Thor 2, Frozen, The Croods (DVD)

We bloggers were informed that we are horrible human beings for not updating this blog regularly, especially when some of us have actually seen movies.  SORRY.

So, without further ado, Thor 2!

I really enjoyed this.  It has the same pleasant mixture of humor, sci-fi awesomeness, and action that the first Thor did.  Also, Tom Hiddleston has somehow weaseled his way into my affections by being a bad guy.  I don't even know.  My only complaint is that somewhere between the first film and this one Odin turned into a giant asshole.  The hell?

Frozen:
I enjoyed Olaf, the snowman, way more than I anticipated.  This movie was pretty cute, and has a nice little love story of the family kind (though, since its Disney, they did throw in a little romantic love too).  Not my favorite of the animated films I've seen this year, but it was fun. I have mixed feelings on Idina Menzel's singing...part of me adores her, but part of me wishes she didn't belt out everything ALL the time.  I actually like single/Demi Lovato version of "Let it Go" better than the one in the movie, which is probably sacrilege.  Kristen Bell was amazing, though (I had no idea she could sing--you go, girl!)

The Croods:
I rented this on a whim over New Years Eve because my father and I are both 12 and still love animated features.  A friend (with kids) had been forced to see this at some point and had been pleasantly surprised by it, so I decided to give it a chance.

You guys.  It is gorgeous.  The animation is amazeballs, its funny, and I was highly pleased.  Dreamworks has completely cemented itself into my heart (How To Train Your Dragon gets most of the credit for that, though).  Blog favorite Nicolas Cage is the voice of the father, which is both amazing and hilarious. Nicolas Cage is kind of cartoon anyway, so it works.

Brave (DVD review)

I was a total slacker pants and didn't see Brave in the theater (even though I really, really wanted to), so I had to wait until it came out on DVD.

People--what was I thinking?  This was HILARIOUS.  God, I love Pixar.  Seriously--they have a way of writing not only a good story, but rounding it out with scary, funny, and poignant moments.  PAY ATTENTION FILMMAKERS.

Anyway, I rented this to watch it, and now I have to go buy it.  The characters are great, and our cocky heroine grows throughout the story through her mistakes.  There's also not a sappy prince/princess love story to deal with (though one could argue there's still a love story of a different sort).  Ah, I adored it.  Pixar continues to please me. 

Wreck It Ralph

It will come as a surprise to NO ONE that I liked this, seeing as its a Disney cartoon about video games. 

Wreck It Ralph is both cute and funny.  Yes, the character voiced by Jane Lynch is essentially her character from Glee, but it works as part of the video game world.  The movie makes fun of itself and video games without coming off as cheesy or hokey.  Excellent voice acting by John C. Reilly (who I love anyway), and Sarah Silverman, and I was pleasantly surprised by Jack McBrayer (Kenneth from 30 Rock) and Alan Tudyk.  Good work, team!

Disneydisneydisneydisney

I've been informed that I'm a giant slacker, but in all fairness to me, all the movies I've seen in the theater recently have not been new.

That's right, kids. I'm talking about Beauty and the Beast 3D. And Lion King before that. (Okay, yes, I did see Sherlock 2---maybe I'll get to that in a minute. If you're lucky.)

Sooooo, Disney 3D. I think I've whined about 3D on this blog before, and I still think its dumb because my brain and eyeballs get so used to it after about 10 minutes that I don't even realize I'm watching 3D anymore. However, seeing movies I saw as a kid up on the big screen again is FREAKING AWESOME.

I remember no spectacular 3D moments from Lion King, but the opening bit of Beauty and the Beast was pretty cool (where it cuts through the forest to the castle).

I wish they could make these 3D things as awesome as the 3D in the Disney Parks--where things actually look like they're flying out at you? And also maybe with the special effects (wind/water spraying, smells, etc.) How fucking rad would that be?

Super 8

To be honest, I expected this to be a lot scarier. That is not to say that I didn't jump out of my seat every five minutes (making my friend laugh hysterically), but the previews I'd seen had made it seem much creepier.

At any rate, although the main cast consists of kid actors, they were very good. Good characterizations, and funny. I don't know why Elle Fanning is getting so much more attention than Joel Courtney, though. He was fabulous and adorable; she was okay--I mean, not bad, but I wasn't like, "Wow, that girl is going to kill it someday!" I can only assume she's getting so much attention because she happens to be Dakota Fanning's kid sister.

