Brave

Starring the voice talents of Kelly MacDonald, Emma Thompson, Billy Connolly, Craig Ferguson, and John Ratzenburger

Directed by Mark Andrews and Brenda Chapman

Release Date: June 22nd, 2012

Princess Merida: Expert Marksman, adventurous, running free in the wild...betrothed to whom?! The young princess of Clan DunBroch wants to defy a local custom where the first born of each clan ( Macintosh, Dingwall, and MacGuffin) compete to win her hand in marriage. Merida's parents, King Fergus and Queen Elinor, only want what is best for their daughter but Elinor and Merida continue to butt heads over everything. Soon, Merida runs off into the forest, meeting a strange old woman who claims she can change Merida's fate. Will this encounter be for the best?

Pixar's thirteen feature film is the first to feature a female protagonist and the first period piece for the power house animation studio. Personally, I love Pixar and they do amazing work (for the record, I haven't seen Cars 2 and I probably won't after how dull Cars was) that delight children and adults like parent company Walt Disney Studios have done for years. So, I was really looking forward to Brave once I saw the trailers, heard about the premise, etc. How is the film?

On a technical/visual note, Brave is absolutely stunning. The environments of the story are breath taking and I really took note of how intricate the detail was in the castle interiors; top notch work from the animators. Also, I have to note how great the clothing and hair styles look. Just take note of how seamless (no pun intended) the clothing look, or how life-like Merida's hair gets, from how it blows in the wind to how wild and uncontrollable it can get. For kids, they'll just see the pretty colors and notice how good the film looks. As an adult, I am marveled at how stunning the CGI can become and I am floored at what Pixar can do.

The characters are a lot of fun, particularly Merida's family. Billy Connolly gets a lot of funny lines as King Fergus and I really understood how confused he can be when his wife and daughter are having a problem and he's just dumbstruck. Connolly also does a great job of making Fergus into a goofy man who'd rather sing, drink, and hunt rather than act like a proper king. Then there's Merida's triplet brothers, who are unvoiced. The triplets are really funny; they act like little troublemakers, but they obviously love their sister and parents, and they act like real kids. Finally, there's the relationship between Merida and Elinore, her mother. This was really stunning, as the characters are forced to work together and better understand each other due to a misunderstanding. Yes, I know it's formulaic, two mismatched people work together for a common goal, but the characters work really well together and it pays off very well in the finale.

Rating: 4 out 5 

Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted

Starring the voice talents of Ben Stiller, Chris Rock, David Schwimmer, Jada Pinkett Smith, Cedric the Entertainer, Sasha Baron Cohen, Andy Richter, Bryan Cranston, Jessica Chastain, Martin Short, and Frances McDormand

Directed by Eric Darnell, Tom McGrath, and Conrad Vernon

Release Date(s)

Cannes Film Festival....May 18th, 2012

World Premiere............June 8th, 2012

The Animals are back...under the big tent. This installment, Alex the Lion, Gloria the Hippo, Melman the giraffe, and Marty the zebra are on the loose in Europe and must hide out against the notorious Animal Control officer Captain Chantel DuBois. To do this, they work with a struggling circus on its way through Europe on their way to New York, the foursome's home and zoo. Are they back on their way to their old glory days? Could Alex be a trophy on Dubois's wall?

I've always liked the Madagascar films. I thought the first was decent (at best) and the sequel had its moments, but wasn't truly memorable. The best thing about those films were the interactions between the main cast and the Penguin characters. So, when the trailer for movie three came out, I was mildly amused, but not very interested. Therefore, I got invited to a screening and was certainly changed my tune. The film is very funny, and could be the best of the series. Not only does the film have an impressive cast of new voice actors and characters, it boasts several impressive sequences that are visual treats. In the beginning of the first act, there's an exhilarating car chase that zooms through Monte Carlo, making great use of 3D visuals, and having some great jokes along the way. But what's a great film without a good story? In Madagascar 3, the main plot revolves around the four animals trying to get back to their old lives in New York, they meet Vitaly the tiger, a circus animal who lives in the past due to his struggles with the present. It's a good story that works well with a family audience that can entertain both kids and adults. Then, there's the crowning moment of awesome: The day-glow majesty of the FUR POWER circus. One minute there's trapeze tumbling, then there's dancing and music; it's a great treat and definitely makes the film memorable.

