We all know the story of Noah's Ark pretty well at this stage – in painstaking detail for anyone that sat through last year's Noah – and Two by Two explores the age-old tale from the point of view of the animals, specifically a father and son duo of nestrians.
Nestrians are colourful, blue gas-emitting, happy-go-lucky chatty characters that have never quite found their place in the world. When news breaks that a flood is on the way, dad Dave and son Finny set off to take their places on the Ark – but if you're not on Noah's list, you can't get on board.
While they may not be on the list, Dave and Finny manage to sneak aboard with a couple of grymps, before little grymp Leah and Finny end up getting left behind on dry land – yikes.
With Dave and Leah's mum Hazel searching the Ark for their little ones, things go a little bit Finding Nemo, with the adventures on land reminiscent of Ice Age. Finding Nemo and Ice Age are brilliant films, however, that appeal to the grown-ups as much as the kids. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for Two by Two.
The quality of animation is in the same league as that of DreamWorks or Pixar – it's vibrant and colourful and the nestrians are sure to become a favourite for the younger viewer and are perfect teddy bear fodder – but there's something generally lacking in the storyline and script.
While very tiny tots are sure to be kept happy throughout, older children that can't be entertained by the odd release of gas from a scared nestrian will probably seek out something a little bit more stimulating in terms of dialogue. I love kids' films and enjoy looking back on the classics from my childhood and appreciating them in a totally new way as an adult, but I was quite frankly bored by Two by Two once the novelty of the nestrians wore off in the first quarter.
It's not an instant classic and it's one kids will likely grow out of fairly quickly. But if you've got some toddlers at home and a free evening, it's good enough to warrant the cinema trip – especially if they have yet to discover the wonders of Madagascar, Shrek, Toy Story etc.
Sinead Brennan
