Trolls World Tour

If only all of life’s problems were as easy to solve as finding the right vibe to match your mood. Such is the case for the carefree occupants of Trolls World Tour, an aggressively energetic follow-up to the hyperactive 2016 animated musical.

Functioning as a feature-length music video for a medley of tunes spanning genres and eras, this innocuous nonsense might keep your toes tapping along with the beat. But once the music stops, there’s nothing left.

This installment again follows Poppy (voiced by Anna Kendrick) and Branch (Justin Timberlake) in their nonstop dance party of pop-music remixes. Yet it turns out there are worlds outside of their own — six, to be exact, filled with trolls who prefer rock, funk, country, techno, and classical.

When they find out that Queen Barb (Rachel Bloom) and her heavy-metal father (Ozzy Osbourne) want rock to reign supreme, it’s up to the pop trolls to either fight back or embrace the change.

Of course, like its predecessor, the sequel is geared toward a less discerning target demographic with short attention spans. They might not care if the film plays like a series of snippets on Instagram, and could be more receptive to the half-hearted message of acceptance through musical appreciation. As Poppy explains: “We’re all trolls. Differences don’t matter.”

As with the prior effort, the animation is noteworthy for its crisp detail and vibrant colors. Walt Dohrn, making his solo directorial debut after co-directing the first Trolls film, crams every frame with as much candy-coated mayhem as possible, with nearly every sequence bordering on sensory overload.

Meanwhile, the eclectic cast incorporates such recognizable voices as Kelly Clarkson, Mary J. Blige, George Clinton, J Balvin, James Corden, and Anderson.Paak.

Within the loose narrative structure, some of the loopy eccentricities and mischievous inside jokes provide sporadic highlights. When Poppy’s team tries to showcase some of the most “important” pop songs of all time by playing the Spice Girls and “Who Let the Dogs Out,” a fiery red-haired country troll tells them off: “That was a crime against music.”

Just like with most musical world tours, the rationale behind Trolls World Tour appears to stem more from financial rather than creative means. However, this wholesome animated jam session cranks up the volume without ever finding its rhythm.

Rated PG, 94 minutes.