Keys to the Kingdom Poor Sequel to Norm of the North

Norm (ANDREW TOTH) is a polar bear who, out of all the bears at the North Pole, has the ability to speak human. This is convenient, as he finds himself having to interact with them a lot in this film, and is apparently a novelty. A point is made that none of the other bears (or other animals, for that matter) speak human -- except for Norm's son, Quinn. It's nothing that's taught, it just happens.

In this sequel to NORM OF THE NORTH, Norm is being crowned King of the Arctic. As such, he is asked to return to New York City, so that the mayor may present him the key to the city. Everyone in the Arctic, including Quinn, thinks Norm will make a fool of himself, because he's not very articulate or coordinated. But he manages to make friends anyway, and takes Quinn with him to New York to meet his human friend Olympia (MAYA KAY).

But while he's in New York, overnight he goes from hero to wanted criminal, as a string of bank robberies catches what looks like Norm making off with all the money in the banks. Suddenly, Norm is wanted, and he has to find the real bank robber, with the help of his friends -- and a talking hare named Fong (LEE TOCKAR), the richest animal in the world. So Norm is no longer a unique thing in the world -- but Fong has been known to the world for a while, so Norm never should have been a surprise to people in the first place.

Norm and his friends solve the problem of the bank robbery, capturing the crook and restoring Norm's good name. Unfortunately, this is all done in the first twenty minutes of this film, so there's almost a whole movie to go, as Norm returns to the Arctic to find his brother, Stan (ALAN MARRIOTT), has signed a deal with a foreign country to sell all the ice to a bottled water company. It all comes down to a war between the animals of the North and the greedy humans... oh, no, wait. It's actually going to be resolved by a best of three set of hockey games. Yes, the animals -- who can't talk human -- can suit up and play hockey to fight for their home.

Ultimately, NORM OF THE NORTH: THE KEYS TO THE KINGDOM is a cheaply-animated, poorly plotted children's cartoon that doesn't entertain more than it bores. Possibly suitable for pre-schoolers, but it won't keep the attention of anyone seven years old or older.