Movie Substrate · Film

Descendants 2 (2017)

★ 7.4 · 1,767 ratings on TMDB

Long Live Evil

Descendants 2 poster★ 7.4

When the pressure to be royal becomes too much for Mal, she returns to the Isle of the Lost where her archenemy Uma, Ursula's daughter, has taken her spot as self-proclaimed queen.

DirectorKenny Ortega
CastAnna Cathcart, Booboo Stewart, Brenna D'Amico, Cameron Boyce, China Anne McClain, Dove Cameron
GenresAdventure, Family, Fantasy, Music
The emergence reading

Descendants 2 keeps every mind human — it fights its subject at zero distance. The story fights on E8/E9 of the E0–E14 reality ladder, compressing prejudice, identity, belonging, royalty, magic.

zero-distanceUSprejudiceidentitybelongingroyaltymagic
Also inFilms about prejudiceFilms about identity
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Same rung, same subject

Films fighting at the same level of reality, about the same things.

Far Far Away Idol (2004)E8/E9 · identity, magicThe Breakfast Club (1985)E8/E9 · belonging, identityLuca (2021)E8/E9 · belonging, identityThe Jungle Book (2016)E8/E9 · belonging, identityMean Girls (2004)E8/E9 · belonging, identityTarzan (1999)E8/E9 · belonging, identity

Same subject, different rung

The same preoccupations examined at another scale — one mind versus a nation.

Return to Oz (1985)E10/E13 · rare rung · identity, magicX-Men: The Mutant Watch (2000)E11/E12 · rare rung · identity, prejudice

Same people

Shared director or cast.

Descendants 3 (2019)dir. Kenny OrtegaDescendants (2015)dir. Kenny OrtegaHigh School Musical 2 (2007)dir. Kenny OrtegaTo All the Boys I've Loved Before (2018)Anna CathcartEagle Eye (2008)Cameron BoyceBarely Lethal (2015)Dove Cameron