Son of the Mask
Encyclopedia
Son of the Mask is a 2005 American fantasy
family
-comedy film
directed by Lawrence Guterman
, starring Jamie Kennedy
as Tim Avery, an aspiring cartoonist from Fringe City who has just had his first child born with the powers of the Mask. It is the stand-alone sequel to the successful 1994 film The Mask
, an adaptation of Dark Horse Comics
which starred Jim Carrey
. The film had an $84 million budget and $57.6 million worldwide box office gross.
It also stars Alan Cumming
as the god of mischief, Loki
, whom Odin has ordered to find the Mask. It co-stars Traylor Howard
, Kal Penn
, Steven Wright
, and Bob Hoskins
as Odin
. Ben Stein
makes a quick reappearance as Dr. Arthur Neuman from The Mask to reestablish the relationship with the mask and Loki. The film was widely panned by critics. It won the Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Remake or Sequel.
Unlike the first film which was more adult oriented, this film is a family film as the tone is much lighter and more comical than the first one's.
, Dr. Arthur Neuman (Ben Stein
) is giving a tour of the hall of Norse mythology
in Edge City Museum. A man in black comes in to view the hall. When Dr. Neuman reaches the part concerning Loki's imprisonment, the stranger becomes very angry and transforms, revealing himself to be Loki
(Alan Cumming
). The tourists panic and flee, but Dr. Neuman stays to argue with the angry god. Loki takes his mask, but realizes it is a fake. In anger he removes Dr. Neuman's still talking face from his body and puts it on the mask's stand before getting rid of the guards and storming out of the museum in a whirlwind of rage.
In a town called Fringe City, Tim Avery (Jamie Kennedy
), an aspiring cartoonist
at an animation company, is feeling reluctant to become a father. He has a beautiful wife, Tonya (Traylor Howard
), and a best friend, Jorge (Kal Penn
), who is very shy around women. Tim has a close relationship with his dog Otis, who finds an ancient mask in a creek and brings it to his owner's house.
Tim puts on the mask for a Halloween party, transforming into a party animal that is similar to the mask character from the first film. Tim notices Jorge's crush, Sylvia standing alone in the back, eagerly confronts her, and has her stripped out of her costume and into a skimpy red suit. Sylvia falls into Jorge's arms, which pleases him, and they remain together for the rest of the evening. When the company party turns out to be a bore, Tim uses his mask powers to perform a remix of "Can't Take My Eyes Off You
", therefore making the party a success, and giving Tim's boss the idea for a new cartoon. Tim returns to his house and, while still wearing the mask he conceives a baby. The baby, when he is born, has the same powers as Loki. Meanwhile, Loki
is trying to find the child born from the mask, from his father Odin
(Bob Hoskins
) possessing a store clerk, saying if he finds the child, he will find the mask.
Later, Tonya goes on a business trip, leaving Tim with the baby. Tim, who has been promoted at work, desperately tries to work on his cartoon at home, but is disrupted by baby Alvie. In order to get some peace and quiet, Tim lets Alvie watch an episode of Michigan J. Frog
, baby Alvie devilishly obtains the idea to mess with his father's head by using his mask powers. Meanwhile, Otis the dog, who has been feeling neglected by Tim because of Alvie, dons the mask by accident and becomes a crazed animal version of himself, who wishes to get rid of the baby. Tim starts to notice his son and dog's wild cartoonish behavior, when Alvie starts harassing him, while Otis attempts to attack baby Alvie, but is thwarted.
Eventually, Loki finds the mask-born baby, and confronts Tim for the mask back. When Tim is unable to present the mask to him, Loki chases him into an alley and attempts to kill him with a giant grenade, but Alvie protects his dad from the imposing danger, revealing he still loves his father on the inside. Before Loki attempts to attack Tim again, Odin possesses Tim's body, only to find that Loki has failed to obtain the mask and takes his powers away as punishment, not knowing the baby was in his hands and not listening to Loki. Being freed from danger, Tim realizes he is late for the presentation of his first cartoon. Unfortunately, Tim is unprepared when he arrives, and the company head Daniel Moss (Steven Wright
) fires him as a result. Back at home, Alvie and Tim are finally even with each others companies, but Otis, still feeling neglected and sad that Tim has put more of his attention on Alvie instead of him, again puts on the mask, becoming his cartoon version of himself again.
