Sarah Michelle Gellar

There’s life in the old dog yet

It’s hardly mould-breaking, but Scooby Doo 2 is best of breed among the family films this Easter

SCOOBY-DOO 2: MONSTERS UNLEASHED *** (PG, 92mins)

Freddie Prinze Jr, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Linda Cardellini, Matthew Lillard, Seth Green, Tim Blake Nelson, Alicia Silverstone, Peter Boyle, and the voice of Neil Fanning

With the Easter holidays almost upon us, the emphasis this week is most definitely on family-friendly fare. And with Mike Myers’ Cat In The Hat proving a bit of an old furball, all the pressure is on Scooby Doo to show who’s top dog.

In the event, the sequel to the first live-action version of the classic cartoon fails to unleash anything particularly new.

But it will still provide parents with a perfectly pleasant way to while away an hour and a half with their little darlings during the upcoming break.

As we join proceedings Fred (Prinze Jr), Daphne (Gellar), Velma (Cardellini), Shaggy (Lillard) and Scooby (voiced by Fanning) have been lauded for their crime-fighting adventures by the people of their home town, Coolsville.

As part of a tribute to the Mystery Inc. gang, a major exhibition full of costumes of some of their old foes is being unveiled, but the celebrations threaten to go a bit awry when a masked villain uses a mayhem-making machine to bring their enemies back to life.

Fred and Daphne lead efforts to uncover who is behind the dastardly plan, while Shaggy and Scooby embark on their own investigation, which involves a whole series of not- so-cunning disguises.

Meanwhile, brainy Velma has been sidetracked by her crush on Coolsonian Criminology Museum curator Patrick Wisely (Green), who also happens to be one of the gang’s main suspects.

Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed follows the formula laid out in its successful predecessor. Hence we have lovingly re-created monsters, a number of amusing set-pieces and a silly, shaggy dog story at the centre of it all.

There’s no doubt however that it’s only really at its best when Scooby and Shaggy are on screen.

That said, it still provides reasonably diverting entertainment, especially for the pre- teen audience.

You may not be able to teach an old dog new tricks - but the ones Scooby shows here can still just about cut the mustard.