When you’re in middle school, making friends can be the biggest challenge you face. Many grownups look back at those years between sixth and eighth grade with a cringe. They are quite often the worst years of our young lives. I speak from experience. Those years were rough, but I’m glad I stayed weird. Middle […]
The Addams Family: Is it possible to re-animate a beloved creepy classic?
My first thought when learning that an animated Addams Family was hitting the big screen around Halloween was, “What a great idea!” The only problem is that any new Addams Family reboot would have a whole crypt’s worth of excellent previous versions to live up to. First came the New Yorker cartoons. Then came the […]
Abominable movie: Adorable animated yeti melts frosty hearts
I was hoping Abominable wouldn’t live up to its name. Maybe it’s because two other movies featuring mythical creatures (Smallfoot with a yeti and Missing Link starring a congenial Big Foot) were released in the last year, but I had low expectations for this movie. Yet(i) Abominable won me over. The story centers on Yi […]
The Angry Birds 2: For the birds?
If there was one kids’ movie in recent memory that I felt didn’t deserve a sequel, it was The Angry Birds Movie. With its questionable humor and weak source material, The Angry Birds Movie was a stretch for a major motion picture release. But apparently it made enough of a nest egg at the box […]
Dora and the Lost City of Gold review: Vamos to the movies
They did it! They made a live action version of Dora the Explorer with Dora and the Lost City of Gold. But will you be shouting hurray, as Dora and her sidekick Boots did so often in the beloved Nickelodeon animated series for preschoolers? What is it about? First, the premise: in Dora and the […]
The Lion King: Groundbreaking special effects rule
After taking a hiatus to complete a cross-country move, I am delighted to be back to cover summer family movies! A big thank you to Geetha for holding down the fort — you can check out her wonder reviews here. Of all Disney animated films, The Lion King is the movie that comments the most […]
Aladdin: Does it grant our wish for a great movie?
I was prepared not to like Aladdin. Maybe it was the negative buzz Will Smith received on social media for his CGI genie. Perhaps it was the expectation that the movie, set in a mythical Arabia, would be politically tone deaf to the current harsh realities of life in that realm of the world. I […]
Penguins: A stunning kid friendly nature documentary from DisneyNature
Every year for Earth Day, my family looks forward to the new yearly release from DisneyNature. If you haven’t seen these wonderful G-rated nature documentaries, you are in for a fun visual feast. This year Penguins has waddled into theaters. DisneyNature is expert at bringing the tough and often brutal world of nature to a […]
Missing Link: Animated Big Foot movie dazzles but needs more heart
Missing Link is new in theaters for kids this weekend from the pioneering Laika animation studios. New children’s films from this studio are only released every few years due to its painstaking stop motion techniques. Laika films are well worth seeing for the sheer artistry, and Missing Link is no less dazzling. Parents will instantly […]
