Descendants 2

The first Descendants—also a made-for-cable live-action Disney musical—introduced a quartet of adolescent offspring of villains from the studio's classic animated movies. The four were freed from their island prison by Ben, peace-making prince of the blissful kingdom of Auradon, so that they could attend school with the children of Disney heroes and heroines. Here, they worked through the trauma of fitting in and overcame demands by their wicked parents to steal a magic wand that would lead to more evil. Now, Mal (Dove Cameron), daughter of Maleficent, is the girlfriend of Ben (Mitchell Hope), who is newly crowned as king, but after the pair have a falling out over her continued use of magic, she flees back to the Isle of the Lost, which is now ruled by Uma (China Anne McClain), daughter of Ursula the Sea-Witch. When Ben tries to persuade Mal to come back, he is captured, and the aforementioned wand becomes the price for his safe return. So Mal and her friends must confront Uma and her henchmen aboard a pirate ship while staging a rescue. Directed by veteran Kenny Ortega (High School Musical), Descendants 2 is a colorful but bland sequel that is more frantic than energetic, featuring effects that underwhelm and instantly forgettable musical numbers. Still, the first movie was a big hit with young viewers, so this should be considered a strong optional purchase. (F. Swietek)