As a walking metaphor for the terrible twos, this little big boy should provide parents plenty of exasperated chuckles. But “Honey’s” primary appeal will be to kids. Like “Honey, I Shrunk the Kids,” the sequel has modest satirical aspirations and bland, suburbanized characterizations: it’s a descendant of the Disney “Absent-Minded Professor” movies of the early ’60s. Director Randal (“Grease”) Kleiser and screenwriters Thom Eberhardt, Peter Elbling and Garry Goodrow see to it that this potentially nightmarish situation stays benign by making Adam himself cheerfully oblivious to his altered stature. His unfailing good humor is broken by tears only once, and the filmmakers tactfully resist the temptation to indulge in any Brobdingnagian bathroom humor. (Think of what John Waters could have done with this!)
Adam is played by by the cherubic twins Daniel and Joshua Shalikar, scene stealers at any size, and Robert Oliveri plays his shy teenage brother, who finds himself sharing Adam’s huge overall pocket with the high-school babysitter (Keri Russell) he’s adored from afar. After a flat-footed opening, the fine special effects take over and Kleiser keeps the adventure zipping along at a rapid clip. For this adult’s taste, the first movie had a shade more magic and wit: given the combination of a King Kong-size toddler and the lunacy of Las Vegas, Kleiser just scratches the surface of the surrealistic possibilities. But kids may find this the more appealing fantasy: it’s a kind of ultimate infantile power trip, to bestride the universe like a giant and turn the entire world into one big playpen.