Loki, meanwhile, summons Odin, and convinces him to give him his powers back for an hour, to get his mask back. He threatens Tim into showing up with the mask or else he will never see his son again. Tonya returns, and she and Tim go to find Otis who is on a date with a girl dog named Venus. Tim then apologizes to Otis, and convinces him to give him back the mask to save Alvie. They then meet Loki in the alley, but Loki refuses to give the baby back, after happening to have bonded with him.
It ends in a brawl between Loki and Tim, who puts on the mask again. After a crazy fight between the god and the "superhuman", Loki figures they are evenly matched opponents and believes that they should let the baby decide who he wants to be with. He chooses Tim after the latter delivers a tearful apology to his son for not paying attention to him. But Loki is not prepared to give up so easily, knowing the price he will have to pay if he fails in his mission. He pulls a giant hammer out, and tries to smash Tim, his wife, and the baby. As he is about to smash all three of them, Tim suddenly protects his wife and the baby from the hammer with apparent super strength. Drills come from the hammer and proceed towards Tim. Just when Loki is about to finally crush them, his time runs out. Odin comes back, and scolds him for his failure at his mission, saying that he is "in every sense of the word, a failure". As he is about to banish Loki, who says he is done trying to please him, Tim stands up to the powerful god, telling him that no matter how many times he banishes Loki, he will still be his son, and that the most important thing in the universe is the relationship with your family. Tim then gives the mask to Loki who presents it to his father. Loki and Odin, now reconciled, return to Asgard happily and Loki asks if he could get along with his mother.
Tim then comes back to work, with a great idea for a cartoon: A baby and a dog competing for Dad's attention. At the end, Tonya reveals that she is pregnant again.
that Carrey would be returning in a sequel called The Mask II. The magazine held a contest where the first prize would be awarded a walk-on role in the film. Director Chuck Russell
, who helmed the original film, expressed his interest in a Mask sequel
in his 1996 commentary when DVD
became popular with consumers. He was hoping Jim Carrey
would come back as The Mask, along with Amy Yasbeck
, who played reporter Peggy Brandt in the original. Russell decided to cut scenes when Peggy dies and leave the character open for the sequel, which became this film. In a 1995 Barbara Walters Special, Carrey revealed that he was offered the then-record-setting sum of $10 million to star in The Mask II, but turned it down, because his experiences on Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls
convinced him that reprising a character he'd previously played offered him no challenges as an actor. Due to Jim Carrey declining to reprise his role, the project never came to fruition, and the concept for the sequel was completely changed.
Ben Stein
reprises his role of Dr. Arthur Neuman from the first film. He is involved in the movie to reestablish the relationship between the mask and its creator, Loki. He is the only actor to appear in both films as well as The Mask cartoon series
.
The dog's name, Otis, connects with the dog from the first movie and comic book, Milo, as a reference to the movie The Adventures of Milo and Otis
. The naming of "Tim Avery" pays homage to famous cartoonist Tex Avery
. Tim Avery wants to be a cartoonist throughout the film.
The film was also critically panned. It remains on the Internet Movie Database
Bottom 100, ranked 52. Rotten Tomatoes
ranked the film 75th in the 100 worst reviewed films of the 2000s, with a rating of 6%. It is considered to be one of the worst films ever made.
In his review on At the Movies, Richard Roeper
stated "In the five years I've been co-hosting this show, this is the closest I've ever come to walking out halfway through the film, and now that I look back on the experience, I wish I had." Roger Ebert
stated "What we basically have here is a license for the filmmakers to do whatever they want to do with the special effects, while the plot, like Wile E. Coyote, keeps running into the wall." Lou Lumerick of the New York Post
said "Parents who let their kids see this stinker should be brought up on abuse charges; so should the movie ratings board that let this suggestive mess slip by with a PG rating." When placing blame for the film's critical failure, critic Willie Waffle of WaffleMovies.com asserted, "How far down the Hollywood food chain do you have to go before you get stuck with Jamie Kennedy as the star of your movie? Did Ben Affleck turn down Son of the Mask? Was Carrot Top busy? Did Pauly Shore refuse to return your calls?"
It was the most nominated film at the 2005 Golden Raspberry Awards
, winning for Worst Remake or Sequel, and won several 2005 Stinkers Awards, including Worst Actor (Jamie Kennedy), Worst Sequel, and Worst Couple (Kennedy and Traylor Howard).
