Going to the movies is one of our family’s favorite things to do. As a parent, it’s a challenge to know what movies are appropriate and which are not. Some say, see it yourself first. That is a good idea, however it can be pricey. You could also wait until the DVD comes out, but some films beg to be seen on the big screen. Here’s a review from a Mom on the family films of 2008. Hope it helps.
Spiderwick Chronicles: Our seven-year-old son loves this movie. I recommend reading the books first which is what we had done. It is the story of the three Grace children — Jared, Simon and Mallory whose mother has moved them to an old house in the country. The kids are not to happy about their situation — their parents have divorced. Soon they realize odd things going on in the house. One part I thought might be confusing to some children is one of the monsters can take on the appearance of other humans and in one instance it appears as the children’s father.
Horton Hears a Who: Steve Carrell and Jim Carrey team up again to lend their voices to this adaptation of the 1954 Dr. Seuss book of the same title. Carey voices Horton an imaginative elephant who hears a cry for help coming from a tiny speck of dust floating through the air. Suspecting there may be life on that speck and despite a surrounding community that thinks he has lost his mind, Horton is determined to help. Steve Carell voices the mayor of Who-ville.
Nim’s Island: I absolutely loved this movie. I’m sure my seven-year-old liked it too. I love Jodi Foster and she plays an agoraphobic recluse who writes children’s adventure stories. The really crazy thing is that she imagines her main character Alex Rover talking to her – encouraging her to go to an island to help a young fan whose father is lost at sea. Of course, her hand sanitizer is confiscated at the airport as well as her can opener for her suitcase full of Progresso soup she has brought along. She finally makes it and all’s well that ends well. My little guy was a little stressed when a character is in peril, but it was short lived. I thoroughly recommend this film. Big Bonus: Gerard Butler plays the book character Alex Rover.
Speed Racer: This film was co-written/directed by Larry and Andy Wachowski, the creators of the groundbreaking “The Matrix” trilogy. It also stars John Goodman as Speed’s father and Susan Sarandon as him mother. The film features some great racing effects. Speed is aggressive and fearless and trying to fulfill his brother’s legacy who died racing. My husband, son and I all enjoyed this film.
Chronicles of Narnia 2: Prince Caspian: I preferred the first installment, however this was a good family film. It held our interest. One year after the incredible events of “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe,” the Kings and Queens of Narnia find themselves back in that faraway wondrous realm, only to discover that more than 1300 years have passed in Narnian time. During their absence, the Golden Age of Narnia has become extinct, Narnia has been conquered by the Telmarines and is now under the control of the evil King Miraz, who rules the land without mercy. It’s up to the Pevensie siblings – Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy along with Prince Caspian to save Narnia.
Indiana Jones 4 •The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull: I have been waiting for this film for almost 23 years! I am a huge Indiana Jones fan and had already stared by 7-year-old on the original trilogy which he loved. The first three films did not seem to phase him — not even when they opened the ark which always gave me the heebie jeebie. He did fine with Crystal Skull until the end when SPOILER ALERT the aliens appear. This freaked him out. He didn’t say much about it until it was time to go to bed. So I warn you to avoid this film if your child(ren) are spooked by aliens. That being said, the film was great. A couple of scenes at the beginning made me a little uncomfortable. Soviet soldiers disguised as American soldiers open fire on American soldiers. I was concerned about the gun fire and the confusion about what was happening. The second thing was Jones was dumped in the desert in what appeared to be a deserted town. Come to find out it is a test site for an atomic bomb. Indy ends up hiding in a refrigerator. It kept him safe, but I’d hate for any kids to get the idea that refrigerators are good hiding spots and I really wasn’t ready to explain the atomic bomb, as well. After that it was a typical Indy adventure with great chase scenes, sword fights and more. It was about time Spielberg!
Kung Fu Panda: My son and husband loved this movie. I thought it was O.K. despite being a huge Jack Black fan. Po the panda, the laziest creature around, finds finds he is the chosen one. Dustin Hoffman is the voice of Shifu, the by-the-book and tough-as-nails Kung Fu master. It is his task to turn the undisciplined Po into a kung fu fighter.
Wall•E: I really cannot comment on this movie as I slept through the entire thing. That says quite a bit, however, my husband and son agree that it was not that entertaining.
Meet Dave: We laughed so hard. This movie is hysterical — Eddie Murphy at his best. It is also very clean. I don’t recall hearing the first swear word which a miracle considering it starred Murphy. Tiny people from a distant planet created a space ship looking like their captain — “Dave.” It is human sized and is full of tiny people operating it. It acts like a human, a strange human that is. He walks and talks strangely among other things. “Dave” meets a girl and is conflicted as his crew tried to save their world. This may be the funniest movie of 2008.
