Review of Journey 2: The Mysterious Island

This review is going to be short. I'm struggling to think of much to write about. My expectations for this film weren't high, especially when the name doesn't make any sense. So many of my mates have asked "When was Journey 1 out?" Not realising that it is in fact a sequel to Journey to the Centre of the Earth (so it would have made more sense to just call it Journey to The Mysterious Island).
I wasn't happy that Brendan Fraser wasn't returning for the sequel, in my opinion he isn't in enough films, but who can complain when his replacement is Dwayne The Rock Johnson? Johnson plays the step father of Josh Hutcherson's character from the first film. The film itself was a big disappointment. I really enjoyed the first one, but in this case, not even Michael Cain being cast could save it. The story is fairly similar, and is badly written, it isn't as funny as the first one, and all in all, it just feels like a lazy attempt at a sequel.
Again though, follows a story inspired by novels by Jules Verne, and it also brings in some other authors from that time period. So the inspiration for the film is the same as the first one.
I didn't bother seeing this one in 3D, but as I was watching it, I could gather that there were certain parts that would have been good in 3D, but nothing spectacular. We all thought that it was the end of Dwayne Johnson's kids film phase (with his recent descend on action movies like Fast 5 and Faster), but apparently he has a soft spot for them. I really liked him in The Scorpion King, and I really wish that films like this would use his full potential as an actor. As a plus, he is the best character (even better than Michael Cain), and has a few moments of good comedy. The way I see this film though, is an opportunity to witness Josh Hutcherson's acting skills just before the release of The Hunger Games, and from what I can see, he can handle himself pretty well on screen. I must say though, Selena Gomez was such a waste of time, there was no need to have her in the movie, they obviously felt like they needed to through in a love story, just not as subtly as in the first one.
Based on acting and special effects, I'm going to give this film a 3.5/10

And I pray to God that they don't make another film based on the ending to this one, it, will, be, horrendous!