When asked in an interview about whether the film's negative critical reaction had damaged Kennedy's morale in wanting do another project like this, Kennedy replied to the interviewer; "Yes. You got me right after a batch of bad interviews so I’m going to be honest with you about this. It does because I’m just being killed, absolutely killed...But honestly, doing this movie is an interesting experience because I just came off my show and “Malibu’s Most Wanted” where I had a good amount of control. And then in this movie I didn’t have any control. I just can’t do that. I have to have my voice in there. If I can’t, I’m just going to be like I’m doing someone else’s thing. I have to have some of my voice because I have my own experiences that I lived through. All I can do is just try to make things independently. That’s the only way you can do it. The only way you can do that is if you’re a huge, huge, huge star. I’m not there yet. I’m just like a working actor."
Eight nominations:
Won:
Fantasy film
Fantasy films are films with fantastic themes, usually involving magic, supernatural events, make-believe creatures, or exotic fantasy worlds. The genre is considered to be distinct from science fiction film and horror film, although the genres do overlap...
family
Family film
A family film is a film genre that is designed to appeal to a variety of age groups and, thus, families.In December 2005, Steven Spielberg's 1982 film E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial came first in a poll of the 100 Greatest Family Films. The genre today generates billions of dollars per annum.Family...
-comedy film
Comedy film
Comedy film is a genre of film in which the main emphasis is on humour. They are designed to elicit laughter from the audience. Comedies are mostly light-hearted dramas and are made to amuse and entertain the audiences...
directed by Lawrence Guterman
Lawrence Guterman
Lawrence "Larry" Guterman is a Canadian film director known for his work in companies like DreamWorks, Warner Bros. and Universal. He directed Cats & Dogs, Son of the Mask, and Back in Time...
, starring Jamie Kennedy
Jamie Kennedy
James Harvey "Jamie" Kennedy is an American comedian, rapper, and actor.-Early life:Kennedy, the youngest of six children, was born in Upper Darby Township, a suburb of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His family is of Irish descent and he was raised Roman Catholic. He attended and graduated from...
as Tim Avery, an aspiring cartoonist from Fringe City who has just had his first child born with the powers of the Mask. It is the stand-alone sequel to the successful 1994 film The Mask
The Mask (film)
The Mask is a 1994 American superhero comedy film based on a series of comic books published by Dark Horse Comics. This film was directed by Chuck Russell, and produced by Dark Horse Entertainment and New Line Cinema, and originally released to movie theatres on July 29, 1994 through New Line...
, an adaptation of Dark Horse Comics
Dark Horse Comics
Dark Horse Comics is the largest independent American comic book and manga publisher.Dark Horse Comics was founded in 1986 by Mike Richardson in Milwaukie, Oregon, with the concept of establishing an ideal atmosphere for creative professionals. Richardson started out by opening his first comic book...
which starred Jim Carrey
Jim Carrey
James Eugene "Jim" Carrey is a Canadian-American actor and comedian. He has received two Golden Globe Awards and has also been nominated on four occasions. Carrey began comedy in 1979, performing at Yuk Yuk's in Toronto, Ontario...
. The film had an $84 million budget and $57.6 million worldwide box office gross.
It also stars Alan Cumming
Alan Cumming
Alan Cumming, OBE is a Scottish stage, television and film actor, singer, writer, director, producer and author. His roles have included the Emcee in Cabaret, Boris Grishenko in GoldenEye, Kurt Wagner/Nightcrawler in X2: X-Men United, Mr. Elton in Emma, and Fegan Floop in the Spy Kids trilogy...
as the god of mischief, Loki
Loki (Dark Horse Comics)
Loki is a fictional character/god of mischief, a superhero by Dark Horse Comics. He is the adoptive brother of the superhero Thor. He is based on Loki from Norse mythology and first appears in Son of the Mask alongside Odin...
, whom Odin has ordered to find the Mask. It co-stars Traylor Howard
Traylor Howard
Traylor Elizabeth Howard is an American actress. She is best known for her roles as Sharon Carter on the television series Two Guys and a Girl and as Natalie Teeger on the USA Network series Monk.-Early life:...
, Kal Penn
Kal Penn
Kalpen Suresh Modi , best known by his stage name Kal Penn, is an American film and television actor, producer, and civil servant....
, Steven Wright
Steven Wright
Steven Alexander Wright is an American comedian, actor and writer. He is known for his distinctly lethargic voice and slow, deadpan delivery of ironic, philosophical and sometimes nonsensical jokes and one-liners with contrived situations.-Early life and career:Wright was born in Mount Auburn...