The only con? At times, the film uses a few jokes that don't make sense, but that's a minor complaint.

Final Thought: Madagascar 3 is a fun movie for families.

Rating: 4 out of  5

Castle in the Sky

Original Title Tenkū no Shiro Rapyut:  (Laputa: Castle in the Sky)

Starring the voice talents of James Van Der Beek, Anna Paquin, Mark Hamill, Cloris Leachman, Jim Cummings, and Mandy Patinkin

Directed by Hayao Miyazaki

Release Date(s):

Japan.....August 2nd, 1986
US.......... 1998 (Disney)

One day, a young man named Pazu sees a young girl fall out of the sky. Soon, he gets to know Sheeta, and the two of them discover they are connected to a legendary kingdom known as Laputa, a grand location many doubt truly exists. Pazu and Sheeta find that they are not the only ones looking for Laputa; others such as Captain Dola and her unruly songs, ruthless government agent Colonel Muska and the army are after the secrets hidden in the sky. What awaits our young heroes: fame, glory, or danger?

If you are a fan of animation, the names of Studio Ghibli and Hayao Miyazaki should be very familiar to you. If this is your first exposure to those names, you may have picked one of the best films in Ghibli's libraries for new audiences. Castle in the Sky is a rousing action adventure film that has likable protagonists, sweeping visuals, and a fairly standard plot. You may be asking yourself: "Why would an average plot be a good thing?" Well, because normally Studio Ghibli films have plots that, while adhering to traditional storytelling devices, don't normally have such solid stances on where each characters' loyalties lie. Sure, Dola starts out as an antagonist chasing after Pazu and Sheeta in act one, but you never truly doubt that she's a crusty motherly figure with a good heart, or that Muska is a deceitful bad guy who's after more than he says. Still, this allows for the audiences to root for the good guys and not worry about more than "we're after a floating castle" in terms of the plot.

That said, there are a lot of great pros for the film, such as the great action sequences, the goofy humor, and the English voice cast. First, I have to say that many of the action set pieces in the film are fluid, fun and very memorable. As the majority of the film takes place in the air (Miyazaki is a huge fan of aviation), there are a couple of great moments with flight such as the DOLA gang fighting the military in insect-like air-bikes or Sheeta and Pazu in a struggling whirlwind in tiny glider. Next, the humor is great for children and adults; for instance, there's a memorable sequence shared between Pazu's boss and one of Dola's sons on who is manlier which involves exploding their shirts by FLEXING THEIR MUSCLES. Last, the Disney English dub is pretty good, with a few exceptions. I liked James Van Der Beek as Pazu (he gives the character a likability while also expressing a need to prove himself), Mark Hamill as Colonel Muska (come on, it's Mark Hamill as a villian....he's just awesome) and Cloris Leachman as Dola (she's cranky,  feisty, but can also be fierce, confident, and a dependable person). The only voice actors that don't work for me are Anna Paquin as Sheeta and Andy Dick as Henri, another of Dola's sons. Paquin is fine for the most part, but she keeps slipping between using an normal speaking voice and a strange European accent at times; it's just off-putting and does take you out of  the movie at times. Andy Dick.....he's just dull. He's playing himself and doesn't really do anything to make the character his own.

