A Meaty Movie Experience

If you prefer the shorter audio version edited from the radio, take a listen.

Audio Review:

Here’s a movie that will give you something to chew on: It’s the new animated film Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs.

In a coastal Atlantic fishing town called Swallow Falls, where life is dull and Baby Brent sardines are the daily sustenance, one budding scientist named Flint Lockwood (Bill Hader, Saturday Night Live) dreams of bringing life back to his dreary town by inventing something that will bring him fame, fortune, and local approval.

But so far all his crazy gadgets – spray-on shoes, de-balding formula, a walking television, and a monkey thought translator – have made Flint the laughingstock of the neighborhood and caused nothing but trouble for him. Flint’s failed antics have earned him the ire of rule-conscious policeman Earl Devereaux (Mr. T, The A-Team); the disapproval of his technophobic father, Tim (James Caan, Sonny Corleone in The Godfather), who believes Flint should quit dreaming and take a job at the family-owned bait and tackle shop; and the mocking taunts of nemesis ‘Baby’ Brent McHale (Andy Samberg, I Love You, Man and SNL) who is the face on every can of sardines.

‘Ice Age 3’: Not So Family Friendly

Me at Positive Hit Radio The Current

Sorry, parents. If you are hoping for a really great PG animated film to take the whole family to, Ice Age 3: Dawn of the Dinosaurs isn’t it. It’s scary in some parts for the younger children, particularly the 3-D version where the dinosaurs jump right out from the screen. And it has much more adult innuendo than this kind of film typically includes. I think it is disappointing. The only saving grace is that silly squirrel Scrat and the chase for his deepest desires.

I shared my thoughts last Friday on the air with radio personality Liz Lane from Positive Hit Radio The Current. This audio review is not the on-air version. It has been cut-down for the purposes of this blog. Take a listen…

Radio Review:

— Laura J. Bagby

Pixar Brings ‘Up’-Lifting Experience

Giving the thumbs-up for "Up" in my 3-D glasses.

Almost a month passed between the press conference for Up and the day I finally got to see it on the silver screen. Since there was no sneak peek screening in my local area, I went and saw the new Disney/Pixar animated film on opening weekend as a regular moviegoer.

I was surprised when I learned the price per ticket for the Disney Digital 3-D version was $13. (There is a 2-D version, but why settle for that one? You don’t get the full experience.) Despite the steep price, I paid, got my 3-D glasses and found a seat amongst the many families with children. I expected to see more adults, even couples, but apparently animated movies – unless they are Anime – tend to bring in the kiddies.

When we all donned our glasses – which very much resembled the thick, black version worn by our movie hero, Carl – you could hear the audible gasps as the children saw cartoon characters leaping what felt like mere feet in front of their eyes. The adults were typically more reserved. Me? I was gasping along with the little tikes!

Senior Spotlighted on Screen in ‘Up’

New Disney/Pixar Animated Release

Walt Disney Pictures and Pixar Animation Studios’ latest animated release, Up, which opens nationwide Friday, May 29, is sure to be yet another enjoyable ride – an adventurous balloon ride, that is.

As the 10th film in Pixar’s history, Up, presented in Disney Digital 3DTM, follows the life of curmudgeonly 78-year-old retired balloon salesman Carl Fredricksen. After losing the love of his life and nearly losing his home too, Carl chooses to fulfill his life-long dream by tying balloons to his house and heading to the jungles of South America. But along the way, Carl must come to terms with a stowaway: 8-year-old Wilderness Explorer Russell. Through wild and funny adventures and the ups-and-downs of this relationship with the clueless young boy, Carl learns to live again and open up his heart to love.

The film’s director, Pete Docter, who made his directorial debut with Monsters, Inc., talked to the press recently about this fun-filled adventure and where he got this idea to cast a senior citizen as the main hero, a decision that goes against the grain of the typical ‘youth sells’ Hollywood mentality.