Charlotte's Web 2: Wilbur's Great Adventure

Charlotte's Web 2: Wilbur's Great Adventure
DVD cover
Directed by	Mario Piluso
Screenplay by	Elana Lesser Cliff Ruby
Based on	Characters created by E. B. White
Produced by	James Wang
Starring	Julia Duffy David Berón Charlie Adler Amanda Bynes
Edited by	Christopher Hink
Music by	Michael Tavera
Production companies	Paramount Pictures Universal Cartoon Studios Nickelodeon Animation Studio
Distributed by	Paramount Home Entertainment (North America) Universal Studios Home Video (International)
Release date	March 18, 2003 (2003-03-18)
Running time	79 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

Charlotte's Web 2: Wilbur's Great Adventure is a 2003 American animated direct-to-video adventure film, and the sequel to the 1973 film Charlotte's Web, which was based on the children's novel of the same name by E. B. White. The film was produced by Paramount Pictures, Universal Cartoon Studios, and Nickelodeon; and distributed by Paramount Home Entertainment in North America and Universal Studios Home Entertainment overseas. It was released on March 18, 2003, 30 years after its predecessor in 1973.

The film follows Wilbur as he lives on Mr. Zuckerman's farm and is taking care of Nellie, Aranea, and Joy, Charlotte's three daughters. He also must save his new friend, a friendly black lamb named Cardigan, from being eaten by an evil fox named Farley.

Charlotte's Web 2: Wilbur's Great Adventure received generally unfavorable reviews, with critics panning its animation and plot.

Plot

The film opens in springtime, the year after Charlotte has died. Her three daughters, Nellie, Aranea, and Joy, are now in the stages of adolescence, with Wilbur serving as a companion and mentor. Templeton has his own children to look after, and Gwen the Goose has just hatched new goslings.

During this time, Wilbur befriends a newborn lamb named Cardigan, who is ostracized by the other lambs and sheep of his flock because he has black wool. Wilbur takes Cardigan under his wing and shows him the farm, the ways of animal life, and dangers to avoid.

A few months later, the county fair arrives. Farmer Zuckerman loads Wilbur and Cardigan into crates before heading to the fair. There, Zuckerman sells Cardigan to another farmer, Mr. Hirsh, much to Wilbur's chagrin. Fern, knowing that Wilbur and Cardigan are friends, begs for Zuckerman to reconsider, but Zuckerman sells Cardigan anyway.

Wilbur becomes worried about Cardigan, and resolves to go visit him to make sure he is doing alright at his new home. As she was born there, Gwen gives Wilbur directions to Mr. Hirsh's farm. Wilbur, knowing that he will get lost on the way to Cardigan's new farm, requests that Templeton guide him there, under the promise that Wilbur will babysit Templeton's bratty child. Templeton declines, believing it is far too late at night. However, Templeton soon changes his mind, in exchange for the promised babysitting days.

During the journey to visit Cardigan, Wilbur becomes hungry. He finds some blackberries to eat, which cause his face to turn purple. He then gets his foot tangled in some brambles, from which Templeton frees him in exchange for two more weeks of babysitting. Some bark from the trees falls and lands on Wilbur's head, making him look like a wild boar. A near hit by a truck then reveals that two other men have now seen Wilbur, and they resolve to warn everyone about the "wild pig".

The following morning, Wilbur makes it to Cardigan's, and they are happy to see each other. After Cardigan tells Wilbur that Mr. Hirsh plans to shear him, Wilbur promises Cardigan that he will stay until his wool is shorn.

Meanwhile, an evil fox named Farley comes and steals a hen from the barn, and Nellie encourages Wilbur to stop him. However, Wilbur is unsuccessful, as Farley flees from the barn, leaving Wilbur there to be framed for the attack. When Mrs. Hirsh arrives, she sees Wilbur and thinks he was the one after the chickens. Fern notices that Wilbur has disappeared and alerts Zuckerman, while Wilbur requests that Nellie, Aranea, and Joy spin a message in their webs like Charlotte did. However, their efforts are unsuccessful, and Wilbur is chased off by Mrs. Hirsch once again. Wilbur is forced to abandon his promise to stay with Cardigan, much to their dismay.

Immediately after, Farley returns and attempts to raid the chicken coup once again, but it has been fenced. Farley then sees Cardigan and steals him from the barn, planning to eat him. Wilbur manages to trap Farley in a "pig web", while Nellie, Aranea, and Joy spin the word "fox" in their webs and Fern arrives just in time to save Wilbur. Aranea and Joy decide to stay with Cardigan, and the film ends as Wilbur fulfills his promise to babysit Templeton's children, to his dismay.