Final Thoughts: A great animated film by the legendary Hayao Miyazaki. FULL RECOMMENDATION.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 

The Secret World of Arrietty

Starring the voice talents of:


(UK VERSION)
Saoirse Ronan................. Arrietty
Tom Holland....................Shō
Olivia Colman....................Homily
Phyllida Law..................... Sadako Maki 
Luke Allen-Gale................ Spiller
Mark Strong...................... Pod 
Geraldine McEwan............. Haru 


(US Version)
Bridgit Mendler.................Arrietty
David Henrie        .............Shō
Amy Poehler   .................. Homily
Gracie Poletti     ............... Sadako Maki 
Moises Arias     ................ Spiller
Will Arnett      .................. Pod 
Carol Burnett        ............ Haru


Directed by  Hiromasa Yonebayashi






Release Dates:

Japan                              July 17, 2010
United Kingdom              July 29, 2011
United States                   February 17, 2012

Note: I saw the UK version, which has Mark Strong, Saoirse Ronan and Tom Holland in the voice cast.

Adapted from Mary Norton's Novel "The Borrowers" from the illustrious Hayao Miyazaki, The Secret World of Arrietty looks at a fantastically microscopic view beneath our very feet.

In the country, Shō is a young boy awaiting heart surgery at her mother's childhood home.  Shō  has always been very weak, never having friends to play with due to his poor health. But one day, he spies something out of the corner of his eye: a little girl no bigger than a doll. Her name is Arrietty.

As is standard with Studio Ghibli films, the animation is absolutely stunning. There are many gorgeous details put into the flora and fauna in the yard, such as when Shō sits in the field in the afternoon or seen in the immaculate detail of water droplets during a rainy day. also, since much of the film takes place from the point of view of a 'borrower', there is a great deal of scale when looking at objects both big and small. One of my favorite moments is when looking at the objects in Arrietty's home, such as how her family uses stamps for pictures or how her father uses double sided tape to walk up a dresser. So yes, from a visual standpoint the film is absolutely stunning.

Unfortunately, the film does suffer from two major problems: a slow pace and character development. First, the film does have a slow pace which may detract many but will also bore children due to their being many scenes of pretty visuals like the dollhouse but nothing visually exciting like other Ghibli films. Second, due to this pacing and emphasis of visuals, there is little attention to character interaction. That is to say, you want to see more of the characters interacting, growing, doing more than is seen on the screen. For example, there is a fourth borrower introduced in the second act; his name is Spiller and is more of an outdoor borrower, someone who lives in the yard and is seen as a hunter. Then....he disappears until the last 10 minutes.

Final thoughts: The Secret World of Arrietty is a visually enjoyable movie with good characters and first-time director Hiromasa Yonebayashi does a good job with this movie. Still, the movie is a bit slow and doesn't offer as much character development as one would hope. Still, for fans of Studio Ghibli and animation, it gets a full recommendation.

Rating: 3.5 of 5

Gulliver's Travels

Starring Jack Black, Jason Segel, Emily Blunt, Catherine Tate and Billy Connolly

Directed by Rob Letterman

Release Date: December 25th, 2010

UGH..........where do I begin? Gulliver's Travels is a novel originally written by Johnathan swift and has been adapted several times with varying degrees of faithfulness to the original text. This 2010 adaptation, where Gulliver is a portly Jack Black, may be the most foul, offensive, and moronic adaptation one may ever see to insult the intelligence of children.

Usually, I like Jack Black; he's a talented actor with a lot of manic energy who also sings and performs as part of the musical duo Tenacious D. Black has been in such great movies as High Fidelity, King Kong, School of Rock, and Tropic Thunder. The point being, he can be a very fun and charismatic actor with a slightly goofy charm. However, in this critical failure, he's a liar and very, very annoying. He brays every line, never giving a genuine reason to like him other than he's the main character and we have to like him.

But the biggest offenders are the unnecessary pop culture references and the sophomoric humor. Look, I get that the film was intended for families with young children, but does that mean it's okay to have a PG rating with Black pulling down his pants, and urinating to put out a fire? Then there are the product placements/pop culture, such as Gulliver's life is Star Wars or that he uses an iPhone and drinks Coca-Cola; seriously? Did I need an Avatar references in Gulliver's Travels?

