Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted

PLOT (spoiler alert!!!):

After four years since bidding the penguins goodbye, Alex the lion has a nightmare about himself and his friends still stranded in Africa and finding they have all gotten old. He then wakes from his nightmare on his birthday, and the animals present him with a miniature model of New York City out of mud. Alex suggests to Marty the zebra, Melman the giraffe, and Gloria the hippopotamus that they should go to Monte Carlo to get the penguins to fly them back to New York City, which they agree to.

In Monte Carlo, Alex and his gang’s attempt to reach the penguins and King Julien blunders and sparks chaos in the Monte Carlo Casino, where its security calls the captain of Monaco’s animal control, Chantel Dubois, to deal with the animals. A high-speed chase around the streets of Monaco ensues between the relentless Dubois and the animals in a truck driven by the penguins to reach their aircraft and they depart on the plane, barely escaping Dubois.

In the skies of France, the plane’s gear assembly fails and the plane crashes into a suburban rail yard as the authorities close in. They come across a circus train and knocked on it, desperately trying to get in. Seeing their only chance of escape is on the circus train, they desperately claim that they are circus animals themselves, which convinces Stefano the sea lion and Gia the jaguar to let them in despite the protests of Vitaly the tiger. The animals soon learn from Stefano that they are performing in Rome and London, where they plan to impress a promoter to get them on their first American tour. Before the zoo animals’ claim is discredited, the penguins suddenly appear with a deal to purchase the circus themselves, resulting in the pleased departure of all the humans. Afterwards, Julien finds himself falling in love wth a tricycle-riding bear name Sonya. Meanwhile the others prepare for the performance at the Colosseum in Rome. Unfortunately, to the zoo animals’ horror, the show proves to be a disaster. The angered audience demands refunds, right to going to the point of chasing the circus to the departing train to London.

En route to London, Stefano soon reveals to Alex that Vitaly was once their inspiration. Once a professional ring jumper who used to leap through incrementally smaller hoops to excite crowds and was always pushing himself to the limit, his attempt at an impossible jump through a flaming pinkie ring ended in disaster when he burned his fur, which he had coated in extra virgin olive oil in order to slip through the narrow opening, destroying his confidence in his talent and the whole circus suffered by his example. An inspired Alex then has the train make a stop in the Alps and convinces the performers to rework their act to become the opposite of the world-famous human-only Cirque du Soleil as an animal-only lights and acrobatic show. Heartened by Alex’s vision, the zoo animals and the circus animals develop sophisticated acts together and become closer friends in the process, especially Alex and Gia who find themselves falling in love.

Meanwhile, Dubois is arrested in Rome after causing problems with the local police officers while chasing the animals out of her jurisdiction, but escapes and discovers that Alex was the missing lion from the zoo in New York. Once free, Dubois recruits her injured men and they head toward the Alps, forcing the animals to proceed to London despite incomplete rehearsals. In London, the troupe prepares for the promoter in the audience, but Vitaly is discovered packing to leave. Alex convinces Vitaly to stay by reminding him of how he enjoys performing the impossible and suggests that he uses hair conditioner as a safer lubricant to perform his flaming ring jump. As a result, Vitaly’s stunt is performed perfectly, which proves to be the opening of a spectacularly successful show and Alex and Gia grew closer to each other. After the impressed promoter arranges for an American tour, Dubois shows up with a paper showing that Alex was missing. Though the penguins are able to foil Dubois’ plan, Alex is forced to confess that the four of them are just zoo animals trying to get home, disappointing the others who feel used and lied from the four of them. Also, Julien breaks up with Sonya, telling her that he can’t be a part of the circus.

Finally, both the zoo animals and the circus arrive in New York City. Likewise, the zoo group and Julien finally arrive at the gates of the closed Central Park Zoo, only to realize that their adventure has changed them too much to return to captivity and that they were “home” when they joined the circus. The zoo animals resolve to return to the circus and reconcile with their new friends, but they are then tranquilized and captured by Dubois. The zoo staff, delighted by Alex’s reappearance, thank Dubois, incorrectly believing that she was returning the missing animals. Unnoticed, Julien manages to reach the circus (despite being darted by Dubois) and the penguins realize that the group had been ambushed. Upon learning about the zoo animals’ plight, Gia and Vitaly convince the circus animals to rescue their friends and they set out for the zoo, performing aboard a flying circus.

Meanwhile at the zoo, Alex awakens to find that he along with Marty, Melman, and Gloria are in their enclosures, surrounded by tall chain-link fences. Dubois steps on stage to receive a million-dollar check of appreciation from the zoo, which she rejects, and secretly loads a poison-filled dart into a gun which she hides inside a foam finger in preparation to kill Alex. The circus animals arrive in time to stop her and a massive brawl occurs where the circus uses all of what they had developed as part of their revamped act. As the group tries to leave, DuBois attempts to kill Stefano, who is stranded at the zoo. However, Alex saves Stefano by performing a performance he describes as the “Trapeze Americano”, proving that it is real, and all the animals then defeat the insane DuBois, and escape.

Heartened by this valiant demonstration of their new friends’ love, Alex and his friends decide to join the circus permanently to start their American tours across the country. Meanwhile, DuBois and her men find themselves inside shipping crates on a cargo ship bound for Madagascar, thanks to Skipper (just like in the first film).

REVIEW:

There comes a point with films like Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted that you truly must sit back and wonder if it was made to tell a good story or just grab a few $$$ from kids and their parents. I happen to believe this is more of the latter, but I could be totally wrong.

What is this about?

Having ended their African adventures, Alex and his friends set their sights for New York City — this time, hitching a ride with a traveling circus. But as they make their way through Europe, they run into their fair share of roadblocks.

What did I like?

Animal control. In both previous films, it seems as if the humans just let the animals rum amok with little to no effort to control them. Yes, they did make an attempt to capture them, but that was obviously just to have a villain or two. This time around, we meet Chantal Dubois, a French animal control officer who is apparently very competent, as she has never not captured her target. It is about time we got someone like this to give them a run for their money!

No king. I found the character of King Julien to be a bit over the top and too much. Then again, he is voiced by Sacha Baron Cohen, so I really shouldn’t be surprised. In this film, he and his “subjects” get very little screentime. I guess focus groups felt the same way and the filmmakers decided to scale him back.

Circus and balance. I must say that the circus scene was quite impressive. I’m not quite sure that I loved it, but there was a definitive entertainment factor there. A note must be made about the balance in the film’s tone. Make no mistake that this is a kid’s film, but there are moments in there that adults can enjoy as well, without having to lower their IQ to understand something.

What didn’t I like?

Character design. In the first Madagascar, there was a look to the characters. It was almost as if they were crude cut outs or something. That look is still here, but they’ve smoothed it out so much, that you can barely tell. They might as well just have been animated normally. When you have something that makes you unique, then why change it?

3D. I didn’t see this in theaters, but it was obvious some of the scenes they wanted to utilize the technology with. The circus was one, but also there is a scene with Melman, the giraffe, where he extends his neck directly toward the audience. Some people may eat this stuff up, but not me. 3D is supposed to be for special, grand things, not just whatever you can throw at the screen.

Afro circus. I’m sure we all saw the commercials for this thing over the summer with that annoying “Afro circus” song. While it isn’t featured as heavily as you would imagine, it is in here a few times and just as annoying. I guess if I were about 8 yrs old, I might feel different, but good lord was I about ready to puncture my eardrums just so I would never have to hear that thing again!

There has been some debate as to whether Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted is the best of the franchise. I think it has the best plot of the 3, but the first seems to be more my cup of tea. That is a personal preference, though. Do I recommend this? Yes, as a matter of fact I do. It is one of the better family films that was released last year (note I said better, not the best). You can sit the whole family down and watch this one, so enjoy!

4 out of 5 stars

Dinosaur

PLOT (spoiler alert!!!):

The film opens with an Iguanodon mother forced to abandon her nest, with only one egg surviving a Carnotaurus attack. The egg is taken by an Oviraptor, who drops it into a river while fighting another Oviraptor, and finally is taken by a Pteranodon to an island inhabited by lemurs, who see the egg hatch, name the baby dinosaur Aladar, and raise him as their own. When Aladar is an adult, the island is destroyed when an asteroid crashes on earth, causing a meteor shower, with only Aladar, his grandfather Yar, his mother Plio, his best friend Zini and his sister Suri surviving the destruction of the island by swimming to the land.

After fleeing a pack of Velociraptor, the family meets a multi-species herd of dinosaurs (consisting of a bunch of Iguanodon, Styracosaurus, Pachyrhinosaurus, Stygimoloch, Microceratus, Parasaurolophus, and Struthiomimus) led by the Iguanodon Kron and his lieutenant Bruton, who are on a journey to reach the “Nesting Grounds”, a valley believed to be untouched by the devastation of the asteroid impact. Aladar and the lemurs befriend a trio of elderly dinosaurs: Baylene the Brachiosaurus, Eema the Styracosaurus, and Url, Eema’s dog-like pet Ankylosaurus. Aladar also develops romantic feelings for Kron’s sister Neera, but she appears uninterested, playing hard to get. Meanwhile, the Velociraptor pack continues to follow them, but are scared off when a pair of Carnotaurs picks up the herd’s trail too. The herd arrives at a lake they’ve relied on for past trips, but it has dried up. Aladar saves the herd from dehydration when he and Baylene eventually dig up the trapped water beneath the ground. Aladar and Neera eventually fall in love after Neera sees Aladar helping the dinosaurs (especially the elderly ones) survive. However, Bruton, having been sent by Kron to find water upon arrival at the lake, returns injured by the Carnotaurus which killed another Iguanodon that was scouting with him. Kron evacuates the herd from the lake bed in a rush, leaving Aladar, the lemurs, the elderly dinosaurs, and the injured Bruton behind, also warning Aladar that he will be executed if he meddles with leadership affairs again.

The small group recuperates in a cave during a rainstorm, with Bruton eventually befriending them. When the Carnotaurus pair attacks, Bruton’s loyalty is proven when he kills one of them as the others escape to the depths of the caves, being killed in the process. But one of the Carnotaurus escapes, enraged by the death of its mate but unable to follow the group. Upon reaching a dead end, Aladar begins to lose hope, after repeated failures and the loss of Bruton. His friends all join in breaking down the dead end, stabilizing his confidence. Finally, Baylene demolishes the wall. The dead end actually leads to the “Nesting Grounds”, where Eema sees that the old entrance – where the herd has gathered on the other side – has been blocked by a landslide generated by the meteors.

Aladar rushes to find the herd on the other side, accidentally alerting and being tracked by the Carnotaurus. He finds the herd being directed by Kron to climb the rocks, which can’t be passed without fatality, but when he suggests the alternate route he found, Kron becomes enraged at his authority being questioned and challenged, and attempts to kill Aladar. Despite landing a few good hits, Aladar is outclassed by Kron, who only stops short of killing Aladar when Neera, tired of her brother’s illogical beliefs, strikes him down and defends Aladar. Aladar and Neera take control of the herd, but Kron refuses to submit to the leadership of another and begins climbing the rocks himself. The Carnotaurus then confronts them, but Aladar rallies the herd to drive it off by standing together and scaring it off with intimidation. The Carnotaurus leaves the herd alone, but spots Kron who mistakes that Aladar lead the Carnotaur to the herd climbing the rocks alone, and is followed by Neera and Aladar as it charges to kill the former leader of the herd. In the ensuing fight, Kron is severely wounded by the Carnotaurus, but Aladar is able to push the predator off a cliff to its death. Kron, however, succumbs to his injuries and dies with Aladar and Neera at his side.