, and Bob Hoskins
Bob Hoskins
Robert William "Bob" Hoskins, Jr. is an English actor known for playing Cockney rough diamonds, psychopaths and gangsters, in films such as The Long Good Friday , and Mona Lisa , and lighter roles in family films such as Who Framed Roger Rabbit and Hook .- Early life :Hoskins was born in Bury St...
as Odin
Odin (Dark Horse Comics)
Odin is a fictional character/god of victory, by Dark Horse Comics based on Odin in Norse mythology. The character first appears in the movie Son of the Mask...
. Ben Stein
Ben Stein
Benjamin Jeremy "Ben" Stein is an American actor, writer, lawyer, and commentator on political and economic issues. He attained early success as a speechwriter for American presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford...
makes a quick reappearance as Dr. Arthur Neuman from The Mask to reestablish the relationship with the mask and Loki. The film was widely panned by critics. It won the Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Remake or Sequel.
Unlike the first film which was more adult oriented, this film is a family film as the tone is much lighter and more comical than the first one's.
Plot
Ten years after the first filmThe Mask (film)
The Mask is a 1994 American superhero comedy film based on a series of comic books published by Dark Horse Comics. This film was directed by Chuck Russell, and produced by Dark Horse Entertainment and New Line Cinema, and originally released to movie theatres on July 29, 1994 through New Line...
, Dr. Arthur Neuman (Ben Stein
Ben Stein
Benjamin Jeremy "Ben" Stein is an American actor, writer, lawyer, and commentator on political and economic issues. He attained early success as a speechwriter for American presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford...
) is giving a tour of the hall of Norse mythology
Norse mythology
Norse mythology, a subset of Germanic mythology, is the overall term for the myths, legends and beliefs about supernatural beings of Norse pagans. It flourished prior to the Christianization of Scandinavia, during the Early Middle Ages, and passed into Nordic folklore, with some aspects surviving...
in Edge City Museum. A man in black comes in to view the hall. When Dr. Neuman reaches the part concerning Loki's imprisonment, the stranger becomes very angry and transforms, revealing himself to be Loki
Loki (Dark Horse Comics)
Loki is a fictional character/god of mischief, a superhero by Dark Horse Comics. He is the adoptive brother of the superhero Thor. He is based on Loki from Norse mythology and first appears in Son of the Mask alongside Odin...
(Alan Cumming
Alan Cumming
Alan Cumming, OBE is a Scottish stage, television and film actor, singer, writer, director, producer and author. His roles have included the Emcee in Cabaret, Boris Grishenko in GoldenEye, Kurt Wagner/Nightcrawler in X2: X-Men United, Mr. Elton in Emma, and Fegan Floop in the Spy Kids trilogy...
). The tourists panic and flee, but Dr. Neuman stays to argue with the angry god. Loki takes his mask, but realizes it is a fake. In anger he removes Dr. Neuman's still talking face from his body and puts it on the mask's stand before getting rid of the guards and storming out of the museum in a whirlwind of rage.
In a town called Fringe City, Tim Avery (Jamie Kennedy
Jamie Kennedy
James Harvey "Jamie" Kennedy is an American comedian, rapper, and actor.-Early life:Kennedy, the youngest of six children, was born in Upper Darby Township, a suburb of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His family is of Irish descent and he was raised Roman Catholic. He attended and graduated from...
), an aspiring cartoonist
Cartoonist
A cartoonist is a person who specializes in drawing cartoons. This work is usually humorous, mainly created for entertainment, political commentary or advertising...
at an animation company, is feeling reluctant to become a father. He has a beautiful wife, Tonya (Traylor Howard
Traylor Howard
Traylor Elizabeth Howard is an American actress. She is best known for her roles as Sharon Carter on the television series Two Guys and a Girl and as Natalie Teeger on the USA Network series Monk.-Early life:...
), and a best friend, Jorge (Kal Penn
Kal Penn
Kalpen Suresh Modi , best known by his stage name Kal Penn, is an American film and television actor, producer, and civil servant....
), who is very shy around women. Tim has a close relationship with his dog Otis, who finds an ancient mask in a creek and brings it to his owner's house.
