The uncanny valley nightmare
The biggest hurdle for any parent thinking about putting this on isn't just the bad writing—it is the visual horror of the mask-powered infant. While the first movie relied on a legendary physical performance, this sequel leans into mid-2000s digital effects to create a baby that moves with a rubbery, unnatural physics. One critic review correctly identified this as "uncanny valley" territory. Instead of being cute or funny, the child often looks like a distorted puppet.
If your kids are sensitive to things looking "off" or slightly creepy, this movie will likely bother them. It attempts to replicate the logic of a Looney Tunes short in a live-action setting, but where a hand-drawn Coyote can get flattened by a boulder and look funny, a realistic-looking baby doing the same thing feels jarring. The "cartoon logic" mentioned in reviews doesn't translate here; it just feels like a series of frantic, noisy events without a soul.
Missing the Jim Carrey spark
It is hard to overstate how much this film suffers from the absence of its original star. The first movie worked because it was a star vehicle for a once-in-a-generation comedian who could match the energy of the special effects. This version tries to replace that charisma with a CGI dog and a screaming toddler.
If your family has already seen the original and the kids are asking for more, you should know that this is a sequel in name only. The tone shifts from a stylized, slightly edgy comedy to a loud, messy "family" movie that feels like it was designed by a committee. Before you commit to this 2005 follow-up, it is worth looking back at The Mask (1994): What Parents Need to Know About This PG-13 Classic to see why that version actually landed the plane. The 1994 film had a specific vision, whereas this one feels like a collection of rejected storyboard ideas.
The "so bad it's good" trap
Sometimes a movie with a 6% Rotten Tomatoes score becomes a cult classic for being hilariously incompetent. This isn't that movie. To pull off a "so bad it's fun" night, a film usually needs to be earnest or weirdly ambitious. Son of the Mask is just exhausting.
The plot involving an aspiring cartoonist named Tim Avery and the god Loki is thin, serving only as a clothesline to hang various slapstick sequences on. Critics and audiences on platforms like Reddit and IMDb are unusually united on this point: it is boring. Even younger viewers who usually have a high tolerance for bright colors and loud noises tend to check out halfway through because the pacing is so relentless. There is no breathing room, no charm, and no reason to pick this over the thousands of better animated or live-action comedies available on the same streaming platforms. If you want a fantasy comedy that actually engages a kid's imagination, keep scrolling.
