Balto: Wolf Quest (2002) (V)

Director:

Phil Weinstein

Writer:

Dev Ross (writer)

Release Date:

19 February 2002 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Family | Animation

Tagline:

The adventures of a true American hero continue

Plot:

Balto and his daughter Aleu embark on a journey of adventure and self discovery. |

Plot Keywords:

Daughter | Father | Ice | Father Daughter Relationship | Bear

Awards:

1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

Maurice LaMarche	...	Balto (voice)
Jodi Benson	...	Jenna (voice)
Lacey Chabert	...	Aleu (voice)
David Carradine	...	Nava the Wolf Shaman (voice)
Mark Hamill	...	Niju the Evil Wolf (voice)
Charles Fleischer	...	Boris (voice)
Peter MacNicol	...	Muru (voice)
Rob Paulsen	...	Terrier / Sumac / Wolverine 2 (voice)
Nicolette Little	...	Dingo (voice)
Melanie Spore	...	Saba (voice)
Kevin Schon	...	Muc / Luc / Wolverine 1 (voice)
Joe Alaskey	...	Hunter / Nuk (voice)
Monnae Michaell	...	Aniu (voice)
Mary Kay Bergman	...	Fox / Wolverine 3 (voice)
Jeff Bennett	...	Yak (voice)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Molly Marlette	...	Young girl / puppy

Directed by
Phil Weinstein

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Dev Ross		writer

Produced by
David W. King	....	associate producer
Phil Weinstein	....	producer

Original Music by
Adam Berry

Film Editing by
Ken Solomon

Art Department
Todd Britton	....	storyboard artist
Jerry Verschoor	....	storyboard artist

Sound Department
Gary Alexander	....	supervising sound re-recording mixer
Devon Bowman	....	adr recordist
Devon Bowman	....	production sound mixer
Roy Braverman	....	sound designer
Roy Braverman	....	sound effects editor
Eric Freeman	....	dialogue editor
William Griggs	....	supervising sound editor
Daisuke Sawa	....	sound editor
Thomas Syslo	....	sound effects editor

Special Effects by
Kathleen Quaife-Hodge	....	special effects designer (as Kathleen Quaife)

Visual Effects by
Kexx Singleton	....	character designer

Animation Department
Woody Yocum	....	animation timing director

Music Department
Richard F.W. Davis	....	music editor
Perry La Marca	....	orchestrator
Marcus Trumpp	....	orchestrator

Other crew
Jim Cerrotta	....	dialogue supervisor

Production Companies

• Universal Cartoon Studios

Distributors

• Argentina Video Home (2002) (Argentina) (DVD)
• Argentina Video Home (2002) (Argentina) (VHS)

Runtime:

Russia:75 min | USA:76 min | Argentina:78 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Argentina:Atp | Brazil:Livre | South Korea:All | Australia:G | Germany:o.Al. | USA:G

Company:

Universal Cartoon Studios

Trivia:

Muru's name is Latin. It could come from "mus", meaning 'mouse.' Or, more probably, it derives from "murus", which means 'wall.' This is where we get the word 'mural.' Most likely, it comes from "murus" because Muru himself turns out to be a cave painting, and he is part of a huge mural on the cave wall.

Goofs:

Miscellaneous: When the other wolves have left, Balto and Aleu are by themselves, and there are clearly shadows under them. When the raven flies by, it has no shadow on the ground.

Quotes:

Aleu: I know who I am. I am Aleu, daughter of Balto and Jenna, who happens to be a pure-bred husky. Who are you?

Movie Connections:

References Balto (1995)

Soundtrack:

Muru's Chant

A worth-seeing DTV animated movie.

Of course, Balto 2 is nothing like the original; like most animated DTV sequels, it has been made with a low budget, so don't expect it to be as good as the original was. However, I think it's still a good sequel : the story is fine (if not compared to the first), the backgrounds are beautiful, and the musics are excellent in several scenes. Usually I hate the songs from those DTV sequels, but here they aren't annoying and even worth listening. The only bad point I would give is the animation itself, which is really bad in a few scenes and looks more like a TV show (ie the bear scene...), but as I said it is often the case with DTV sequels. Also, the characters look and act a bit differently from the first. But from a general point of view, it's still an enjoyable quest, and I think it could have been much worse...So, a good direct-to-video, perhaps one of the best, but not at the level of the original. If you liked the first Balto, then you should at least rent B2. And if you don't like this sequel, then wait for the third Balto, which (from everything I heard, like the return of the original writers) will be a lot better, and will stick more to the original!