In 2015 Warner Bros. debuts the feature film Max that looks like it was a moderate hit and a film that tried hard to offer up something special. While the film didn’t fully work it was still a decent little film, but not one that warranted a sequel, but that never stopped the film industry before. Now Max is back with his latest adventure in Max 2: White House Hero with The Spy Next Door and Jingle All the Way director Brian Levant at the helm.

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Max 2: White House Hero follows Max who is assigned to the White House while Butch, the secret service dog, is on maternity leave. He meets TJ, a 12 year old boy, who is the President's son. Due to his father's high profile, he is trying hard to fit in and lead a normal life. During a state visit by the Russian President and his daughter, Alexandra (Alex), TJ is asked to accompany her, during their stay. TJ befriends Alex, but when they get into trouble, Max comes to the rescue! I want to start by saying I liked the first film ok for what it is, but was a bit leery on this latest entry and after seeing it was warranted. e My first big issue with the film is the lack of it connected to the original film in anyway at all. They just introduce Max like he roams around on his own with no mention of the family that fought hard to connect with him and his own PTSD in the first film. This alone waters down the point of the character and lets you know that this is not going to be the same kind of film in anyway.

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The first film offers up some laughs and adventure, but even more so an emotional journey that made it more than it would have otherwise. This time around the story offers some adventure, but plays up more like a straight kid/family film that offers very little to help it stand out. They have infused every cliché flick from this genre here and even the adventure action side of it fails to do much other than walk through the paces. I loved the importance the first film brought to the table and it is sad that it has now been turned into just another forgettable kids film. If you have never seen the first film then it really won’t matter and little kids may find it fun, but if you have it will just feel like a watered down misstep.

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Decide for yourself and grab your copy of Max 2: White House Hero available now on Blu-ray and DVD from Warner Bros. Home Entertainment.