In this version of the Nut Job stories, the animals have found that the nut store from the first story is abandoned and filled to the brim with nuts and nut products. They are gorging to their hearts’ content, getting lazy and spoiled, according to Andie (Heigl); she realizes that the store has a real […]
The special effects, humor, and sheer imagination of the Despicable Me series continue to be refreshing and delightful for children. There were many chuckles from children (and adults, by the way) in the screening I attended, as well as sighs during the tender moments. Like its predecessors, 3 is mostly entertaining (as it’s meant to
The setting of this animation of absolutely no value is grade school with a mean principal, Mr. Krupp (Helms) who has it in for two student cartoonists, George (Hart) and Harold (Middleditch), pranksters who constantly thwart Krupp’s efforts. Of course, he is shown as being just as humorless and bad as the two pranksters are
The humanization of Batman (Arnett) turns out to be very funny with glitzy animation and some substance to the message. As evidenced by audience reaction at the screening, those familiar with DC comics will get many references that fly past those of us who are uninformed. But even for those unfamiliar with all the Batman
This visually beautiful and engaging animation from the Ghibli Studio combines fantasy with deep human experiences of loss, loneliness, love, and desperation simply through visual animation, music, and a few shouts. It reminded me of last year’s Swiss Army Man, with a man stranded on an isolated island showing the value of fantasy in survival,
This magical, musical animation from Disney incorporates folklore and myth to tell a story about identity with reverence for history and the preservation of the world. It’s a hero’s—actually, a heroine’s—journey where she must go out into the world far beyond her safe island and undergo many trials to save her people and their land.
I think kids will really take to this animation with simple messages that will be meaningful to them, delivered in eye-catching, colorful visual effects. The message is basically pitting “look on the bright side of life” against “look out; they’re out to get you.” And further, that true happiness is inside all of us; it’s
This nWave animated production comes from Belgium, but the language for U.S. release is in English. Directors are Vincent Kesteloot and Ben Stassen. It’s basically an extended cartoon, with endless chases and miraculous last-minute saves. There are some implied messages, but these will likely go over preschool children’s heads, the audience for which I think
What a perfect blend of visual beauty, creativity, magical stories, and delightful lessons for life! The American stop-motion animation studio Laika is well known for its quality work (Coraline, ParaNorman, The Boxtrolls), and Kubo and the two Strings represents their best in my opinion. The visual beauty lies mostly in the sheets of paper that
This is the seventh in a series of Ice Age films, and is largely empty animation and special effects without much of a story. My interest was piqued when I saw that Neil DeGrasse Tyson was going to be one of the voices in the film, in hopes that it would have some educational value;