movie review
“Storks” movie is a Bundle of Joy
Once upon a time, all babies were delivered by enterprising, hard-working storks. It was a good system, but not the only system of acquiring adorably leaky bundles of joy. Apparently, there are other ways to get babies? Some of the more clever storks decided to abandon the baby factory in favor of creating a mega-store in the sky supplying every last delivery whim to the people of Earth. Storks is the latest animated offering from the Warner Animation Group, which created the cheeky, frantic, weird, hilarious The Lego Movie. If you liked it, you will fall in love with Storks. It never takes itself too seriously but manages to weave two solidly warm, embraceable stories together. Junior Stork (Andy Samburg) is up for a big promotion, but first he has to carry out the difficult job of firing...
“Kubo and the Two Strings” is a Vibrant Love Letter to Family
Summer vacation might be over for most Colorado kids, but that doesn’t mean it’s time to wave goodbye to epic animated storytelling. After a summer of sequels, reboots, and reimaginings, Kubo and the Two Strings stands as a sumptuous, astonishingly crafted experience with a fresh story. If you must blink, do it now… ~ Kubo Young Kubo (Art Parknson) is gifted with a special ability, which he uses to support himself and his bereft, secretive mother. When he makes a decision to explore deeper into his past, he unknowingly sparks a chain of events that lead him to a showdown with someone ancient—and angry. Kubo has two mysterious guides along the way, Monkey (Charlize Theron) and Beetle (Matthew McConaughey). They set a course to help him find the elements he will need to defeat tw...
“Pete’s Dragon” Gets a Fresh, Fun Coat of Fur
Disney is slowly amassing a collection of live-action adaptations of their most popular animated movies. In 2015, they gave us the gorgeous and delightful Cinderella. Earlier in 2016, you probably caught The Jungle Book, which was packed with jaw-dropping action and animal hijinks. Late summer ushers a gentle, tenderhearted re-imagining of 1977’s Pete’s Dragon. Parents might remember an animated doofy-but-loving green and purple dragon named Elliot and his boy, Pete. This is about as far as similarities go between the original film and the new adaptation. There are glaring, major, key differences in the plots. Ardent fans of the 1977 version starring Helen Reddy and Mickey Rooney should not expect a close mirroring of the story. The circumstances of how Pete and Elliot meet and how Pete fi...
Disney’s “The BFG” is Summer Movie Storytelling at Its Finest
So hold your breath, cross your fingers, here we go! ~ The BFG Imagine your childhood summer movie outings without “E.T the Extraterrestrial,” “Jurassic Park,” the Indiana Jones films, “The Goonies,” “Gremlins,” “Back to the Future,” and “Who Framed Roger Rabbit.” How boring. How uninspiring! What would have been on our lunchboxes or on our t-shirts? Thankfully, Steven Spielberg directed and/or produced some of the greatest family films of our time, staking a claim in our summer memories. He’s back. Now your kids can dabble in a bit of Spielbergian storytelling magic this summer. Disney’s “The BFG” opens on July 1st, 2016. Based on Roald Dahl’s beloved tale, Spielberg’s interpretation stays true to the whimsical, cheeky, perilous heart of the story. There is nothing like “The BFG” in theat...
New Goosebumps Movie Delivers Scary Fun
‘Tis the season to scream. Everywhere you look, the creepy and the ghoulish are doing their spindly, bloody best to horrify with one oversized spider or lurching zombie at a time. Movie theaters love to pile on the scary fare, too. Usually, they offer plenty for adults to see, leaving kids out of the mix. Not this Halloween. Goosebumps bursts into theaters this Friday, October 16th, just in time for Halloween. For nearly 25 years, kids have devoured Goosebumps books in astonishing numbers. The man responsible for creating the wildly successful universe of monsters vs. children is R.L. Stine. In a very clever twist, the Goosebumps film asks a question: What if R.L. Stine’s imagination was so powerful, his creations could come to life? This fun premise serves as the springboard f...