Tim puts on the mask for a Halloween party, transforming into a party animal that is similar to the mask character from the first film. Tim notices Jorge's crush, Sylvia standing alone in the back, eagerly confronts her, and has her stripped out of her costume and into a skimpy red suit. Sylvia falls into Jorge's arms, which pleases him, and they remain together for the rest of the evening. When the company party turns out to be a bore, Tim uses his mask powers to perform a remix of "Can't Take My Eyes Off You
Can't Take My Eyes off You
"Can't Take My Eyes Off You" is a 1967 single by Frankie Valli. The song was among Valli's biggest hits, reaching #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and earning a gold record. It was Valli's biggest "solo" hit until he hit #1 in 1975 with "My Eyes Adored You"...
", therefore making the party a success, and giving Tim's boss the idea for a new cartoon. Tim returns to his house and, while still wearing the mask he conceives a baby. The baby, when he is born, has the same powers as Loki. Meanwhile, Loki
Loki (Dark Horse Comics)
Loki is a fictional character/god of mischief, a superhero by Dark Horse Comics. He is the adoptive brother of the superhero Thor. He is based on Loki from Norse mythology and first appears in Son of the Mask alongside Odin...
is trying to find the child born from the mask, from his father Odin
Odin (Dark Horse Comics)
Odin is a fictional character/god of victory, by Dark Horse Comics based on Odin in Norse mythology. The character first appears in the movie Son of the Mask...
(Bob Hoskins
Bob Hoskins
Robert William "Bob" Hoskins, Jr. is an English actor known for playing Cockney rough diamonds, psychopaths and gangsters, in films such as The Long Good Friday , and Mona Lisa , and lighter roles in family films such as Who Framed Roger Rabbit and Hook .- Early life :Hoskins was born in Bury St...
) possessing a store clerk, saying if he finds the child, he will find the mask.
Later, Tonya goes on a business trip, leaving Tim with the baby. Tim, who has been promoted at work, desperately tries to work on his cartoon at home, but is disrupted by baby Alvie. In order to get some peace and quiet, Tim lets Alvie watch an episode of Michigan J. Frog
Michigan J. Frog
Michigan J. Frog is an animated cartoon character who debuted in the Looney Tunes cartoon One Froggy Evening , written by Michael Maltese and directed by Chuck Jones...
, baby Alvie devilishly obtains the idea to mess with his father's head by using his mask powers. Meanwhile, Otis the dog, who has been feeling neglected by Tim because of Alvie, dons the mask by accident and becomes a crazed animal version of himself, who wishes to get rid of the baby. Tim starts to notice his son and dog's wild cartoonish behavior, when Alvie starts harassing him, while Otis attempts to attack baby Alvie, but is thwarted.
Eventually, Loki finds the mask-born baby, and confronts Tim for the mask back. When Tim is unable to present the mask to him, Loki chases him into an alley and attempts to kill him with a giant grenade, but Alvie protects his dad from the imposing danger, revealing he still loves his father on the inside. Before Loki attempts to attack Tim again, Odin possesses Tim's body, only to find that Loki has failed to obtain the mask and takes his powers away as punishment, not knowing the baby was in his hands and not listening to Loki. Being freed from danger, Tim realizes he is late for the presentation of his first cartoon. Unfortunately, Tim is unprepared when he arrives, and the company head Daniel Moss (Steven Wright
Steven Wright
Steven Alexander Wright is an American comedian, actor and writer. He is known for his distinctly lethargic voice and slow, deadpan delivery of ironic, philosophical and sometimes nonsensical jokes and one-liners with contrived situations.-Early life and career:Wright was born in Mount Auburn...
) fires him as a result. Back at home, Alvie and Tim are finally even with each others companies, but Otis, still feeling neglected and sad that Tim has put more of his attention on Alvie instead of him, again puts on the mask, becoming his cartoon version of himself again.
Loki, meanwhile, summons Odin, and convinces him to give him his powers back for an hour, to get his mask back. He threatens Tim into showing up with the mask or else he will never see his son again. Tonya returns, and she and Tim go to find Otis who is on a date with a girl dog named Venus. Tim then apologizes to Otis, and convinces him to give him back the mask to save Alvie. They then meet Loki in the alley, but Loki refuses to give the baby back, after happening to have bonded with him.