Cast

• Julia Duffy as Charlotte A. Cavatica, Wilbur's best friend who died at the end of the first film. She appears briefly in flashbacks.
• David Berón as Wilbur, a pig who lives on Zuckerman's farm and is taking care of Charlotte's three daughters, Nellie, Aranea, and Joy. He still suffers from anxiety as in the first film. He befriends Cardigan, a lonely lamb. When Cardigan is sold to another farmer, Wilbur sets out to make sure he is still safe.
• Charlie Adler as Templeton, a care-free, egotistical rat who lives at Homer's farm. He has four bratty children of his own: Henrietta, Lester, Ralphie, and Junior. He accompanies Wilbur, Nellie, Aranea, and Joy on the journey to visit Cardigan on the condition that Wilbur babysits his bratty children. Adler also voices Lurvy, Zuckerman's farmhand.
• Amanda Bynes as Nellie, one of Charlotte's three daughters who serves as the leader of the trio. Mimi Manners provides her singing voice.
• Anndi McAfee as Joy, the cynical, sarcastic member of the trio.
• Maria Bamford as Aranea, the kinder, gentler member of the trio. She always gets upset because she cannot spin a proper web. Bamford also voices Button, Mrs. Hirsch's pampered pet dog.
• Harrison Chad as Cardigan, a lonely lamb whom Wilbur befriends. When Zuckerman decides to sell Cardigan to another farmer, Wilbur becomes determined to see him again. Later, Wilbur has to save him from being eaten by Farley the Fox.
• Rob Paulsen as Farley the Fox, an evil, pompous fox responsible for the loss of many chickens and eggs from various farms. Paulsen also voices Fern's father, Mr. Arable.
• Debi Derryberry as Fern Arable, the spirited young girl who saved Wilbur in the first film. She enters the tomato-growing contest at the fair. Her tomato, named Sal, wins the competition.
• Laraine Newman as Gwen the Goose, a cheerful, motherly goose who Wilbur befriended in the first film. She has a noticeably smaller role this time around.
• Dawnn Lewis as Bessie, a cow owned by Mr. Hirsch. She gets annoyed easily, but also learns to like Wilbur because he was the only one to find her milk to taste good. Lewis also voices the female contest judge at the fair who gives the prize tomato to Fern.
• Danny Mann as Mr. Hirsch, the farmer who buys Cardigan. His first name is Conrad, as spoken by his wife.
• Brenda Vaccaro as Mrs. Hirsch, Mr. Hirsch's wife who mistakes Wilbur for a wild pig. Her first name is Sally, as spoken by her husband.
• Jerry Houser as Mr. Zuckerman, the current owner of Wilbur and former owner of Cardigan.
• Valery Pappas as High Strung Chicken
• Nika Futterman as Baby Rats, Templeton's bratty children. Their names are Henrietta, Lester, Ralphie, and Junior.
• Bridget Sienna as Flo, a snobby cow who mocks Bessie for producing sour milk.
• Bobby Block as Snotty Lamb
• Ashley Edner as Bully Lamb
• Pat Fraley as Donkey
• Frank Welker as Animals' vocal effects

Reception

Upon release, Charlotte's Web 2: Wilbur's Great Adventure received generally unfavorable reviews from critics. Robert Pardi of TV Guide reviewed the film saying that "This 20-years-later follow-up fails to capture the zest of the original cartoon, transforming E.B. White's beloved characters into cute sidekicks worthy of Barney. The animation is only workmanlike, and the character conceptions are as pallid as the "original" tunes". Brian Webster of Apollo Guide gave the film 59/100, stating "This is the sort of bland adventure that kids will have seen a hundred times before, with not-so-tense near-misses and not-so-exciting chases along the way." Mike Long of DVD Talk opined that "The lame story isn't helped by the mediocre at best animation. The art has no real style and could have come from any Saturday morning cartoon. The colors are good, but they only draw attention to the overall lack of detail here. For some reason, Wilbur has been given a ring of fur around his neck that keeps him from looking like the pig from the original film. Also, the Fern here looks nothing like the original. Typically, if an animated film is dull, viewers can hope for good animation to keep them entertained, but that's not the case here." Entertainment Weekly's Allyssa Lee gave the movie a C− grade, writing, "A sloppy second of a sequel, Web 2 unravels all the charm of E.B. White’s classic (not only has Wilbur become a swine who belches, but he sings about it, too)."

Richard Rowell of lifesuccessfully.com wrote a mixed review and concluded that "Overall, this film would have never done very well had it not been packaged with the DVD release of the original film. It was a direct-to-DVD film and it shows. While it makes for a cute spectacle for fans of the original story, it has all sorts of plot-holes that kill it for me. It's clear that there was some effort put into character development, and I did enjoy seeing Aranea, Joy, and Nellie come to life. They were the best part of the film for me. But overall, the film was so corny and cliched that it just can't hold a candle to the original. For what it is, though, it's OK. But unless you're a huge fan of the original story, it's not really worth watching." Jules Faber of dvd.net similarly called it "A disappointing excursion that merges old school with new school and succeeds in distancing itself from both. There are plenty of characters to amuse the children, but as far as grown-ups are concerned, this is less than plausible. Bunches of pretty colours and some beautiful backgrounds were the highlight here for me and are also sure to capture the kids’ eye for the entire 80 minutes. I’ve seen better animation in better packages, but I’ve also seen much, much worse for around the same money." Mirella Roche-Parker of michaeldvd.com rated it with 1.5/5 stars with the final comment "Who can know the minds of children when it comes to children's movies? If your particular batch of little'uns enjoyed the original, they may very well enjoy this. For my taste, it simply made me miss the original more." The DVD made a cumulative gross of $5.26 million in rental revenue and $10.23 million in its total first quarter.

Soundtrack

• "It's Not So Hard to Be a Pig" – Written and produced by Randy Rogel and Grant Geissman, Performed by David Berón and Harrison Chad
• "Watch Out, Wilbur the Pig!" – Written and produced by Randy Rogel and Grant Geissman, Performed by Kevin Dorsey and Elizabeth Lamers
• "It's Good to Be Me" – Written and produced by Randy Rogel and Grant Geissman, Performed by Rob Paulsen
• "Charlotte's Kids" – Written and produced by Bodie Chandler, Performed by Anndi McAfee, Maria Bamford, and Mimi Manners

External links

• Charlotte's Web 2: Wilbur's Great Adventure at AllMovie
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• Charlotte's Web 2: Wilbur's Great Adventure at IMDb
• Charlotte's Web 2: Wilbur's Great Adventure at Rotten Tomatoes