On the positive side, the supporting cast are good, such as Billy Connolly and Catherine Tate as the King and Queen of Liliput, Jason Segel as Horatio, and Chris O'Dowd as General Edward, but they are not worth sitting through this turkey.

Rating: 1 out of 5 stars .

Rio

Starring the voice talents of Jesse Eisenberg, Anne Hathaway, will.i.am, Leslie Mann, Rodrigo Santorio, and Jermaine Clement

Directed by Carlos Saldanha

Release Date: March 22, 2011 (World Premiere)

Blu (Eisenber) is a blue macaw living in Minnesota with his owner Linda (Mann). He wants nothing more out of life than to hang out in Linda's bookstore, drink cocoa, and ride his skateboard; Blu has never even learned how to fly! Then, one fateful winter, a Brazilian ornithologist wants to bring the pair to Rio so that Blu can meet with a female macaw named Jewel (Hathaway) to possibly save the macaws from extinction. Will the pair hit it off? Will Linda lose her childhood friend?

In my opinion, Blue Sky animation had previously made one good film, an adaptation of Dr. Seuss's Horton Hears a Who; I think the Ice Age trilogy is hit-or-miss and Robots was really bland. However, I can honestly say that Rio is a fun, colorful adventure that families will certainly enjoy.

First, let's talk about the good parts of the film: the visuals, the music, and the antagonist played by Jermaine Clement. Since the film is mostly set in Rio de Janiero (during the festival known as Carnival), the visuals pop and shine so that the film has a loving care put into every color, even the muted ones. I love how much energy comes from the scenes set during the Carnival parade, as elaborate floats are set against a crazy chase during the third act. The music is mostly samba, obviously, but I also was enjoying the original songs written for the film. Then, there's Nigel, the evil cockatoo played by Jermaine Clement. The character is so over-the-top, an ego-maniacal actor that you can tell Clement was enjoying this role in the studio booth.

Now, we have to discuss the film's flaws: cliched characters and an all-too familiar plot. As much as I enjoyed Nigel, many of the other main characters are archetypes we've seen before: the bohemian love interest, the orphan who wants a home, etc. There's a character, Tulio, who I really enjoyed for his goofy behavior while helping Linda look for Blu. Sadly, he's stuck in the b-plot which means we only get to see him once in a while. Also, the plot is all too familiar: mismatched pair who initially don't like each other but must work together (see The Emperor's New Groove). Sure, this is bound to happen in animated movies aimed for kids, but why is it that Pixar is the only company who wants to take risks with their stories? It's just disappointing that the writer's couldn't take a risk, because they do write a lot of humorous dialogue.

Rio is a good family film that, while offering few surprises, is still a visual treat with goofy humor.

Rating: * * * 1/2 of 5

Babe: Pig in the City

Starring Magda Szubanski and James Cromwell 


Directed by George Miller 


Release Date: November 25th, 1998


After the thunderous approval of Babe, co-writer and Director George Miller brought the sheep-pig back to the silver screen.  This time, Farmer Hoggett (Cromwell) has injured himself on the farm so it's up to Mrs. Hogett and Babe to save the farm! 


B:Pitc is a surreal and surprisingly dark family comedy. At times, the dilemmas that both Mrs. Hoggett and Babe may be frightening for young children. However, I applaud the filmmakers for trying something new with the sequel rather than retool another sheep-herding contest. Also, the look of the city: it's a sight to behold and makes for a unique setting. The CITY, as it is called, is an amalgam of Australian, European and America Cities, with water walkways and 1950-1960s automobiles. It may feel strange, but there's a charming timelessness to the film's atmosphere. Babe: Pig in the City is in the same category as Rango: both films are a tad darker than expected for younger children, but are certain to entertain the 8-12 year old crowd. 


Rating: * * * * of 5