Journey to the Center of the Earth: This is one 3D film in which the 3D was pretty good — especially at the beginning. In this update to Jules Verne’s classic, Brendan Frasier plays a geologist who, with his teenage nephew heads to Iceland to solve the mystery that his brother tried to solve years ago. Of course they fall into a deep crevice along with their Icelandic guide. There they find themselves in a world just as Verne had described. This film was hit for the entire family. It was action packed — but not too tense. It was just right.
Space Chimps: This was a cute and funny film about three chimps — Ham, Luna and Titan — who go to space. Two had trained for this their whole lives. The third is a circus performer whose grandfather was the first chimpanzee in space. Of course, Ham, is well a ham. He is always joking around and hitting on Luna, his lieutenant voiced by Cheryl Hines. After a crash landing on the planet Malgor, Titan is taken prisoner by Zartog (Jeff Daniels), a megalomaniacal alien. Titan is about to be turned into a statue in Zartog’s growing gallery–made up of uncooperative minions dipped in molten lava and displayed as a reminder of his omnipotence–when his companions stage a heroic rescue and retake their ship. Ham has finally lived up to his grandfather’s legacy.
Mummy 3: I did not like this installment as well as the first two mainly because the loss of Rachel Weiss from the cast. It is always hard to replace a character and I just didn’t buy Maria Bello as Evie. The O’Connels feel their life has become boring and just then another adventure presents itself. Unbeknown to his parents, now grown-up Alex O’Connell (Luke Ford) is following in the family business as a young archaeologist on a dig in north-central China. He makes the discovery of a lifetime: the tomb of the Dragon Emperor, which has been buried for millennia. A beautiful assassin tries to kill him to keep the location secret but Alex prevails. The Emperor’s monument is transported back to Shanghai where another plot is in motion: military zealot Anthony Wong intends to awaken the Emperor and aid him in the re-conquest of China and the raising of his terra cotta army of ten thousand clay warriors. The scene with thousands of mummy warriors is kind of bizarre, but the rest of the movie is pretty good.
Fly Me to the Moon: We had free passes to this film on the anniversary of the moon landing. The 3D is some of the best I’ve seen. The year is 1969 and like everyone else in the world, Nat (Trevor Gagnon) and his pals IQ (Philip Daniel Bolden) and Scooter (David Gore) are abuzz over the upcoming launch of the first manned mission to the moon. Nat hatches a secret plan for the three young flies to stow away on the Apollo 11 rocket.
The Clone Wars: Our son says this movie is awesome. He must he watches it all the time since it came out on DVD. We did see it in the theater when it first ran. Personally, I prefer the live action original trilogy, but the kiddos really seem to like this version. Apparently George Lucas felt there was more to the Star Wars saga that needed to be told. I’m not sure how Jaba the Hut having a son (I can’t imagine being his wife) furthers the plot, but this was the main theme of the movie. I’d say this one is definitely for the kids although the animation is superb.
Igor: We were hoping this would be great. It had the feel of a Tim Burton film. However, we were disappointed.
Beverly Hills Chihuahua: This movie was so cute. Jamie Lee Curtis leaves her beloved but pampered chihuahua Chloe with her self-involved niece who loses her in Mexico. Now alone for the first time in her spoiled life, Chloe must rely on some unexpected new friends including a street-hardened German Shepherd named Delgado (voice of Andy Garcia) and an amorous pup named Papi (voice of George Lopez) to lend her a paw and help her to find her inner strength on their incredible journey back home.
Madagascar 2: I like to move it, move it! This is as fun as the first. Left marooned on the distant shores of Madagascar, the New Yorkers have hatched a plan so crazy it just might work. With military precision, the penguins have repaired an old crashed plane – sort of. Once aloft, this unlikely crew stays airborne just long enough to make it to the wildest place of all – the vast plains of Africa itself.
Tale of Despereaux: A brave and virtuous mouse, Despereaux is simply too big for his small world. Though tiny, wheezy and saddled with comically oversized ears, Despereaux refuses to live a life of weakness and fear…believing he was destined to be celebrated in the tales of chivalry he so adores. We all liked this movie.
Bedtime Stories: Adam Sandler is hilarious as usual and this time the film is appropriate for even the youngest fans. Sandler is keeter Bronson, a hotel handyman whose life is changed forever when the bedtime stories he tells his niece and nephew start to mysteriously come true. He attempts to take advantage of the phenomenon, incorporating his own aspirations into one outlandish tale after another, but it’s the kids’ unexpected contributions that turn Skeeter’s life upside down. If you’re a fan of Sandler films, you’ll see some of his buddies show up. We all loved this movie. It’s probably our favorite of the year.
Marley and Me: This is good movie. I personally think the book is more touching. I didn’t cry in the movie. I couldn’t stop after reading the book. The book isn’t as much about a dog as it is life — the ups and downs of it all and growing older. This works for kids at face value. There are a couple of things you might have to explain after the movie, however.