It ends in a brawl between Loki and Tim, who puts on the mask again. After a crazy fight between the god and the "superhuman", Loki figures they are evenly matched opponents and believes that they should let the baby decide who he wants to be with. He chooses Tim after the latter delivers a tearful apology to his son for not paying attention to him. But Loki is not prepared to give up so easily, knowing the price he will have to pay if he fails in his mission. He pulls a giant hammer out, and tries to smash Tim, his wife, and the baby. As he is about to smash all three of them, Tim suddenly protects his wife and the baby from the hammer with apparent super strength. Drills come from the hammer and proceed towards Tim. Just when Loki is about to finally crush them, his time runs out. Odin comes back, and scolds him for his failure at his mission, saying that he is "in every sense of the word, a failure". As he is about to banish Loki, who says he is done trying to please him, Tim stands up to the powerful god, telling him that no matter how many times he banishes Loki, he will still be his son, and that the most important thing in the universe is the relationship with your family. Tim then gives the mask to Loki who presents it to his father. Loki and Odin, now reconciled, return to Asgard happily and Loki asks if he could get along with his mother.
Tim then comes back to work, with a great idea for a cartoon: A baby and a dog competing for Dad's attention. At the end, Tonya reveals that she is pregnant again.
Cast
- Jamie KennedyJamie KennedyJames Harvey "Jamie" Kennedy is an American comedian, rapper, and actor.-Early life:Kennedy, the youngest of six children, was born in Upper Darby Township, a suburb of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His family is of Irish descent and he was raised Roman Catholic. He attended and graduated from...
as Tim Avery/The Mask - Alan CummingAlan CummingAlan Cumming, OBE is a Scottish stage, television and film actor, singer, writer, director, producer and author. His roles have included the Emcee in Cabaret, Boris Grishenko in GoldenEye, Kurt Wagner/Nightcrawler in X2: X-Men United, Mr. Elton in Emma, and Fegan Floop in the Spy Kids trilogy...
as Loki - Traylor HowardTraylor HowardTraylor Elizabeth Howard is an American actress. She is best known for her roles as Sharon Carter on the television series Two Guys and a Girl and as Natalie Teeger on the USA Network series Monk.-Early life:...
as Tonya Avery - Bear as Otis (Masked Otis voiced by Bill FarmerBill FarmerWilliam "Bill" Farmer is an American voice actor and comedian, best known for being the current voice of the Disney characters Goofy, Pluto and Horace Horsecollar.-Early life:...
and Richard Steven HorvitzRichard Steven HorvitzRichard Steven Horvitz, sometimes credited as Richard S. Horvitz, Richard Horvitz, or Richard Wood, is an American actor and voice actor best known for his work as the voice of the original Alpha 5 in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, Power Rangers Zeo, and Power Rangers Turbo, as Raz in Psychonauts,...
) - Ryan and Liam Falconer as Alvey Avery (voiced by Joyce KurtzJoyce KurtzJoyce Hedy Kurtz , better known as Joyce Kurtz or Joyce Kurtz Mahan, is a voice actress.Some of her television credits are as follows:*True Blood*Deadwood*Big Love*Dexter*House M.D....
, Mona MarshallMona MarshallMona M. Ianotti is an American voice actress. She is often cast in the role of young boys. Her roles have included parts in not only Japanese anime, but also in American cartoons as well. Mona Marshall has recently lent her voice to the talking bear Koby the Study Buddy...
, Mary Mouser, and Neil RossNeil RossTheodoric Neilson "Neil" Ross is an English voice actor and announcer, born in London, England and now resident and working in Los Angeles, in the United States. He has provided voices for in many American cartoons, particularly those based on Hasbro products and Marvel Comics, and numerous...
) - Kal PennKal PennKalpen Suresh Modi , best known by his stage name Kal Penn, is an American film and television actor, producer, and civil servant....
as Jorge - Steven WrightSteven WrightSteven Alexander Wright is an American comedian, actor and writer. He is known for his distinctly lethargic voice and slow, deadpan delivery of ironic, philosophical and sometimes nonsensical jokes and one-liners with contrived situations.-Early life and career:Wright was born in Mount Auburn...
as Daniel Moss - Bob HoskinsBob HoskinsRobert William "Bob" Hoskins, Jr. is an English actor known for playing Cockney rough diamonds, psychopaths and gangsters, in films such as The Long Good Friday , and Mona Lisa , and lighter roles in family films such as Who Framed Roger Rabbit and Hook .- Early life :Hoskins was born in Bury St...
as Odin - Ben SteinBen SteinBenjamin Jeremy "Ben" Stein is an American actor, writer, lawyer, and commentator on political and economic issues. He attained early success as a speechwriter for American presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford...