Aladar and Neera lead the herd back to the “Nesting Grounds”, where the two eventually mate and have children, and the lemurs find more of their own kind. Plio narrates the ending, wishing for their story to be remembered in history. She then says, “But one thing is for sure. Our journey is not over, we can only hope in some small way our time here will be remembered.”

REVIEW:

Following the Disney Renaissance, people wondered how the company would rebound after their films started to not do so hot. The unfortunate answer was the beginning of the computer animated Disney (not Pixar) films, of which Dinosaur was the first.

What is this about?

In Disney’s animated film, an orphaned Iguanadon named Aladar grows up in the care of a group of lemurs. But when a meteor shower appears, Aladar and his lemur “family” flee their homeland and seek safety. While on the run, Aladar encounters other dinosaurs for the first time, and they must all work together to survive.

What did I like?

Scenery. Today, scenery like we see here can be created by computers, but back in 2000, that technology didn’t quite exist, so the brilliant filmmakers made the decision to use actual locations as the background. As with most films of this nature, the only place left on this planet that still has its natural beauty is New Zealand.

Dialogue. I remember when I saw the first trailer for this that had no dialogue whatsoever. It turns out that originally, that was the plan, but someone decided it would work better to have talking dinosaurs. I think this worked better, especially when you throw in the fact that this is supposedly a kid’s film. Without the talking dinosaurs, this would have been nothing more than some kind of documentary of sorts, with dinosaurs.

Comic relief. Keeping with the kind formula one can expect from a film of this nature, the comic relief comes from the characters that seem the most out of place, but are the most lovable. Headlined by Della Reese, these supporting characters bring some much needed levity to a film that could very well have just been a bunch of giant creature traipsing around the countryside.

What didn’t I like?

More of the same. I really wonder if the dinosaurs did anything other than wander around looking for oasis areas. If you go by the movies, that is all they seem to do. Think about the plots of Ice Age and The Land Before Time, as well as their sequels. These magnificent creatures deserve something better when they are put on film, besides wandering around like mindless brutes.

History. I was reading the history of how this was getting made and learned that there was a moment when this was set to be stop-motion animation. In the past, I have not hidden the fact that I think stop-motion is far superior to computer generated crap. Dinosaurs also really work when they are computer generated, as we’ve seen in Ray Herryhausen creations.

Lemurs. To my knowledge, lemurs were not around during this time. So, using them is nothing more than a marketing ploy. Soft and cuddly characters are almost always a sure bet to sell, as opposed to scaly dinosaurs. Throw in that whole wannabe The Lion King story where they raise the dinosaur and they just didn’t work for me.

Dinosaur is one of those forgotten Disney films. That isn’t because this is a bad or boring film, but rather because it is overshadowed by far superior films.I find it kind of funny that I’m watching this after watching the old show Dinosaurs (remember Baby saying “Not the Mama!”). So, is this a recommendation or condemnation? Well, it is a decent family flick with a few violent scenes here and there that may be too much for younger children. A good watch, but not something to go out of your way to see.

3 1/2 out of 5 stars

Rise of the Guardians

PLOT (spoiler alert!!!):

The story begins with the spirit of winter, Jack Frost being raised from a frozen lake, but he returns to the world unseen by people and it is learned that he cannot be seen because he is not believed in, and all of his memories from his former life are gone. Only his name, given to him by the Man in the Moon who raised him, is known to him.

300 years later, North receives a vision in his workshop of the boogeyman Pitch Black, and alerts the other Guardians; the head of the tooth fairies Tooth, the short tempered Australian-accented E. Aster Bunnymund and the gentle, non-speaking Sandy to the North Pole. Upon their arrival, they do not want to believe that Pitch poses a threat, but their guide the Man in the Moon suggests otherwise and instructs them to induct Jack Frost as a new Guardian to combat the threat. Meanwhile, Jack instills fun and laughter in children from his childish nature and inspires a snowball fight between a young believer named Jamie and the local children, but still they do not believe in him and he is still invisible. Jack is taken forcibly to the North Pole by North’s Yeti workshop workers, but declines joining the Guardians as his centuries-long isolation has left him bitter to the responsibility they hold dear to protect the children of the world. North tries to convince him otherwise, but they are alerted to an attack on Tooth’s palace. When they arrive, they discover Pitch’s nightmares taking all of the childrens’ teeth and the baby tooth fairies that work as Tooth’s assistants. Jack saves one before they are confronted by Pitch, who states he intends to stop the childrens’ belief in the Guardians so he instead is believed in, wielding a power like Sandy’s to turn his dreams into nightmares. Pitch escapes and the loss of belief in the tooth fairy seems to immediately effect Tooth. Jack volunteers to help when he discovers that the teeth provide the memories of the children they came from including his own and seeks to find his place among them. They manage to collect the teeth in one night and faith in Tooth is restored though they are caught by Jamie who can see them all with the exception of Jack. Jack and Sandy are attacked by Pitch’s nightmares and though Jack’s efforts are valiant, Sandy is overcome and seemingly destroyed by Pitch. With Easter a day away, the group agrees to help Bunny distribute his eggs. They find Jamie’s toddler sister Sophie at the Warren and manage to decorate eggs for distribution, Jack then takes Sophie home.

Lured by a familiar voice calling to him from under a bed in the forest, Jack and Baby Tooth discover Pitch’s hideout. Pitch offers Jack’s canister of memories in exchange for remaining a neutral party, but Jack refuses and in retaliation, Pitch destroys all the eggs before they make their way to the surface, destroying the childrens’ belief in the Easter Bunny. Being blamed for the failure, Jack leaves the Guardians and isolates himself in Antarctica where he encounters Pitch again who offers a partnership to spread fear to all the children. But Jack wants to be loved, not feared and rejects Pitch’s offer again. Pitch holds Baby Tooth hostage for Jack’s staff and then he sends Jack and Baby Tooth into a crevasse when Jack hands the staff over. Baby Tooth suggests Jack open his memories, where he discovers he was a teenage boy who had saved his sister from falling through thin ice by alleviating her fear with fun, in turn though he’d fallen in, but that sacrifice inspired the Man in the Moon to resurrect him as Jack Frost. Inspired by this, Jack returns to save the last light of belief on Earth; Jamie. Not only does Jack succeed in reaffirming Jamie’s faith in the Guardians, but he also instills a belief in him, allowing Jamie to see and hear him, much to Jack’s delight. The other woefully weakened Guardians join Jack to face off against Pitch, and Jamie has his own friends join in the seemingly impossible fight; but their faith is more than a match for Pitch’s nightmares and also causes Sandy’s resurrection, which sends Pitch running. No longer feared, Pitch cannot be seen or heard by the human children, and his fear turns his own nightmares against him, dragging him back under the bed.

Jack accepts his place with the Guardians and says goodbye to Jamie and his friends, their hope renewed and their belief strong Jack assures Jamie that they are now in his heart and as long as they believe the Guardians will always be there to protect them

REVIEW:

Let’s face it, there were a bunch of animated films that were released last year. Some have argued that there may have been too many. One of the films that many have overlooked, partially because of the massive shadow by Wreck-It Ralph and all the holiday films that were released around the same time, is Rise of the Guardians.

What is this about?

In this animated adventure, Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, the Tooth Fairy, the Sandman and Jack Frost come together to battle Pitch, a malicious spirit determined to take over the world and destroy the innocent beliefs and dreams of children.

What did I like?

Not what you know. Normally, I’m a purist. Give me what I know and I’ll be happy. No need to go around changing stuff for the sake of change. This film won’t change my stance on that, but I did appreciate the new versions of our well-known holiday icons. No longer is Santa a jolly old elf, but a Russian biker type, for instance.

Children. Children, and humans, in films like this seem to be nothing more than an annoyance. Thankfully, the children don’t really have much to do with most of the picture and the focus is on the guardians, which is what the audience came to see, after all. I’m sure there are those out there that feel they could have more of an impact on the proceedings, but I’m not one of those. The decision to not have some cheeky, disrespectful child mucking things up was brilliant.

Pitch. I really like the villainous Pitch Black, otherwise known as the Boogeyman. The look of him reminds me of a vampire and for a character than is all about the darkness, that works. Jude Law’s voice also really worked…better than I thought it would. With all that said, he still is no Oogie Boogie.

What didn’t I like?

Origin. We get Jack Frost’s origin and a little bit of Pitch Black’s, but the others, not so much. Reading a little background on this film, and it turns out that it is set 200 years after the book series, which gives each character their own story, apparently. I’m not saying the film should have went into great detail about each one, but maybe a scene where they are sitting around getting to know each other and we get a quick reference to what their past is would have been nice.

Sandman. I loved the little Sandman guy. He actually may have been my favorite, but two things bothered me. First, whose idea was it to have him be silent? If anything, that seems like something better suited for the Tooth Fairy. Second, why did they have to kill him? I can understand not killing off Santa or the Easter Bunny. Can you imagine the shock and horror on the kids’ faces?!? I just don’t feel it accomplished what the filmmakers were attempting. Now, if he would have just been kidnapped, that may have worked better.

Timing. So, this doesn’t take place around Christmas, but rather Easter. Does that make any sense? Not to me, it didn’t. Around one of the major holidays like that, when the guardians are at their strongest, might not have been the best time to launch an attack. Perhaps Pitch should have tried one of the lesser Patriotic holidays like Labor Day, Columbus Day, Veteran’s Day, etc.

When all is said and done, Rise of the Guardians should have risen to the top of the box office for weeks, but it didn’t, for whatever reason. Such a shame for such a grand film. The few qualms I have with this film are minute as it is a very well made and entertaining film. I highly recommend it, especially around the holidays (Easter or Christmas).

4 1/2 out of 5 stars

Spy Kids 2: The Island of Lost Dreams

PLOT (spoiler alert!!!):

The OSS now has a full child spy section and Carmen Cortez and Juni Cortez have become agents of the OSS and face particularly hard competition with Gary and Gerti Giggles (Matt O’Leary and Emily Osment), the children of double-dealing agent Donnagon Giggles (Mike Judge), whom Carmen and Juni helped to rescue in the previous film. It is shown that Carmen defends Gary and has a crush on him.

After an incident at a local amusement park, where the President’s daughter (Taylor Momsen) deliberately sabotages a thrill ride which juggles its passengers, forcing the Giggles and the Cortez kids to compete in the rescue, Donnagon — who has somehow hacked into the teleprompter which the President was reading from — is named the director of the OSS; while Juni is fired after being framed by Gary — who was actually to blame — into losing the “Transmooker”, a highly coveted device which can shut off all electronic devices. In his new position as director, Donnagon can carry on with his plan to steal the Transmooker, so he can rule the world.

After Carmen manages to hack into the database and reinstates Juni’s level as an agent, she and Juni follow the trail to a mysterious island near Madagascar, which is home to Romero (Steve Buscemi), a lunatic scientist. Romero has been attempting to create genetically-miniaturized animals, so he can make a profit by selling the animals to kids in “miniature zoos”. He had an experiment go wrong after accidentally pouring growth concoction onto the mutated set of animals. When Carmen is captured by a Spork, which is quite literally a flying pig, she meets Gerti there who tells her that Gary is really evil and Carmen changes her feelings for Gary and sides with Juni who was going to be hurt by Gary. After a number of action sequences, such as fighting skeletons and being captured by Sporks, the spy kids — along with the help of their family, Romero and Gerti Giggles — destroy the Transmooker and defeat Donnagon and Gary but Gregorio and Donnagon fight each other. Donnagon is relieved by the President and Gary is disavowed, while Juni quits due to the impersonal treatment of agents by the OSS. During the credits, Machete has Carmen sing as an undercover pop star in a concert. Carmen says she can’t sing so Machete gives her a mic which auto-tunes her voice and a belt that helps her dance. He also gives Juni a guitar that plays itself. After the performance, Machete informs Carmen that he had not put the batteries in and Carmen was actually singing.

