CAROUSHELL THE 2ND **** USA 2021 Dir: Steve Rudzinski. 78 mins
After learning of his illegitimate son, Duke the Talking Unicorn arrives in a small town to help Ms. Laurence (Judy Kirby) the woman raising it, to be more of a father figure in his life. While spending time together, the two begin to bond over their family history and grow close but when he realizes that the evil Nazi organization, led by Ilsa (Aleen Isley), Otto (Terence Lee Cover), Klaus (Mark McConnell Jr), and Katrina (Rebecca Rinehart), that created him in a WWII experiment has come to collect him and his son tries to defend him from their world-domination plans.
There was quite a lot of fun to be had with “CarousHELL 2.” Among its more enjoyable features is the highly entertaining and engaging storyline here involving the background and history of the carousel unicorn that brings up and answers the most pertinent flaw from the original in how he became sentient in the first place. It serves this quite well showing the creation as a Nazi weapon of war and escaping to be a playground ride going on the run from the same creators looking to recapture him which not only allows for the hilarious and truly gut-busting comedy of the inept Nazis attempting to come to terms with the modern world conflicting with their traditional values but the concurrent family-friendly treatment afforded to the idea of a sentient unicorn raising a half-human/half unicorn hybrid in a small suburban setup. That carries over into the enjoyable and over-the-top finale where the plan to kidnap the son and use him to try to get Duke under control has quite a lot to like involving various failed traps, plenty of spectacles involving what’s going on, and some wholesome cheese thrown into the mix. There’s also the film’s light-hearted tone in the first half about the family relationship featuring the two bonding through pictures, going to the park, and playing catch with each other which comes off rather well. This whole section creates such a whimsical atmosphere that makes for an endearing time if you’re a fan of the approach while it can also come off as somewhat underwhelming for those looking for more obvious genre fare. It’s quite far removed from the type of content that falls in line with the first film’s tone and atmosphere which should be known going in.
Review by Don Anelli
CAROUSHELL THE 2ND is available to buy at:
https://silverspotlightfilms.storenvy.com/