It seemed the dogs worries were over. When Cruella de Vil was sent to jail at the end of 101 Dalmatians, everyone breathed a huge sigh of relief. But you can't keep a bad woman down and Cruella (Glenn Close) is back.  | | Up, up and away. Guess what's going to happen to the puppy? |
It all starts innocently enough. Cruella has apparently been cured of all desires to wear fur. She even agrees to bail out an animal shelter. But all things come to an end. The revolutionary treatment is fatally flawed. Loud noises revert the patient to their former ways, so when Cruella visits her probation officer Chloe (Alice Evans) just as Big Ben's about to strike the hour, it's goodbye Ella (as she'd come to be known) and welcome back Ms. Cruel. "This is a wonderful film and I loved it . I felt so sorry for the puppy who had no spots and I wanted to step through the screen and cuddle all of them."
Jenny Landsberger, West Sussex |
Chloe's Dalmatian family become the target of her desire to create the ultimate spotted coat (complete with a fur hood requiring that 102nd Dalmatian of the title). Together with French furrier Le Pelt (Depardieu) she transports the puppies to France chased by Chloe, new boyfriend Kevin (Grufford) and an array of animals including a talking macaw (voiced by Eric Idle). It all ends in an hilarious climax in a cake factory.  | | This is what happens when Dalmatian pups first encounter Cruella De Vil |
OK, so there's nothing really new about this film but it is great Christmas family entertainment. There's good use of computer graphics when London is turned black and white, nice Disney in-jokes with the dogs watching Lady and the Tramp on video and, of course, cute Dalmatian puppies. But it's Glenn Close who steals the show. Wearing an outrageous array of costumes, her transformation from good to evil is literally hair raising and the children were screaming with laughter when she was "cooked."
Be a child this Christmas and give yourself a laugh.
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