REVIEW:

Spy Kids 2: The Island of Lost Dreams has been on my mind ever since I saw the original Spy Kids, but I’ve been waiting for it to hit the streaming queue, rather than waste a slot in my DVD list. Was the wait worth it? Should I have used that slot?

What is this about?

In this sequel to the hit sci-fi family adventure, spy kids Carmen and Juni Cortez team up with two other pint-sized secret agents, Gary and Gerti Giggles. The foursome travels to a mysterious island to save the world from an evil scientist

What did I like?

Keep it going. You have to give it to Robert Rodriguez. The guy has vision. In a time when most filmmakers shy away from putting children in franchise films, this guy started one that could go on long after they grew up. Age has made our pint-size stars better equipped as spies, which only helps things in the long run.

Creatures. There is no secret about how much affection I have for stop motion animation and my disdain for CG. While this film uses CG a bit more than it should, I recognize that they were at least honoring the great Ray Herryhausen with the creatures. There are a couple of scenes that I could have sworn were straight out of one of the Sinbad films. I’m still no fan of CG, but at least they were trying to honor the past, something that doesn’t happen very often.

Who. You would never guess it by looking at her, but the cute little girl who plays the President’s daughter is Taylor Momsen. The only other thing I’ve seen her in is The Grinch with Jim Carey, where she plays Cindy Lou Who. In both instances, she flexes some acting chops far beyond what she should have at her age. I wonder what happened to her that made her go from this to that racoon looking mess she is today?

What didn’t I like?

Effects. The CG laden effects here are geared toward younger audiences, that much is obvious, but it does seem as if they didn’t even try to get them to fit in with the surrounding. It was like they just inserted them in at the last-minute and did just enough touch up so that they didn’t look totally rough around the edges. For a major studio release like this, I feel a higher level of care should have been taken, but that’s just me.

Abuelos. Bringing in the grandparents, who were apparently spies in their time, didn’t really seem to work out as well as I think they would have liked. With that said, I think they just needed to be developed a bit more before being thrust into the story in the last third of the film. From what I hear, though, they go on to be pretty major players in subsequent films.

Rivalry. I have no problem with another brother sister spy team. It keeps out heroes on their toes. After all, rivalry is good. However, I do have issue with them not being a real threat. To me, it seemed as if they would have worked better as some sort of evil force, like their father, rather than just friendly rivals.

For what it is, Spy Kids 2: The Island of Lost Dreams delivers a big, colorful film that will keep kids entertained. There are a few things here and there for the adults to enjoy, as well. I really liked this film, but one thing that bothered me is how there was a lack of dreams on the island. Why is it called the island of lost dreams? This is definitely worth checking out if for no other reason than to tell me what I missed!

4 out of 5 stars

 

Frankenweenie

 

PLOT (spoiler alert!!!):

Young filmmaker and scientist Victor Frankenstein (Charlie Tahan) lives with his parents, Edward and Susan Frankenstein (Martin Short and Catherine O’Hara) and dog Sparky in the quiet town of New Holland. Victor’s intelligence is recognized by his classmates at school, his somber next-door neighbor, Elsa Van Helsing (Winona Ryder), mischievous, Igor-like Edgar “E” Gore (Atticus Shaffer), obese and gullible Bob (Robert Capron), overconfident Toshiaki (James Hiroyuki Liao), creepy Nassor (also Short), and an eccentric girl nicknamed Weird Girl (also O’Hara), but communicates little with them due to his relationship with his dog. Concerned with his son’s isolation, Victor’s father encourages him to take up baseball and make achievements outside of science. Victor hits a home run at his first game, but Sparky, pursuing the ball, is killed by a car.

Inspired by his science teacher Mr. Rzykruski’s (Martin Landau) demonstration of the effect of electricity on dead frogs, a depressed Victor digs up Sparky’s corpse, brings him to his makeshift laboratory in the attic, and successfully reanimates him with lightning. Seeing Weird Girl’s living cat, Mr. Whiskers, the undead Sparky escapes from the attic and explores the neighborhood. He is recognized by Edgar, who blackmails Victor into teaching him how to raise the dead. The two reanimate a dead goldfish, which turns invisible due to an error with the experiment. Edgar brags about the undead fish to Toshiaki and Bob, which, in panic of losing the upcoming science fair, inspires them to make a rocket out of soda bottles, which causes Bob to break his arm and Mr. Rzykruski to be blamed and fired due to his accused influencing and reviling the townsfolk for questioning his methods when he steps up for self-defence.

Eventually, Edgar’s fish disappears when he tries to show it to a skeptical Nassor (who was told by Toshiaki) and when Edgar is confronted by Toshiaki, Nassor, and Bob on the baseball field at school, he accidentally reveals Victor’s actions, inspiring them to try reanimation themselves. Victor’s parents discover Sparky in the attic and are frightened, causing the dog to flee. Victor and his parents search for Sparky while the classmates invade the lab, discovering Victor’s reanimation formula. The classmates separately perform their experiments, which go awry and turn the dead animals into monsters—Mr. Whiskers holds a dead bat while it is electrocuted, turning him into a vampire cat; Edgar turns a dead rat he found in the garbage into a wererat; Nassor revives his mummified hamster Colossus; Toshiaki’s turtle Shelley is covered in a growth formula and turns into a giant Gamera-like monster; and Bob’s Sea-Monkeys grow into amphibious humanoid monsters. The monsters break loose into the town fair where they wreak havoc.

After finding Sparky at the town’s pet cemetery, Victor sees the monsters attacking the fair and goes to help his classmates deal with them—-the Sea-Monkeys explode after eating salt-covered popcorn, and Colossus is stepped on by Shelley, while the rat and Shelley are returned to their original, deceased forms after being electrocuted. During the chaos, the town’s mayor’s niece Elsa van Helsing is grabbed by Mr. Whiskers and carried to the town windmill. The townsfolks blame Sparky for her disappearance and chase him to the windmill, which Mayor Bergermeister (also Short) accidentally ignites with his torch. Victor and Sparky enter the burning windmill and rescue Elsa, but Victor is trapped inside. Sparky rescues Victor, only to be dragged back inside by Mr. Whiskers. A final confrontation ensues, and just as Mr. Whiskers has Sparky cornered, a flaming piece of wood breaks off and impales him. He gives one dying screech and he windmill collapses on Sparky, killing him again. To reward him for his bravery, the townsfolk gather to revive Sparky with their car batteries, reanimating him once more. Persephone, Elsa’s pet poodle, who has a hair style similar to the Elsa Lanchester’s Bride of Frankenstein, comes to Sparky as the two dogs share their love.

REVIEW:

It wasn’t that long ago that people were commenting on how there are millions of Christmas family flicks, but very few for Halloween. Well, now we have 3 brand new, and really good, flicks to show the kids on October 31st, ParaNorman, Hotel Transylvania, and Frankenweenie. The debate over which is the best of the bunch is one that can go on and on. Take you pick!

What is this about?

When young Victor’s pet dog Sparky (who stars in Victor’s home-made monster movies) is hit by a car, Victor decides to bring him back to life the only way he knows how. But when the bolt-necked “monster” wreaks havoc and terror in the hearts of Victor’s neighbors, he has to convince them (and his parents) that despite his appearance, Sparky’s still the good loyal friend he’s always been.

What did I like?

Retro. Tim Burton’s last film, Dark Shadows, wasn’t the big success people expected it to be but seeing the masterpiece that this is, I believe he was just more concerned with making this project. As with many Burton projects, it has that retro vibe to it, complete with stop motion animation which, as avid readers of this blog know, I am a huge fan of, as it is vastly superior to CG crap.

Character design. Continuing with that retro vibe is the design and mannerisms of the characters. The kids are mostly based on classic movie horror characters and are named that way as well. Their biology teacher is obviously modeled after Vincent Price. I can’t help but wonder and Victor, though. He looks like he’s either recycled from The Corpse Bride or is supposed to be Johnny Depp. The jury is still out on that one for me.

Heart. Underneath all the laughs, classic horror references, and zombie animals, there is some true heart. Apparently, people really cotton to a boy and his dog, especially if that dog is a real friend. Throw in some hints at a slight romance and parents that truly care and you can’t help but feel something.

What didn’t I like?

Someone hates cats. I’m no dog fan, not by any stretch of the imagination. As a matter of fact, it annoys me to no end that cats are never given the chance to really be the hero, but rather often end up the villain, while dogs can apparently do no wrong. There is absolutely no reason Mr. Whiskers should have become the main antagonist. It really served no purpose, other than having a dog fight a cat. Let me tell you this, had something happened to that dog, the whole country would have been calling for Tim Burton’s head, but something happens to the cat, not a peep!!! UGH!!!!

Recycle. Burton brought back many of his frequent collaborators to voice these characters, such as Winona Ryder, Martin Landau, and Catherine O’Hara, but I have to wonder where his two muses, Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter (who he is also married to) were. I know they are both in the upcoming The Lone Ranger, so there is that possibility, but I believe he could have put them in there if he really wanted. They have become to Burton what Samuel L. Jackson is to Tarrantino. I’m not saying the film was worse off without them, because I’m not really sure what character they would have voiced, but it just was strange not having them there.

Experiments. So, Victor brings Sparky back to life a la Frankenstein. Somehow, the Igor-looking kid finds out and wants his fish brought back to life. In a way that isn’t really explained, other than his heart wasn’t in it, the fish becomes invisible, and eventually vanishes from existence. Then of course, there is the jealousy induced experiments that go wrong and nearly destroy the town, but those I can let slide as something to give an exciting finish.

Dare I say Frankenweenie is one of Tim Burton’s best outings? It better be, he did a version of this back in 1984, and has been working toward doing it again with more resources and better technology since then. I had such a good time with this film that it is hard for me to not recommend this, but there are some things that just aren’t appropriate for younger eyes and ears, not to mention Burton haters and those that live or die by CGI. If you don’t fall into one of those categories, then I highly recommend this!

4 1/3 out of 5 stars

Ice Age: Continental Drift

PLOT (spoiler alert!!!):

In an attempt to bury his acorn, Scrat inadvertently causes the break up of Pangaea. Meanwhile Manny and Ellie must deal with the trials and tribulations of their daughter Peaches, now a teenager desiring to fit in with her peers. Ellie is fine about that, but Manny becomes extremely over-protective. Peaches’ only friend is Louis, a molehog, tries to protect her as she tries to approach a mammoth named Ethan whom she has a crush on. Sid’s family returns, only long enough to drop off the elderly Granny before abandoning them both again. When Manny catches Peaches sneaking off to meet Ethan, they argue and fallout. Shortly afterward, a continental break-up separates Manny from the herd. Trapped on a moving chunk of ice with Sid and Diego, Manny has no choice but to ride out the current. Meanwhile a giant land shift encroaches on Ellie, Peaches, and those remaining on land, causing them make their way toward the land bridge.