as Dr. Arthur Neuman - Magda SzubanskiMagda SzubanskiMagda Szubanski is a British-born Australian actress, comedian, television presenter, radio host and author.Szubanski's career began while she was studying at university and she progressed to television sketch comedy, as both a writer and performer...
as Betty
Production
Not long after the release of The Mask, it was announced in Nintendo PowerNintendo Power
Nintendo Power magazine is a monthly news and strategy magazine formerly published in-house by Nintendo of America, but now run independently. As of issue #222 , Nintendo contracted publishing duties to Future US, the U.S. subsidiary of British publisher Future.The first issue published was...
that Carrey would be returning in a sequel called The Mask II. The magazine held a contest where the first prize would be awarded a walk-on role in the film. Director Chuck Russell
Chuck Russell
Charles "Chuck" Russell is an American motion picture director, producer and actor.-Filmography:*The Hearse *Hell Night *The Seduction...
, who helmed the original film, expressed his interest in a Mask sequel
Sequel
A sequel is a narrative, documental, or other work of literature, film, theatre, or music that continues the story of or expands upon issues presented in some previous work...
in his 1996 commentary when DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
became popular with consumers. He was hoping Jim Carrey
Jim Carrey
James Eugene "Jim" Carrey is a Canadian-American actor and comedian. He has received two Golden Globe Awards and has also been nominated on four occasions. Carrey began comedy in 1979, performing at Yuk Yuk's in Toronto, Ontario...
would come back as The Mask, along with Amy Yasbeck
Amy Yasbeck
Amy Marie Yasbeck is an American film and television actress. She is best known for her role as Casey Chapel Davenport on the sitcom Wings from 1994-1997.-Early life:...
, who played reporter Peggy Brandt in the original. Russell decided to cut scenes when Peggy dies and leave the character open for the sequel, which became this film. In a 1995 Barbara Walters Special, Carrey revealed that he was offered the then-record-setting sum of $10 million to star in The Mask II, but turned it down, because his experiences on Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls
Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls
Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls is the sequel to Ace Ventura: Pet Detective . Jim Carrey reprises his role as the title character Ace Ventura, a detective who specializes in retrieval of tame or captive animals. This is the only sequel to a film starring Carrey in which Carrey reprised his role...
convinced him that reprising a character he'd previously played offered him no challenges as an actor. Due to Jim Carrey declining to reprise his role, the project never came to fruition, and the concept for the sequel was completely changed.
Ben Stein
Ben Stein
Benjamin Jeremy "Ben" Stein is an American actor, writer, lawyer, and commentator on political and economic issues. He attained early success as a speechwriter for American presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford...
reprises his role of Dr. Arthur Neuman from the first film. He is involved in the movie to reestablish the relationship between the mask and its creator, Loki. He is the only actor to appear in both films as well as The Mask cartoon series
The Mask: The Animated Series
The Mask: The Animated Series is a television animated series based on the comic book superhero, The Mask, but is a sequel to the 1994 film adaptation. The show ran for three seasons, from August 12, 1995 to March 8, 1997, and spawned its own short-run comic book series, Adventures of The Mask....
.
The dog's name, Otis, connects with the dog from the first movie and comic book, Milo, as a reference to the movie The Adventures of Milo and Otis
The Adventures of Milo and Otis
The Adventures of Milo and Otis is a live action Japanese film about an orange tabby cat named Milo and a fawn pug named Otis.The original Japanese version was released on June 27, 1986, and the reworked English language version was released on August 25, 1989.Initially filmed as Koneko Monogatari...
. The naming of "Tim Avery" pays homage to famous cartoonist Tex Avery
Tex Avery
Frederick Bean "Fred/Tex" Avery was an American animator, cartoonist, voice actor and director, famous for producing animated cartoons during The Golden Age of Hollywood animation. He did his most significant work for the Warner Bros...
. Tim Avery wants to be a cartoonist throughout the film.
Reception
The film was a critical and commercial flop, only earning back $57.6 million of its $84 million budget.The film was also critically panned. It remains on the Internet Movie Database
Internet Movie Database
Internet Movie Database is an online database of information related to movies, television shows, actors, production crew personnel, video games and fictional characters featured in visual entertainment media. It is one of the most popular online entertainment destinations, with over 100 million...
Bottom 100, ranked 52. Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
ranked the film 75th in the 100 worst reviewed films of the 2000s, with a rating of 6%. It is considered to be one of the worst films ever made.
