In the beginning, Trolls lived in silence. Then one day, the first sound was made, and the Troll leaders loved it so much that they decided to make six strings, each one representing a different genre of music. As time carried on, however, disagreements over the strings divided the world of Trolls into factions, with each group taking one string to represent their community.

That’s probably more Trolls lore than you ever needed or thought existed, but it’s the basis for Trolls World Tour, an overlong exercise in stretching a paper-thin universe for the sake of cashing in on an entirely unnecessary series.

In the sequel to the 2016 original, Poppy (voiced by Anna Kendrick) and Branch (Justin Timberlake) learn of the six strings and the different lands after a troll named Queen Barb (Rachel Bloom, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend) tries to conquer the universe in the name of rock and roll. Branch and Poppy take it upon themselves to visit every realm in the Troll universe to warn others of the impending danger, and along the way learn that many subgenres also exist. There are the six main communities — pop, rock, country, techno, classical, and funk — as well as K-pop, yodeling, and more. There is something for everyone, and they all have songs to sing.

Speaking of songs, of which there are many, Trolls World Tour largely forgoes original ideas in preference of genre staples that have been force-fed through a branding machine. “Girls Just Want To Have Fun,” for example, becomes “Trolls Just Want To Have Fun.” That staggering height of creative expression is the bar that all elements of the film attempt to achieve through heavy-handed, brightly-colored sequences of ebullient nonsense. At one point, a diamond-encrusted troll gives birth to tinier version of himself mid-song, while another scene features a troll capable of pooping birthday cakes. 

Trolls World Tour desperately wants to be topical. As Poppy, Branch, and Queen Barb venture between the various communities, they’re often shocked by their discoveries. They don’t understand why country trolls enjoy sad songs (don’t they know music is supposed to be happy?) or why the classical trolls’ songs don’t include lyrics. These differing ideas of music are first thought to be bad because they’re different than what the main trolls enjoy, but (spoiler alert) they inevitably find reasons to celebrate the things that make each culture unique.

Trolls World Tour attempts to bridge the numerous racial and cultural divides that humans face through a rainbow-colored display of poptimism, rocktomism, country-tism, and all the other -tisms in music. If we can teach children that different tastes in music are okay, the film’s producers believe that maybe the kiddos will accept differing opinions on other things, such as religion, sexuality, and immigration. It’s a far-fetched pipe dream of hopefulness, I know, but considering how poorly every other attempt to help people understand these seemingly simple concepts have worked, what’s the harm?

Grade: C-minus. Rated PG. Now available to rent via Amazon Prime Video, iTunes, and other participating on-demand services.

(Photo: Dreamworks)