At sea, violent weather pushes Manny and the others further away from land while Scrat, in a side adventure, finds an acorn that has a treasure map on it that directs him towards an island. Soon, after Manny, Sid, and Diego find Granny (who was sleeping inside a hollow tree stump, on the ice raft), they are captured by a band of pirates sailing on a floating iceberg as a ship led by a Gigantopithecus, Captain Gutt, who attempts to press gang them into his crew; when they refuse Gutt tries to make them walk the plank. Manny, Sid, Diego, Granny and Scrat (who was also taken captive) escape, but cause the ship to sink and Gutt’s first mate, a female sabertooth named Shira joins them out of no choice of her own.

They then find Switchback Cove, which has a current that would direct them home, but after washing ashore a remote island, Shira escapes and tells Gutt and the pirate crew (who are also on the island) of their whereabouts. Gutt, wanting revenge on Manny for sinking his ship, plans an attack. Along with the hyrax inhabitants of the island, Manny coordinates a plan to steal Gutt’s new ship to return home. Shira decides to leave Gutt, when she and Diego begin to fall in love, but she stays behind to ensure Gutt doesn’t catch the herd. Gutt and his pirates quickly make a new iceberg ship to sail after the herd, determined to get revenge. Meanwhile, Scrat, using one of the hyrax’s leaf “planes”, flies off the island, only to be swallowed by a shark.

Peaches finally begins to fit in with the mammoths her age, but accidentally insults Louis, who is referred to as a freak by the others, by saying they are not friends. When she sees the other teens’ careless disregard to the danger, she turns her back on them, warning that their extinction will come sooner than they think.

As they are sailing back, Diego, Sid, and Granny encounter monstrous sirens taking the shapes of what the group finds most attractive. Fortunately, Manny realizes this after hearing a siren, disguised as Ellie tell him something she would never say and saves them at the last second. Later, Scrat encounters a siren, taking on the shapes of Scratte (that Scrat ignores) then an acorn. Scrat immediately runs up and attempts to bury the “acorn”, but is attacked by other sirens and escapes unharmed.

Manny, Sid, Diego, and Granny soon return home only to find the land bridge destroyed in the earthquakes and Gutt and his crew made it there first and have captured Ellie and Peaches. Louis stands up for Peaches and a battle ensues between the herd and the pirates. Shira frees Ellie and helps fend off her former comrades, while Granny’s previously unseen (and claimed imaginary) pet whale, Precious, appears and turns the tables on the rest of the lot. Gutt then attempts to kill Ellie but Peaches, using her possum-like skills, manages to save her. Manny defeats Gutt in a duel and reunites with his family and friends. Later, Gutt encounters a siren taking on the shape of a female of his species and is eaten.With their home destroyed, the entire party and inhabitants then sail to an island that they found to settle down. Manny allows Peaches to “have an adventure” having gained a new respect for her and toward Louis. Shira joins the herd and becomes Diego’s girlfriend, while Louis becomes a hero among the teenage mammoths.

At the end of his journey, Scrat discovers the island on the map, know as Scratlantis (a mock up of Atlantis), but his uncontrollable urge to hunt acorns in the acorn-rich city inadvertently causes the entire island to sink and Scrat is ejected into what is now known as Death Valley.

REVIEW:

I have issues with films that just release sequels for the sake of making money, as opposed to telling a good story. My feelings toward such films turns to rage and hatred when it seems as if each film gets worse. Ice Age: Continental Drift is said by many critics to be the best of a series that should have died along with the dinosaurs.

What is this about?

The animated Ice Age series tacks on a game-changing fourth act when unexpected events set the continent in motion, sending Manny (voiced by Ray Romano), Diego (Denis Leary) and Sid (John Leguizamo) away from Ellie (Queen Latifah) and the herd and into the vastness of the open sea. The world around them is forever changed, but at least one thing remains the same: their ability to make the most of extreme climate change.

What did I like?

Pirates. I hear everyone raving about Peter Dinklage in Game of Thrones, but I’ve only seen one episode since we don’t have HBO. I best know him as Simon Barsinister in Underdog and the male nanny in a few episodes of Nip/Tuck. The guy has some real acting chops, as he puts on display here as the pirate captain Gutt. Truth be told, I don’t remember much of the other Ice Age films, but Gutt and the other pirates are something to remember about this film, a much needed shot in the arm. Someone should consider a spinoff!

Scrat. A lot of people would argue that Scrat is the best thing about this franchise. You’ll get no argument from me. The things this little squirrel does just to get that acorn are highlights of the film. I just wish there was more of them, and not just what equates to a bunch of shorts featuring him.

Animation. Going back to the first Ice Age and comparing the animation to this one, it is quite obvious that two things have happened. Technology has advanced quite a ways and the animators have gotten better at what they do, because this is some gorgeous computer animation, which is saying something coming from me, someone who isn’t a fan of CG.

What didn’t I like?

Too many. It seems like in each film, they keep adding on characters. At some point, they just need to stop because, as we can see here, it hard to give each of them decent screen time. Take for instance, Ellie, she was just left over on land with her daughter, who had her own little story going on. If not for some motherly advice moments, she probably wouldn’t have been seen until the very end, if at all, once we got past that point. All the little ancillary characters that we saw in previous films and had actual relevance are there in the beginning and show up at the end as if they were a major part of the production, but up to that moment, who really even thought about them?

Rappers do not equal actors. Rappers Nicki Minaj and Drake somehow managed to get cast in this. Nicki Minaj is quickly making her way up my most hated list, mainly because she has no talent and is on a show judging singers (when she’s supposedly a rapper). Her lines were painful to listen to, but I think has I seen this before this season of American Idol started, the images of her “judging” wouldn’t be so ingrained in m head that I can’t give her fair judgement. Drake on the other hand was actually an actor at one time. It came to attention this week that he had a fairly major role in the Canadian teen drama Degrassi: Next Generation. The guy has talent, I just don’t think this was the right role for him. Sure he’s not Lil’ Wayne or Wiz Khalifa, but he still doesn’t exactly scream clean-cut, family entertainer. On that point, go back to when Queen Latifah was a rapper, and you could’ve said that same thing about her.

Stagnant. For me, this film felt a lot like a franchise that is stuck in neutral. It wants to keep going, but doesn’t know how to kick it into the next gear. Personally, I think the way this ended would be a way to end the franchise (same can be said for the others, I’m sure). If they want this to keep going, then do it with new characters. It is high time Manny, Sid, Diego, & company are put to rest. Of course, it will be just our luck that these films keep going, forgetting what they were originally about, and the next thing we know there are about 50 sequels that no one cares about. Seriously, all those sequels to The Land Before Time did was tarnish the legacy of the original…and I believe they are still making those things!!!

Is Ice Age: Continental Drift the best of the franchise? Perhaps, but as I stated earlier, I can barely remember anything about those previous films. This one at least has some memorable moments, highlighted by some great action scenes. Is this enough to justify the need for this to have been made or that this franchise keep going? The answer to that is an emphatic no. Kids will love this, though, and adults will get a kick out of some points here and there, but as a whole, I wouldn’t really recommend this, unless you’re doing an Ice Age marathon.

3 out of 5 stars

Hotel Transylvania

PLOT (spoiler alert!!!):

Dracula (Adam Sandler) is the owner and creator of Hotel Transylvania, a five-star resort where the world’s monsters can be safe from human civilization. Dracula invites some of the most famous monsters like Frankenstein (Kevin James) and his wife Eunice (Fran Drescher), Murray the Mummy (Cee Lo Green), Wayne and Wanda Werewolf (Steve Buscemi and Molly Shannon), Griffin the Invisible Man (David Spade), Bigfoot, Steve the Blob, and other monsters to celebrate the 118th birthday of his daughter Mavis (Selena Gomez). However, Mavis prefers to explore the outside world with her father’s permission, but the village he directs her to is actually an elaborate deception to convince her of the threat of humans enough to coax her back.

However, this charade inadvertently attracts the attention of an ordinary young traveler named Jonathan (Andy Samberg) who was exploring the surrounding forest and followed the staff to the hotel. Once Jonathan enters the hotel, Dracula frantically attempts to hide him from the patrons such as disguising him as a Flesh Golem named Johnny-stein with the later hasty cover story of being a relative of one of Frank’s body parts. Eventually, Jonathan is discovered by Mavis and company, forcing Dracula to claim he is going to arrange Mavis’ birthday party with a young perspective. In doing so, Jonathan manages to charm everyone at the hotel, especially Mavis. Eventually, even Dracula begins to like the human taking him into his confidence about his family’s traumatic past after the vampire notices the young man knows something about them in a respectful manner.

Unfortunately, Chef Quasimodo Wilson (Jon Lovitz) realizes Jonathan is human and captures him to cook him, forcing Dracula to directly intervene by magically freezing the chef. Eventually, the birthday party happens and it is a raucous success until Dracula freaks out when Mavis and Jonathan have an innocent kiss. A ranting Dracula accidentally lets it slip that he tricked Mavis at the fake village and Mavis is outraged at being manipulated by her own father. Things get worse when a still-frozen Chef Quasimodo interrupts the party as the Fly (Chris Parnell) translates his frozen language to the clientele which states that Jonathan is actually a human. Even as the clientele are revolted, Mavis still accepts and expresses her desire to be with Jonathan even though he is human. For his part, Jonathan feels obliged to reject Mavis for her father’s sake and leaves the hotel. Afterward, Dracula realizes that in his efforts to protect Mavis, he has broken her heart and now she tearfully wants to stay at the hotel forever.

Wishing to undo his mistake, Dracula persuades his friends to help him find Jonathan and even risks his destruction by venturing out in the daylight to do so. Learning that Jonathan is about to board a flight out of Transylvania Airport shortly, they race on and enter a town en route. At that town, Dracula and company are stunned to see the humans having a ‘Monster Festival’. To clear a path, Frankenstein tries to scare them, but finds the humans are cheerfully welcoming them instead and even provide a shaded route through the town for Dracula to proceed at maximum speed.

However, Dracula finds that he is too late with Jonathan’s plane taking off. With no alternative, Dracula desperately flies after it in broad daylight despite being hurt by the sun. With much effort, Dracula manages to reach the plane and resorts to mind-controlling one of the pilots (Brian Stack) to apologize and tell Jonathan that he wants him to return to be with his daughter. Jonathan accepts Dracula’s apology and Dracula manipulates the plane back to the airport.

Later, Dracula returns Jonathan to Mavis, who tells her that she’s his ‘zing’ and the reason why he had to reject her. Dracula gives his blessing to their relationship, Jonathan and Mavis kiss and the hotel has another party to celebrate his daughter’s liberating coming of age before Jonathan and Mavis set off on their travels.

The film ends with Dracula and his friends being shown in traditional animation (in the style of Genndy Tartakovsky’s cartoons) during the credits

REVIEW:

Given the bad rap monsters, especially vampires, werewolves and, to a lesser extent, zombies seem to be getting these days, it is nice to know that someone out there knows and respects their legacies enough to given them a film that isn’t insulting to everything we know about them. Sure, Hotel Transylvania may be a kids film, but there are no sparkling vampires who somehow manage to survive in the daylight here, nor are there any werewolves who do nothing but stalk unattractive emo chicks.

What is this about?

Hotel Transylvania owner Dracula (Adam Sandler) pulls double duty as an overprotective dad when an unwelcome suitor (Andy Samberg) shows interest in his teenage daughter (Selena Gomez). All the while, he’s hosting world-famous monster guests like Frankenstein, his bride and a werewolf family.

What did I like?

The gang’s all here. Pick a monster, any monster, and you’re sure to see them in the film, whether it be in a cameo or major role. I think the only ones missing were the more mythological creatures like minotaurs, centaurs, harpies, and the like, but there is a cyclops and a hydra to make up or fill the void.

