely mesh with either the timeline or tone of the original. It ultimately feels like something that was conceived as a separate idea then jammed together with preexisting characters to ensure profitability. It’s no great secret that I enjoy Disney, but I’m not blind to the problems of the studio and their gross penchant for eating itself in order to generate more product. Sometimes, I wish the studio would know when to leave well enough alone. Their gault of live action remakes points toward a redirection of their worst impulses. Oh well, at least we aren’t getting more thing like The Fox and the Hound 2 to make us question our admiration for the original films in the process.