Fourth of July Dance 2 is part of Family Entertainment’s Dance 2 series, bringing small children a simple dance-along video, where “simple,” unfortunately, borderlines on monotonous. There are a few dialogue scenes, but a big portion of the video is filler, reminiscent of a musical screen saver. That said, Fourth of July Dance 2 has some very positive points.
We first meet three-year-olds Beezbee the bee, Peanut the giraffe, and Brooklyn the lion as they gear up for the new Fourth of July celebration and dance. They become more and more excited just talking about their favorite Fourth of July activities and decide they will tour the town of Sunnyville to find out what the other residents like the most about this special holiday.
The first resident the trio meets is none other than Santa Claus! There’s no snow in the sunny summer, but Santa makes them giggle when he has a “food fit”. (He goes a little bonkers when he ponders all the food that the Fourth of July party serves.) Beezbee, Peanut, and Brooklyn chuckle happily performing their Fourth of July dance.
The three-year-olds continue on. Between dances, they visit friends and residents like Lolly the dragon, Ice-cream monkey, Southern unicorn, Sunny the sun, Shelly the turtle, and more. They learn that the town’s people have all kinds of Fourth of July faves, such as ice cream and apple pie, fireworks, parades, and togetherness.
Wisely, the creators of the film add in a strong warning (via the trio) against kids handling the fireworks, which should be left to an adult. Another positive comes when Shelly the turtle explains how and why we celebrate the Fourth. This part would be for older children (who probably aren’t watching), or maybe an adult in the room.
Production-wise the animation lacks a definitive dance, but is full of color, and at times offers an interesting setting. Usually soft rock is the score accompanying the happy dance to put us in a happy place! There are no objectionable elements, and discussion points for families could include thankfulness for living in a great country, and what makes our United States great.
Summary: The trio of three-year-olds, Beezee, Brooklyn, and Peanut travel through their village of Sunnyville to learn more about the Fourth of July, entertaining and dancing as they go. Some of the video may bore kids, while some dialogue scenes will hold their attention. Dove awards Fourth of July Dance 2 the Dove Seal of Approval for All Ages.