Father knows best. For years, Adam Sandler has been trying to do a sensitive dad role and also use that voice he does in all of his films. Finally, all that practice has paid off! Sandler is such an animated person that it takes him being animated to get a truly great performance from him. Ironically, with the exception of that 9/11 dram he did, this is the most subdued character he’s played. That’s a good thing, as I think an insane acting man-child version of Dracula wouldn’t have gone over as well with the audience or with a “teenage” daughter. The relationship with his daughter is the heart of this film. If that didn’t work, then this flick wouldn’t have any legs to stand on.

Animation. Back when Cartoon Network was actually worth watching cartoon on, they had shows like Samurai Jack, Dexter’s Laboratory, and The Powerpuff Girls. All of these were done by the director of this film, Genndy Tartakovsky. I never really noticed it until the final credits were rolling, but the characters do have the design of one of his cartoons. Man, I miss his style of animation. Not to mention cartoons that were actually fun to watch, not just odd.

Dracula. As I mentioned before, Adam Sandler surprisingly gives a really good performance, but what is more impressive is the character design. Most iterations of Dracula are that of a tall, slender man with an imposing presence, not to mention his ability to bend the will the regular human and turn into a bat. The whole moving tables around and freezing people is new, but I like it.

What didn’t I like?

Kids. The kids annoyed the hell out of me. Mavis is fine, she’s just a teenage girl trapped in a castle wanting to get out and see the world. It happens. However, the wolf kids are representative of how unruly and disrespectful children are today. Johnny annoyed me in every way imaginable. First of all, he’s voiced by that no talent hack Andy Samberg, who is nothing more than an Adam Sandler wannabe and is a big reason Saturday Night Live hasn’t been funny for the past few years. This character though just seems to think his way is right, which it isn’t. The way he just walks in to the hotel just wasn’t a good introduction to him and he never recovered in my eyes.

Humans. Aside from John, we have the humans at the monster festival. Now, there is nothing specifically wrong with these people. It is basically just a comic con for people who like monsters. However, the fact that they have little to no reaction to Dracula and his pals is a little disconcerting. On the one hand, they are at a convention where everyone is dressed as monsters, so there is that little bit of disbelief expected. However, on the other hand, these are the real deal! Have we become that disenfranchised and dead to these guys that they are akin to stuffed animals? It sure seems like it. Such a shame, really.

Hotel Transylvania is one of the films that I really wanted to see when it came out, but because of scheduling, I never got around to it. I really do wish I had gotten to see this in theaters. I may have even paid the 3D price. This, along with ParaNorman and from the looks of it Frankenweenie (which I will be getting to soon) could make for some good Halloween movies for kids. Something that we haven’t really had in quite some time. I highly recommend this as it is truly an enjoyable film for everyone. Be on the lookout for the jab at Twilight late in flick. On a final note, does anyone know where it is that we all starting assuming Dracula said, “bleh, bleh”?

5 out of 5 stars

ParaNorman

PLOT (spoiler alert!!!):

In the small New England town of Blithe Hollow, Massachusetts, a boy named Norman Babcock is able to speak with the dead, including his late grandmother and various ghosts in town. Unfortunately, almost no one among the living believes his ability is genuine and he is isolated emotionally from his family while being ridiculed and bullied by most of his peers for his seemingly strange abilities.

However, Norman makes a friend with Neil Downe, an eccentric overweight boy who is bullied himself and finds Norman’s earnest admission as a medium an intriguing part of a kindred spirit. During rehearsal of a school play commemorating the town’s witch execution of 300 years ago, Norman has a harrowing vision of the town’s past and being pursued as a witch by the town’s citizenry. Afterward, the boys are confronted by Norman’s estranged and seemingly deranged uncle Mr. Prenderghast who tells his nephew that the vision is a sign that he soon must take up his regular ritual to protect the town.

Norman refuses to take him seriously, but soon has another vision during the school play, creating a public spectacle of himself which leads to his embarrassed father unjustly grounding him, before hurting his feelings by muttering that he never asked for his son to have this supposed awful gift. His mother tells him that his stern manner is because he is afraid for him, just as ominous storm clouds begin to brew. The next day, Norman is confronted by the ghost of the recently deceased Prenderghast in the restroom who tells him that the ritual must be performed with a special book before sundown that day, before departing for the afterlife. After some consideration, Norman sets off to Prenderghast’s residence to retrieve the book. Believing that Neil would not truly understand his situation, he drives him away. He arrives at the graves of the town’s ancestors/founders, including Judge Hopkins, who were supposedly cursed by the witch they condemned, but finds the book is merely a collection of fairy tales.

Before Norman can ponder the situation, Alvin, a bully who overheard Norman’s encounter in the restroom, intrudes and interferes with the reading until after sundown. With that, a ghostly storm resembling the witch appears in the air while the cursed dead arise and pursue the boys until they meet Norman’s sister, Courtney, Neil and his older brother, Mitch, who have come to retrieve Norman. Together, the kids are relentlessly pursued by the zombies into town, but Norman manages to contact a classmate named Salma, who tells them to access the Town Hall’s archives for the location of the witch’s unmarked grave.

As the kids make their way to the Town Hall, the zombies eventually lose them and find themselves confused by modern society and then are beset by the citizenry, who attack them en masse. During the riot, the kids break into the archives but cannot find any information they need. As the mob moves to attack Town Hall, Norman (in frustration) temporarily drives away his companions only for them to be trapped by the mob. However, the Witch storm appears and Norman climbs the Hall’s tower to desperately attempt to read the book to stop her, but the witch blasts it with lightning and causes him to fall back down into the archives.

Unconscious, Norman has a dream where he learns that the witch was actually Agatha Prenderghast, an innocent little girl of his age who was also a medium, unjustly condemned by the town’s superstitious and frightened elite, who were then cursed to reawaken as the undead by Agatha as she was taken for execution. After awakening, Norman encounters the zombies and realizes that all they wanted was to speak with him to ensure he would take up the ritual to minimize the harm of the terrible mistake they made with Agatha. However, Norman decides that this gesture is not enough and resolves to find Agatha’s ghost to arrive at a permanent solution.

Norman attempts to help the zombies slip away to have them guide him to Agatha’s grave, but are cornered by the mob. However, Courtney, who has come to realize her brother’s true abilities, heroism and task, confronts the crowd and convinces them to back off. As the witch storm rages ever more destructively, Judge Hopkins guides Norman’s family to the grave in a forest. Unfortunately, Agatha’s magic separates Norman from the others and he must reach the grave on his own to save the town.

Norman finds the grave, and soon confronted by the vengeful spirit of Agatha, interacting with her in the spirit dimension. She tries to drive him away, but Norman resolutely holds his ground, telling her that he understands how she feels as an outcast. As she struggles to drive him away, Norman endures her assault and eventually convinces her that, despite her legitimate grievance, her thirst for vengeance is accomplishing nothing but inflicting more pain and persuades her to stop. Norman tries to convince her that even in the darkest times, there must have been someone who was kind to her. Focusing only on the tragedies and forgetting the good things in her life is what reduced her to a malevolent force devoid of her true identity.

Eventually, the girl, nicknamed Aggie, calms down at Norman’s eloquence, recalling her true personality and happy memories with her mother. She is able to find a measure of peace, knowing that she is not alone and one person in the town understands her, allowing her to let go and move on to the afterlife. At that resolution, the storm dissipates, and she and the zombies all peacefully fade away. As day breaks, the town cleans up and regards Norman as a hero even when the outside media tries to explain the disturbance as merely a powerful storm. Norman, realizing that he, too, should stop focusing on his memories of being ostracized and pushing others away, accepts Neil’s companionship. At the end, Norman watches a horror film with the ghost of his Grandmother, and his family eagerly joins him.

REVIEW:

When Halloween comes around, we are all looking for films that can put us in the mood. If you’re like me, then horror just isn’t your thing, especially right off the bat, so a nice supernatural family flick like ParaNorman, or the other Halloween themed films that were released this past summer, Frankenweenie and Hotel Transylvania, are sure to be a treat.

What is this about?

When an army of zombies invades a small town, it’s up to an odd local boy with a knack for communicating with the dead to save the day. But judgmental adults prove to be even more formidable adversaries.

What did I like?

Stop motion. As we all know, I’m a huge fan of stop motion animation. With the exception of hand drawn animation done the old-fashioned, non computer way, I find it to be the best form of animation out there. Sure, it takes a while to get everything done, but you put in the work and you get a good product, as we see here. There is something rough around the edges about each of these characters that really is refreshing compared to the heavily sanitized characters we tend to get from CG.

Old school. I think this film was meant to be a throwback to the old school, probably a reason for the stop motion. The film opens with a vintage sequence that fit the tone of the first half of the movie. The second half is a different story, but I’ll touch on that in a bit.

Story. In this day and age, points for originality are hard to come by, but this earned each and every one of those points. The only thing that I can think that’s even close to this film is an old Michael J. Fox movie. I believe it was called The Frighteners, but don’t quote me on that. Obviously, the whole saving the town from zombies and a so-called witch has been done to death, but the resolution of that conflict was something new. I was interested in seeing where this story went, though. What twists and turns await our hero and his resistant comrades?

What didn’t I like?

Ghosts. Every trailer I saw for this film made a big deal about how Norman was able to talk to ghosts. That was the whole advertising angle but, for some odd reason, the ghosts appear as he is on his way to school (it takes them awhile to actually be seen, btw), and then we don’t see or hear from them again. This excludes his grandmother and creepy uncle who dies during the film, but for a film that is advertised as a ghost film to feature them for less than 5 minutes was a kind of disappointing. Nothing against zombies, though I am starting to tire of them, but this is a film that was advertised as a boy who talks to ghosts. Hell, the title even implies it!

Voicing and character design. For the most part, I don’t have a problem with the cast, but there is just something odd about Christopher Mintz-Plasse as a bully. His voice, mainly because I know what a skinny nerd he looks like normally, doesn’t work in such character. Yeah, he can play a bad guy (spoiled rich kid) in Kick-Ass, but that isn’t what this is. I felt like they brought him at the height of his popularity following Superbad, but didn’t realize his voice wouldn’t work. Then again, maybe this is some kind of inside joke or irony. My issue with the design is with Norman’s mom and sister. There is just something Tim Burton twisted about his mom’s face. I didn’t care for it, to be honest, and it sort of freaked me out. As for his sister, they gave her an ass that rivals Kim Kardashian. It doesn’t seem that this is supposed to be some kind of twisted reality or parody, so there was no need for that, especially she isn’t exactly a major character (story of Anna Kendrick’s career, it seems).

Humor. Maybe the jokes just all fell flat with me, but it sure seems as if this film was trying to be a bit more serious that it needed to be, and I don’t really understand why. By all stretches of the imagination, this should have been a great little supernatural romp. Remember Monster House? That wasn’t the greatest picture, but it had some jokes that worked and kept the audience’s interest. I’m not saying this film got boring, but a few jokes here and there, especially in the heavy later section where it seems to forget what the target audience really is would have been nice.

I was looking forward to ParaNorman this summer, but didn’t go see it. I forgot the reason, but I think it was during the time when I didn’t know whether to scratch my watch or wind my butt. For me, this is a film that had unlimited potential, but fell flat mainly because of the way it was advertised. Couple that with the high expectation I garnered for it, and I just felt let down. Despite that, I do recommend it as you may not have my preconceived notions and could very well enjoy every minute.