In his review on At the Movies, Richard Roeper
Richard Roeper
Richard E. Roeper is an American columnist and film critic for The Chicago Sun-Times and now a co-host on The Roe Conn Show on WLS-AM...
stated "In the five years I've been co-hosting this show, this is the closest I've ever come to walking out halfway through the film, and now that I look back on the experience, I wish I had." Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...
stated "What we basically have here is a license for the filmmakers to do whatever they want to do with the special effects, while the plot, like Wile E. Coyote, keeps running into the wall." Lou Lumerick of the New York Post
New York Post
The New York Post is the 13th-oldest newspaper published in the United States and is generally acknowledged as the oldest to have been published continuously as a daily, although – as is the case with most other papers – its publication has been periodically interrupted by labor actions...
said "Parents who let their kids see this stinker should be brought up on abuse charges; so should the movie ratings board that let this suggestive mess slip by with a PG rating." When placing blame for the film's critical failure, critic Willie Waffle of WaffleMovies.com asserted, "How far down the Hollywood food chain do you have to go before you get stuck with Jamie Kennedy as the star of your movie? Did Ben Affleck turn down Son of the Mask? Was Carrot Top busy? Did Pauly Shore refuse to return your calls?"
It was the most nominated film at the 2005 Golden Raspberry Awards
2005 Golden Raspberry Awards
The Golden Raspberry Awards are given to the worst movies of the year. The nominations for the 26th annual Golden Raspberry Awards were announced on January 30, 2006...
, winning for Worst Remake or Sequel, and won several 2005 Stinkers Awards, including Worst Actor (Jamie Kennedy), Worst Sequel, and Worst Couple (Kennedy and Traylor Howard).
When asked in an interview about whether the film's negative critical reaction had damaged Kennedy's morale in wanting do another project like this, Kennedy replied to the interviewer; "Yes. You got me right after a batch of bad interviews so I’m going to be honest with you about this. It does because I’m just being killed, absolutely killed...But honestly, doing this movie is an interesting experience because I just came off my show and “Malibu’s Most Wanted” where I had a good amount of control. And then in this movie I didn’t have any control. I just can’t do that. I have to have my voice in there. If I can’t, I’m just going to be like I’m doing someone else’s thing. I have to have some of my voice because I have my own experiences that I lived through. All I can do is just try to make things independently. That’s the only way you can do it. The only way you can do that is if you’re a huge, huge, huge star. I’m not there yet. I’m just like a working actor."
Video game
A video game based on the film was released on Wireless Phone on February 10, 2005. The game was published and developed by Indiagames.Awards and nominations
2005 Golden Raspberry Awards2005 Golden Raspberry Awards
The Golden Raspberry Awards are given to the worst movies of the year. The nominations for the 26th annual Golden Raspberry Awards were announced on January 30, 2006...
Eight nominations:
- Worst Picture
- Worst Actor (Jamie KennedyJamie KennedyJames Harvey "Jamie" Kennedy is an American comedian, rapper, and actor.-Early life:Kennedy, the youngest of six children, was born in Upper Darby Township, a suburb of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His family is of Irish descent and he was raised Roman Catholic. He attended and graduated from...
) - Worst Supporting Actor (Alan CummingAlan CummingAlan Cumming, OBE is a Scottish stage, television and film actor, singer, writer, director, producer and author. His roles have included the Emcee in Cabaret, Boris Grishenko in GoldenEye, Kurt Wagner/Nightcrawler in X2: X-Men United, Mr. Elton in Emma, and Fegan Floop in the Spy Kids trilogy...
) - Worst Supporting Actor (Bob HoskinsBob HoskinsRobert William "Bob" Hoskins, Jr. is an English actor known for playing Cockney rough diamonds, psychopaths and gangsters, in films such as The Long Good Friday , and Mona Lisa , and lighter roles in family films such as Who Framed Roger Rabbit and Hook .- Early life :Hoskins was born in Bury St...
) - Worst Director (Lawrence GutermanLawrence GutermanLawrence "Larry" Guterman is a Canadian film director known for his work in companies like DreamWorks, Warner Bros. and Universal. He directed Cats & Dogs, Son of the Mask, and Back in Time...
) - Worst Screenplay (Lance Khazei)
- Worst Remake or Sequel
- Worst Screen Couple (Jamie Kennedy & "anyone stuck sharing the screen with him")
Won:
- Worst Remake or Sequel