3 3/4 out of 5 stars

Arthur Christmas

PLOT (spoiler alert!!!):

Set on Christmas Eve, the film opens with hundreds of elves helming the command centre of Santa’s mile-wide, ultra–high-tech sleigh, the S-1. Santa and the elves deliver presents to every child in the world using advanced equipment and military precision. These complex operations are micromanaged by Santa’s oldest son Steve and his obsequious elfin assistant Peter (amongst thousands of more elves) at mission control underneath the North Pole, while Steve’s clumsy and panophobic younger brother Arthur answers the letters to Santa. During a delivery operation, when a child wakes up and almost sees Santa, an elf back in the S-1 inadvertently presses a button, causing a present to fall off a conveyor and go unnoticed.

Having completed his 70th mission, Santa is portrayed as far past his prime and whose role in field operations now is largely symbolic. Nonetheless, he is held in high esteem, and delivers a congratulatory speech to the enraptured elves. Much to Steve’s frustration, who has long anticipated succeeding his father, Santa announces he looks forward to his 71st. During their family Christmas dinner, Arthur’s suggestion for the family to play a board game degenerates into a petty quarrel between Santa and Steve, while Grand-Santa, bored by retirement, resentfully criticises their over-modernisation. Distraught, the various family members leave the dinner table. When Arthur humbly compliments Steve that he believes he will be a great Santa Claus, Steve rudely dismisses Arthur’s overture; later, their father shares with Mrs. Claus his grave doubts about his self-identity should he retire.

Meanwhile, an elf named Bryony finds the missed present—a wrapped bicycle that has yet to be delivered—and alerts Steve and his elf-assistant to the problem. Arthur is alarmed when he recognises the present as a gift for Gwen, a little girl to whom he had personally replied. Arthur alerts his father, who is at a loss as to how to handle the situation; Steve argues that one missed present out of billions is an acceptable error whose correction can wait a few days. Grand-Santa, on the other hand, proposes delivering the gift using Evie, his old wooden sleigh, and the descendants of the original eight reindeer, forcefully whisking away a reluctant Arthur and a stowaway Bryony. They get lost, lose reindeer, and land in danger several times, ultimately being mistaken for aliens and causing an international military incident. Through all this, Arthur eventually learns to his compounding disappointment that Grand-Santa’s true motive is to fulfil his ego, that Steve refuses to help them out of petty resentment, and that his own father has gone to bed, apparently content.

Finally, stranded in Cuba after losing the sleigh, Arthur renews his sense of purpose—that it all comes down to preventing a child’s disappointment—and with Grand-Santa’s help manages to recover the sleigh. Meanwhile, the elves grow increasingly alarmed at rumours of this neglected delivery and the Clauses’ unthinkable indifference, sending them into a panic. In response, Santa, Mrs. Claus, and Steve take the high-tech sleigh to deliver a superior present—to the wrong child. Santa’s navigation error and Steve’s mishandling of the mistaken identity throw into sharp relief their intentions against those of Arthur.

After much difficulty, A US Predator drone intercepts and opens fire on EVE, causing Arthur to bail out of the sleigh, via parachute and ultimately with Mrs. Claus’ and Bryony’s help, all the male Clauses arrive at Gwen’s house before she awakens, only to have all but Arthur quarrel about who gets to actually place the gift. Noticing that only Arthur truly cares about the girl’s feelings, the elder Clauses collectively realise that he is the sole worthy successor. As a result, Santa gives Arthur the honour and Steve forfeits his birthright to his brother. In a fitting conclusion, Gwen glimpses a snow-bearded Arthur in a wind-buffeted sweater just before vanishing into the night.

With the crisis resolved, Santa goes into a happy retirement with Mrs. Claus; he also becomes grand-Santa’s much-desired new companion. Meanwhile, Steve finds true contentment as Chief Operating Officer while Bryony is promoted to Vice-President of Packing. In a nod to traditionalism once neglected, the high-tech S-1 is re-christened EVIE and refitted to be pulled by a 5000-reindeer team—led by the original eight reindeer, all of whom managed to return safely via innate homing abilities. Finally, Arthur happily guides the entire enterprise in the proper spirit as the new Santa.

REVIEW:

In two weeks, Santa Claus will be delivering presents to all good little boys and girls around the world. Since I’ve been labeled as a Grinch for not reviewing any Christmas flicks recently, so here we have Arthur Christmas.

What is this about?

This all-ages animated holiday feature draws back the curtain on the super-secret toy-making facility Santa Claus keeps hidden beneath the North Pole. It also reveals the ultra-important mission Mr. Claus entrusts to his son, Arthur, one Christmas.

What did I like?

Modern. Most iteration of Santa and his elves show him cobbling wooden toys in an old shack up there in the North Pole, but here it turns out that there is a whole enterprise up there complete with capabilities to make name brand toys. I think I even saw them crank out an iPad or two in that spaceship looking sleigh of his. Hop showed us a modern world with the Easter Bunny, so the next one up should be what, Tooth Fairy? Leprechauns? I’ve always wondered what it would be like for them in this modern world.

Arthur. Remember the innocent eyes you used to look at Christmas through? Arthur is the kind of character that reminds us all of innocence lost. I think someone said he is just as pure and innocent as Spongebob, but with an actual brain. Not the best analogy, but, when you think about it, there is some merit there. A character like this is something we really need in this dark world. It is no wonder he ends up with the happiest of endings. Thank goodness he loses the furry slippers, though.

Voices. A couple of months ago, I reviewed The Pirates!: Band of Misfits. I noticed that many of the voice actors are also lending their pipes to characters in this flick, as well. I’m not sure, but I think the same company produced both films. With the likes of Bill Nighy, Imelda Staunton, Hugh Laurie, Jim Broadbent, and James McAvoy leading the way, how can you go wrong with this collection of talent?

What didn’t I like?

Antagonize this. Usually in films of this nature, there is some kind of villain who hatches a nefarious plot to overthrow the power structure and inflict their will on others. That doesn’t happen, though. While I applaud them for not being predictable, I can’t help but think Steve would have been perfect as the villain who tries to dethrone Santa, or maybe the elves rise up and decide they’re tired of playing second fiddle to the Claus lineage.

Santa. The current Santa Claus seemed to be a bit airheaded, very similar to Professor Slughorn in the final Harry Potter movies. Perhaps that is why they brought Jim Broadbent to voice him. I just didn’t really care for him to be so, shall we say not there. I guess it works for this universe, though.

Military. So, the military, I can’t think of what they are actually called here, see Santa’s sleigh and automatically try to shoot it down. What is the deal with the shoot first attitude of the military? Did they not learn anything from watching The Day the Earth Stood Still, Mars Attacks, amongst numberous other alien flicks where they shot first and regretted it later.

Arthur Christmas is a nice little Christmas flick for all to enjoy, but it won’t actually be going on my list of must-see holiday favorites. It makes a valiant effort, but just doesn’t quite stand up to the greats that have come before it. I still would recommend this, though, so check it out this holiday season.

3 3/4 out of 5 stars

Rainbow Brite and the Star Stealer

PLOT (spoiler alert!!!):

When Rainbow Brite (Bettina Bush) and her magical horse Starlite (Andre Stojka), go to Earth to start spring, they meet Stormy (Marissa Mendenhall), another magical girl who controls the season of winter with her horse Skydancer (Peter Cullen). Stormy, however, doesn’t want to end her winter fun, so Rainbow battles her for control over the season. Stormy proves to be no match for Rainbow and Starlite, who outrun her and head off to Earth. When they arrive, they meet up with Brian (Scott Menville), the only boy on Earth who can “see” Rainbow and Starlite.

Once Rainbow tries to start spring, however, her power weakens and winter remains. Brian becomes worried that spring will never come and senses that all of humanity is losing hope. Even Stormy is confused. Reassuring Brian that they will do what they can to return spring, Rainbow and Starlite return to Rainbowland.

Rainbow is paid a visit by a strange robotic horse with rockets for legs named On-X (Pat Fraley). He presents an urgent message from a legendary Sprite named Orin (Les Tremayne) who explains the luminous and magical planet Spectra, a planet of pure diamond that “all light in the universe has to pass through,” has grown dark. If it dims completely, all life in the universe will die.

Rainbow takes the mission to find Orin and later learns that Spectra is dimming as the result of a massive net being woven around the surface. The net is being made so that a selfish princess (Rhonda Aldrich), known only as the “Dark Princess,” can steal Spectra, “the greatest diamond in all the universe,” for herself, and tow it back to her world with her massive spaceship. The native Sprites of Spectra, enslaved by Glitterbots under the Princess’s control, are being forced to weave the net. Now Rainbow has to stop the Princess’s plan before all life on Earth is frozen solid by an endless winter.

Helping Rainbow and Starlite is Krys (David Mendenhall), a boy from Spectra. Krys believes he can take on the evil Princess and save his home world himself without the help of a “dumb girl.” When they meet Orin, the wise Sprite tries to make the two children get along and work together to stop the evil Princess. Orin tells them that they can only destroy her by combining their own powers against her.

Getting in the way of their mission is the sinister Murky Dismal (Peter Cullen) and his bumbling assistant Lurky (Pat Fraley) who, as usual, are lavishing in the new gloom created by the darkening of Spectra, as well as trying to steal Rainbow’s magical color belt.

After dodging Murky, Rainbow and Krys enter the Dark Princess’s castle and try to convince her that what she is doing will destroy the universe, but the spoiled and uncaring Princess is determined to have the diamond planet for herself and traps the children instead. Working together, Rainbow and Krys escape and use their powers to destroy the Princess’ spaceship, which extends an array of robotic claws to grab the net around Spectra. (It is often assumed that Princess herself is also destroyed in this scene, but she actually returns in the Rainbow Brite animated series’ 1986 episode “The Queen of the Sprites”.)

Once the Princess is defeated, the enslaved Sprites are freed and immediately destroy the net so that Spectra radiates its magical light once again. On Earth, a warm spring finally arrives as life returns to the planet and Rainbow returns to Rainbowland finding her friends are back to normal.

REVIEW:

Growing up in the 80s, it was nigh impossible to escape the barrage of Rainbow Brite commercials that aired. Strangely enough, though, I don’t think there were any during little girl cartoons like Jem or My Little Pony. I was not planning on watching this, even in my wildest dreams, but a certain person in this house insisted on watching Rainbow Brite and the Star Stealer.

What is this about?

The dark princess is up to no good! She’s snatched the Spectra — the universe’s sole source of light. Without Spectra in its rightful place, all will be plunged into gloom and dreariness unless Rainbow Brite and her friends can defeat the princess. In an animated cosmos of enchanted worlds, spunky Rainbow Brite and her magical horse, Starlite, confront evil by using color, magic, cleverness and joy as ammunition.

What did I like?

Nostalgia. The animation and voices brought back lots of memory from my childhood, as the company that produced this is responsible for many of the hit cartoons of the 80s, and the voices are some of the most popular and recognizable of the time, including Peter Cullen.

Happy. Let’s see here, we have little girls, shiny things, and rainbows. The default recipe for supposed happiness, something that has been sorely missing from any and everything anymore these days. Yeah, it could be construed as too sugary sweet, but that is the point on Rainbow Brite, from what I can tell.

What didn’t I like?

Princess. From what I gather, Murky and Lurky are actually Rainbow Brite’s arch-nesmeses, but here they are nothing more than a couple of second-rate stooges trying to appear as if they’ve accomplished an evil feat of grand proportions. For some reason, whenever a cartoon in the 80s got a movie, it barely resembled the show, going so far as to introduce new characters and downplay old ones. This is how we get Princess, who has to be one of the most annoying antagonists I’ve ever come across in my lifetime!

On-X. This is one cool looking horse, definitely an upgrade from Starlite. For all the props I give to his design and powers, his stuttering/short circuit thing didn’t make sense to me. Perhaps there is something I missed or don’t know in Rainbow Brite lore, but this ended up being nothing more than a distraction for me.

Music. This is an 80s film, so the music isn’t going to be the greatest in world, but it should be at least entertaining, and cheesy. However, I wasn’t feeling these songs. I bring to mind that episode of Family Guy where Brian and Stewie are in the multiverse and end up in a world that resembles a Disney cartoon. That 20 second song was better than the 2 or 3 that populate this soundtrack.

Rainbow Brite and the Star Stealer obviously was not meant for male viewers, even though they tried to force that boy, Krys down our throats. This is a cartoon just for the girls, and they can have it. I think my gender severely biased me against this film from the beginning and I just couldn’t get over it, but I just didn’t find this film entertaining, even for an 80s cartoon. If you were a fan of the cartoon as a child, then that would be the only reason to watch this, otherwise it is best to forget this even exists, if you know what’s good for you, that is.

2 1/3 out of 5 stars

Wreck-It Ralph

PLOT (spoiler alert!!!):

When Litwak’s Arcade closes at night, the various video game characters leave their normal in-game roles and are free to travel to other games. Within the game Fix-It Felix, Jr., the characters celebrate its titular hero but shun the villain, Wreck-It Ralph. At a support group for video game villains, Ralph reveals his desire to stop being a bad guy. Returning to his own game, Ralph finds the other characters celebrating their game’s 30th anniversary without inviting him. Felix reluctantly invites Ralph to join them, but the others refuse to accept him, prompting Ralph to leave in search of a medal to prove he is as worthy as Felix.

While visiting Tapper’s, Ralph meets a soldier from the first-person shooter Hero’s Duty, who tells him the game’s winner receives a medal. Ralph enters the game and encounters Sergeant Calhoun, its no-nonsense leader. Between game sessions, Ralph climbs the game’s central beacon and collects the medal, accidentally hatching a Cy-Bug, one of the game’s enemies. The Cy-Bug clings to Ralph as he stumbles into an escape pod that launches him out of the game. Meanwhile, with Ralph missing, a girl reports to Litwak that Fix-It Felix, Jr. is malfunctioning. Since broken games get unplugged, leaving their characters homeless, Felix sets off to find Ralph.

Ralph crash-lands in Sugar Rush, a kart-racing game. As he searches for his medal, he meets Vanellope von Schweetz, a glitchy character who makes off with the medal, planning to use it to buy entry into an after-hours race. King Candy and the other racers refuse to let Vanellope participate, claiming that she is not really part of the game. Ralph helps Vanellope build a kart and plans on teaching her how to drive. When she takes them to her home, Diet Cola Mountain, Ralph makes a track for her and discovers that she is a natural.

Back in Hero’s Duty, Felix meets Calhoun, who warns that the Cy-Bugs are capable of taking over any game they enter. As the pair searches for Ralph and the Cy-Bug in Sugar Rush, they separate when Felix, enamored with Calhoun, inadvertently reminds her of her previous romantic relationship, which ended tragically. Calhoun finds hundreds of Cy-Bug eggs underground, and Felix becomes imprisoned in King Candy’s castle. King Candy finds Ralph’s medal and offers it to Ralph in exchange for keeping Vanellope out of the race, claiming that allowing her would be disastrous for both her and the game. Fearing for Vanellope’s safety, Ralph wrecks the kart and returns to his own game, but finds it deserted, as everyone has evacuated in expectation that it will be unplugged in the morning. Ralph then notices Vanellope’s image on the Sugar Rush cabinet and realizes she is an intended part of the game, not a glitch.

Ralph returns to Sugar Rush, finds Felix and Vanellope, and asks Felix to fix the wrecked kart. As the race proceeds, the hatched Cy-Bugs attack and Felix, Calhoun, and Ralph battle them. When Vanellope catches up to King Candy, her glitching reveals that he is actually Turbo—a character from an old game who is notorious for having sabotaged a newer game, causing both to be unplugged, and has since taken control of Sugar Rush. Vanellope escapes from Turbo, who is consumed by a Cy-Bug. The group flees the doomed game, but Vanellope cannot pass through the exit. Calhoun says the game cannot be saved without a beacon to attract and kill the Cy-Bugs.

Ralph heads to Diet Cola Mountain, where he plans on collapsing its Mentos stalactites into the cola at the bottom, causing a blinding eruption that would attract the bugs. Before he can finish, Turbo, merged with the Cy-Bug that had consumed him, carries him away. Ralph breaks free and dives toward the mountain, hoping his impact will start the eruption. Vanellope in turn uses her glitching abilities to save Ralph. The eruption starts and draws all the Cy-Bugs to their destruction, including Turbo. Vanellope crosses the finish line, restoring her memory and status as the game’s lead character while keeping her advantageous glitching ability. Felix and Ralph return to their game in time for Litwak to see that it still works, sparing it from being unplugged. Felix marries Calhoun and the characters of Fix-It Felix, Jr. gain a new respect for Ralph.

REVIEW:

For many of us, we have been waiting patiently for the perfect video game movie. If I’m not mistaken, the current gold-standard is still Mortal Kombat which, while I liked it, really isn’t that great. So, that tells you the kind of product Hollywood has been throwing at us in terms of video game cinema. Hopefully, the forthcoming Assassin’s Creed film will be the game changer. In the meantime, I do believe I have seen a truly great video game flick, Wreck-It Ralph. The only problem is that it isn’t a real video game.

What is this about?

Wreck-It Ralph longs to be the good guy instead of the villain in an old-school video game. He sees his chance and sneaks into the arcade’s newest game, a flashy first-person shooter. But in doing the forbidden, he unleashes a deadly enemy.

What did I like?

After the game is over. Have you ever wondered what you favorite characters do after the you stop playing the game? I don’t know if this true for our home game systems, but apparently in arcades, they go to various other games, have a drink, go to meetings, hang out, etc. Much in the same way Toy Story taught us what happened with our toys when we leave the room. I can’t believe no one thought to bring our video game character to life before.

Old meets new. As a child of the 80s, I grew up playing games lile Pac-Man, Q-Bert, Street Fighter, etc. I can imagine that, with the exception of maybe the Sonic and Mario references, younger viewers had no idea who these classic video game icons are. However, the games that the film is based around are sure to be of interest to them, especially the Hero’s Duty game.

Arcade. I remember when I was in school how often I would run off to the arcade. Nowadays, I can’t say that any of them really exist, and if they do they are hanging on for dear life. I fear that the arcade is set to be our generation’s drive-in movie. Big fun when we were young, but nothing more than a memory now. Chuck E. Cheese is sort of an arcade, though, if that matters. Anyway, it was good to see an arcade still alive and kicking…even after it closed.

Voice. Today, it seems as if people aren’t cast unless they resemble the characters they are voicing, or the character takes on their features. This film keeps that tradition going. As a matter of fact, Fix-It Felix, Vanellope,  Sgt. Jane, and Wreck-It Ralph all could easily have been played in live action by the actors who gave them voices. I also have to give a tip of y hat to Alan Tudyk as King Candy. You wouldn’t know it is him, because he’s doing a spot on impression of Ed Wynn (you probably know him best from his scene in Mary Poppins or as the Mad Hatter in Disney’s Alice in Wonderland), and nails it!

Design. I have to give it up to these animators. Not only did they do a good job with these characters, but they also gave each game a different way of movement. For instance the people in Ralph’s game move totally different from those in Vanillope’s for instance. This is a small detail, but when you see it executed, it makes much more sense than my sad explanation.

What didn’t I like?

Jump, man, jump. The trailers for this film advertised it as if Ralph was going to do some major game hopping, yet the majority of the game is spent in the land of Sugar Rush. I hear that they are already talking sequel, which is great, but I would like for them to go to more games, especially if they paid all this money for the rights to certain characters like Sonic, Bowser, Q-Bert, etc.

Annoyance. Vanellope was nothing more than an annoyance, as can be seen in the trailer. If you think she is bad in those couple of clips, just wait until you get a full dose of her. Man, this little girl is the sum of everything that is annoying about kids today. I’m going to leave it at that before I go off on some expletive-laden tangent.

Sap. It is kind of ironic that the typical sappy scene that sets up the moral learning at the end of the film happens in the diabetic nightmare that is Sugar Rush. Wish some treachery from King Candy, Ralph and Vanellope have a fight which results in her running away and getting caught only to have Ralph come back and rescue her. Thanks goodness the sappy interchange between these two isn’t that bad or long. I’m not sure my teeth could take all that sugary sweetness.

I had a great time watching Wreck-It Ralph, despite the Mother Hubbard and her 8 kids that came in not long after the film started and walked right in front of me. I guess people just don’t have move courtesy, anymore. I’m sure that this would have been a treat for the eyes in 3D. The candy cart racing scenes reminded me alot of Speed Racer. With game references to games both old and new, characters that are very relatable, and great story, this is one of those must-see flicks. I highly recommed it!

4 1/2 out of 5 stars

Ella Enchanted

PLOT (spoiler alert!!!):

In the kingdom of Frell, baby Ella (Anne Hathaway) is given the “gift of obedience” by her fairy godmother, Lucinda (Vivica A. Fox). This turns out to be more of a curse, making Ella do anything she is told to do, no matter how terrible or physically impossible. Some years later, Ella’s mother dies after instructing Ella to tell no one of the curse, not even her father. Eventually Ella’s father (Patrick Bergin), in need of money, remarries a wealthy socialite. His greedy new wife, Dame Olga (Joanna Lumley), and her two spoiled daughters Hattie and Olive (Jennifer Higham) treat Ella poorly. They eventually realize Ella’s obedience to commands, and begin making her life miserable.

Ella stumbles upon Prince Charmont (Hugh Dancy), the handsome heir to the throne, as he’s being pursued by his “fan club” of young women. He finds her lack of deference to him refreshing and after their encounter, sends an invitation to the Coronation Ball to her home, where it is intercepted by her stepmother and stepsisters. Hattie and Olive, who are part of Prince Charmont’s fan club, are overcome with jealousy. Along with their mother, they force Ella to insult and cut ties with her best friend Areida (Parminder Nagra). Ella cannot bear to live under the obedience spell and Hattie’s jealousy a moment longer, so she resolves to find Lucinda, the only one who can remove the spell. Mandy (Minnie Driver), the household fairy and the only other person who knows of the curse, tries to help by lending Ella a magical book that can show people in their current surroundings. The book holds Mandy’s boyfriend Benny (Jimi Mistry), who she had accidentally transformed in an errant spell. During her journey, Ella encounters an elf named Slannen (Aidan McArdle), who wants to be a lawyer instead of an entertainer as the kingdom’s laws now require. Slannen joins Ella on her quest, but they are captured by a group of ogres, who prepare to cook and eat them. They are rescued by Prince Charmont. He then accompanies her to a wedding in the land of giants, where Ella hopes to find Lucinda. Throughout the journey, Ella opens Charmont’s eyes to the cruelty of his uncle’s new laws oppressing elves and giants. Char suggests that Ella should come with him to his palace to visit the Hall of Records and track down Lucinda faster.

At the palace, Charmont’s uncle, Sir Edgar (Cary Elwes), has Ella’s “gift” called to his attention by his talking snake, Heston, voiced by (Steve Coogan), who has been spying on the prince. When Edgar offers Hattie Char’s hand in marriage, Ella’s stepsisters explain that she does everything she is told. Edgar knows that Prince Charmont intends to propose marriage to Ella, and he orders her to stab him to death and not to tell anyone of the plan. Sir Edgar also reveals that he murdered Prince Charmont’s father. To prevent the murder of Char, Ella asks Slannen to tie her to a tree outside the city and to find the giants so they can help. Lucinda now appears before Ella, who asks her to undo the “gift” of obedience. Offended by the request, Lucinda refuses, saying that if Ella no longer wants the spell, she must remove it herself. She unties Ella from the tree and gives her a fancy dress and tells her to attend the ball. When Ella gets to the ball, Charmont almost immediately takes her to the Hall of Mirrors and asks her to marry him. Ella is about to stab him with the dagger Edgar provided, when she realizes how to free herself from the curse: looking into a mirror, she orders herself to no longer be obedient. Charmont sees the dagger drop from her hand and realizes she tried to kill him. Edgar is watching the entire scene behind a two-way mirror, and before Ella can explain, Edgar orders the guards to lock her up and have her executed in a few days.

Meanwhile, Slannen gets the giants, and the ogres come to sneak into the castle to rescue Ella and find out that Sir Edgar is poisoning the crown that Char will receive during the ceremony. Just before Charmont puts it on, Ella and her allies interrupt. Edgar and Heston call for the knights and Red Guards, and a battle ensues. Ella explains everything to Charmont while fighting alongside him. When Sir Edgar’s forces lose the battle, Heston tries to bite Char, but is stopped by Ella. Caught trying to killing the prince, Edgar admits to killing the King to the assembled crowd. Then, carried away by his own rhetoric, he puts it dramatically on his own head, and promptly collapses from the poison, although he survives.

Char and Ella kiss; her stepsisters arrive and order her to stop kissing, and she is delighted to refuse. Ella then walks up to Hattie and takes her mother’s necklace back from her (Hattie had forced Ella to give it to her near the beginning of the movie). Char once again asks Ella to marry him, and she agrees. The movie ends with their wedding and a musical number (Elton John’s “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart).

REVIEW:

There are so many twists, turns, and mutations on the tale of Cinderella out there today that it is hard to remember some of the better ones. Ella Enchanted is one of these versions that has fallen by the wayside, partly because Anne Hathaway’s career skyrocketed shortly after this, if I’m not mistaken.

What is this about?

Burdened at birth with the “gift” of obedience by a flighty fairy godmother, Ella searches for a way to lift the curse that prevents her from pursuing her dreams — and her true love, Prince Charmont.

What did I like?

Role model. I was talking to someone about this film the other day and the topic of role models came up. In this day and age when the females that little girls see the most are anything but good role models (contrary to their belief), it is a nice break from the norm to get a strong Cinderella-type character. Personally, I prefer the original, but I’m a purist. That being said, Ella of Frel is a good example for young girls.

Cast. In my opinion, this is one of the more attractive casts that I’ve seen in quite some time. With the exception of the step sisters, who are complete dogs no matter what incarnation they’re in and the ogres, there isn’t one person that isn’t at least marginally attractive, in my opinion. For goodness sakes, Heidi Klum appears as one of the giants! Now, what does this mean for the film, since we can almost all be sure that people in this era didn’t look like they just walked out of a Hollywood salon? Well, the film does seem to be a bit of a satire on the fairy tale, so I’m sure the cast’s looks have something to do with that, as well.

Pop culture. Many people seem to be torn on the modern touches here and there, such as the songs, a wooden escalator, a university, complete with protests, fan clubs, etc. Hey, it worked in A Knight’s Tale, and before that, on The Flintstones, so why can’t it work here in a film that isn’t trying to take itself too seriously? I don’t see what the big deal is. Personally, I think we could have done with a touch more here and there, but not too much, lest we meander into territory defecated upon by the last couple of Shrek films.

What didn’t I like?

Smart. Ella is a smart, independent young woman, so it seems to be that by time she’s this age, she would have figured out a way around the curse or maybe even learned a few spells from Mandy, who I’m not really sure why she’s still there at this time. I just don’t get why she had to go on a trek across the countryside to find Lucinda, other than to fill out the film.

Spotlight. You might not realize it, but there are other characters in this film besides Ella, the Prince, Sir Edgar, and Slannen. Two of the biggest injustices are Mandy, played by Minnie Driver who really could be a throwaway character, if you think about it and Ella’s best friend, Areida. I would have loved to have seen more of these two, especially Areida, but instead, we get to see Vivica A. Fox in all her stereotypical, sassy black female glory. I am not a fan of her, let me tell you! Don’t even get me started on how the focus was only on one of the step sisters. Yes, that’s how it is in every incarnation, but this poor girl may as well have not even been there!

Deviation. I just learned that this is based on a book. One of these days, I may have to go check that out. In the meantime, I can’t really comment on how far from the source material but I do know that it doesn’t really resemble the book. As a I said earlier, I’m a purist, but I understand that certain allowances must be made. However, changing the whole story is something that I just can’t deal with.

Ella Enchanted is the first film where I believe we actually were able to see that Anne Hathaway had some real acting chops to go with those model looks of hers. If you’re in the mood for a nice family film that will keep you and your kids entertained, then I highly recommend this one. No, it isn’t perfect, but it sure is fun to watch!

4 out of 5 stars

Revisited #3: Labyrinth

PLOT (spoiler alert!!!):

The film opens with a barn owl watching a teenager, Sarah (Jennifer Connelly), reciting lines from a play called Labyrinth in a park. As Sarah struggles to remember the final line of her monologue, the town clock chimes seven o’ clock and Sarah remembers she has to babysit her brother Toby. She rushes home and has a confrontation with her impatient stepmother.

Following her parents’ departure Sarah realizes that her teddy bear, Lancelot, is missing from her room. She finds the toy in Toby’s room and resentfully declares a wish that the goblins would take the baby away. Abruptly, Toby vanishes and a barn owl flies into the room, transforming into Jareth: King of the Goblins (David Bowie). Jareth tells Sarah that he will return her brother if she can solve his Labyrinth within thirteen hours. He transports Sarah and himself to the Labyrinth, then leaves Sarah to start her quest.

At the entrance of the Labyrinth, Sarah meets Hoggle, a grumpy and obstinate dwarf who refuses to help her. She advances through the labyrinth alone and overcomes a series of obstacles during her journey, including a Knights and Knaves logic puzzle, before eventually trapping herself in an oubliette. Jareth sends Hoggle into the oubliette to free Sarah and misdirect her back to the beginning of the labyrinth.

As they travel Sarah and Hoggle encounter a group of goblins tormenting a gentle beast named Ludo, whose roars frighten Hoggle and lead him to flee. Sarah saves Ludo and travels with him but the two become separated. A group of revelers with detachable limbs called the Fire Gang harass Sarah until Hoggle reappears to rescue her. Shortly afterward they pass through the Bog of Eternal Stench where they are reunited with Ludo and add another to their party: Sir Didymus, a chivalrous, fox-like knight who guards the bridge that leads away from the bog.

Hoggle offers Sarah a peach that Jareth had ordered him to give her. Upon biting the peach, Sarah falls into a trance and finds herself in a dream-like ballroom where Jareth attempts to seduce her. The sound of a striking clock reminds Sarah that she needs to save her brother and she frees herself from the vision to resume her quest. She rejoins Ludo and Sir Didymus, and the three of them approach the Goblin City that surrounds Jareth’s castle. Hoggle appears and disables a giant robot that guards the city gate. Sarah forgives Hoggle for his earlier betrayal and continues with all her friends through the city, successfully defeating the soldiers of the goblin army who have been sent to stop them.

Upon reaching Jareth’s throne room, Sarah decides to go forward alone. She finds Jareth and Toby in a vast, stair-filled room, (inspired by M. C. Escher’s Relativity), and attempts unsuccessfully to find a path to reach her brother. She is interrupted by Jareth, who confronts her face-to-face and asks her to abandon her quest in order to stay with him forever. Sarah recites the complete monologue from the beginning of the film, concluding with the formerly elusive line, “You have no power over me.”

Jareth, acknowledging defeat, returns Sarah and Toby to their home. Sarah discovers she can see Hoggle and the rest of her friends in her bedroom mirror. Sarah tells her friends she needs them, summoning them into her room. The film closes as Sarah and the creatures celebrate her victory. Outside the bedroom window, a barn owl briefly watches the party before flying away.

REVIEW:

In the 80s, there were two fantasy films that were brought to us by Jim Henson which have gone on to become beloved cult favorites. Labyrinth is the better known and received of the two, The Dark Crystal being the other. When this film was released, I don’t recall seeing it, but years later I find myself ranking this among those unforgettable pictures.

What is this about?

In this Jim Henson-directed fantasy, teenage Sarah (Jennifer Connelly) embarks on a life-altering quest when she attempts to rescue her little brother, Toby (Toby Froud), from the clutches of treacherous Jareth the Goblin King (David Bowie), who lives in a castle surrounded by a giant labyrinth. With just 13 hours to plot a course through the dangerous maze, Sarah must grow up fast, learn her responsibilities and muster supreme courage.

What did I like?

Characters. This is a film that is highly driven by its characters. Every one from human characters Jareth, Sarah, and, to a lesser extent, Toby to the Muppet characters of Hoggle, Ludo, Sir Didymus, etc., are well fleshed out and the audience is sure to care what happens to them.

Story. To my knowledge, this isn’t based on any book, but rather an idea from some designs by a designer who worked for Jim Henson. You may not believe it, based on films that are released today, but there was a time when Hollywood actually had original ideas, and this is a shining example of what happens when you don’t just rehash someone else’s ideas. This isn’t the most complicated of stories, it actually is pretty basic, what with it being your traditional kidnap story, but it works, and that’s all that matters.

Creations. Since this is a Jim Henson film, I don’t need to tell you that these fantastic creatures created for this world will be a feast for your eyes. I liken this to the characters we all know and love from Alice in Wonderland (whichever version you prefer). Other creations come from the David Bowie in the form of song. My favorite, as I’m sure many agree, is “Magic Dance”.

What didn’t I like?

Sarah. Jennifer Connelly is gorgeous, even at this young age. She may have gone on to bigger and better things, but I couldn’t help but find her performance extremely wooden. I don’t know about you, but if my baby brother were stolen and I only had a short amount of time to get him back and return home before my parents got home, I’d be going through some more intense freak out. Connelly just seems like she’s just there and doesn’t really care what happens to her brother. Part of that is her character, but there is a point when she supposedly starts to care, and that wooden acting seems to get worse.

Randomosity. There is a point, shortly past the halfway mark, that the film slows down and we are taken to the strangest, most odd-looking part of the film filled with rejects designs from those aliens we know from Sesame Street. I’m just not a fan of these points in film that all but bring the picture to a complete stop. It is very similar to the part in Alice in Wonderland where Alice runs into the forest and starts crying with all these random creatures start showing up. There could be a reason for this, though, as it could be some sort of calm before the storm, but I didn’t care for it. The only good part of this section in the film is that we are introduced to Sir Didymus.

Ludo. This guy has everything to takes to be a very lovable character and, despite the fact that they don’t really build him up they way he could be, he still is. I just wish we could have learned a bit more about the guy, ike why it is that he can call rocks, for starters.  I guess for a fairly short flick such as this, that would have been too much, though.

Labyrinth is one of those films that everyone seems to love. There isn’t much negative to say about it, but plenty to rave about. If you haven’t seen this already, then I highly recommend you reintroduce yourself to it. This is most definitely a film that is a must-see before you die!

4 1/2 out of 5 stars