The monster was scarier when we couldn't really see him--I did love the small reflection in the gas puddle early on, though (my friend missed it, so look out for it!) Loved being able to see the actual Super 8 film at the end--too funny!

Overall, I enjoyed myself. The film has its scary moments, and even some gory ones, as well as plenty of comedy and explosions. It does have a Disney-like ending, however, so if you're expecting a bloodbath, you'll be disappointed.

Kung Fu Panda 2

As you may recall, I freaking loved the original Kung Fu Panda. I thought it was pretty flawless. The sequel, therefore, had a lot to live up to.

It did a pretty good job: I laughed, I made "aww" sounds, I may have cried a little. I didn't think it was as funny as the first, though, but the story was still excellent. There was actually some character development from the first film, which is an amazing accomplishment these days in Hollywood, let alone in an animated film. So, I can't say that it's up there with the original, or How to Train Your Dragon, but still a very well done little movie. B+!

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In other news, why the holy fuck are they making a "Happy Feet 2"?! Seriously? I HATED the first one (and I'm the Disney nerd!) UGHHHHHH.

Tangled

This was cute. I didn't think the songs were the best, but the dialogue and story made up for it--funny and sweet. Zachary Levi and Mandy Moore both did a great job with the voice acting, and the animal sidekicks were hilarious.

Shrek: The Final Chapter

I think they should make a series of spin-offs staring Donkey and Puss-in-Boots, because those two are hilarious. They steal the show.

For it being the "Final Chapter" it wasn't a bang!wow! movie, but it was cute and funny in parts. How to Train Your Dragon still stands as my favorite animated feature so far this year (though, the upcoming Toy Story movie has potential). I should probably admit, though, that I refused to see this in 3D (because I think this whole 3D fad is stupid and I'm never impressed) so maybe I missed something.

On a more random note, I was disturbed that I was deeply amused and intrigued by the new Cats vs. Dogs promo that played before this movie. Might have to go see it.

Alice in Wonderland

Johnny Depp's version of the Mad Hatter in this movie consisted of him mixing up a bunch of his other characters (including, but not limited to, Jack Sparrow, Willy Wonka and James Barrie, with a dash of Ichabod Crane and maybe some Sweeney Todd), with horrible results.

The only parts of this movie I liked were Anne Hathaway and the Cheshire Cat.

The Princess and the Frog

Like I'm going to say anything bad about this. It's cute and funny and you should go see it. The end.

P.S. The supporting characters Ray and Louis are awesome.

Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs

This one is pretty cute, and fairly funny. My only major complaint is that the jokes are repeated so much that they start to get old. The idea is super cute, and the voice actors are superb (the fact that I love Bruce Campbell has no influence on my opinion whatsoever). Ahem. I recommend seeing this if you're in the mood for something light and funny, but only if you pay the matinee price. Otherwise wait for the DVD.

CC: Bolt (in THREE DEE!)

Good and Plenty:
~Super cute. I think I "aww'd" myself through most of the movie.
~I laughed a lot...mostly due to the hamster, Rhino ("Stealth mode!")
~Miley Cyrus wasn't as painful as expected.
~I was glad that the dog realized fairly quickly that he didn't have super powers and accepted it. It would have annoyed me if it had dragged on and on as a gag.


Sour Patch Kids:
~I had been hoping the 3D would all crazy like it is in the Disney parks, but alas, it wasn't.

I don't have a lot to say here, but I definitely enjoyed this movie (as expected). I'd rank it above WALL-E, but below Kung Fu Panda :P

Concession Confession: KUNG FU PANDA

Before I begin, I realized that we, the bloggers of this fabulous movie blog, have yet to do little biographies of ourselves for you, the readers, so that you could better understand what types of movies we each love or hate (and other useless information) that would allow you to maybe know whose blogs to look for if you have similar movie tastes, or whatever. Sorry. We're slackers. We'll get on that right away *cough*.

If you hadn't already guessed ("Cinemarella" is a big clue), I'm a big fan of animated features, Disney or not (though, I have a giant soft spot for anything Disney, of course, as I sold them my soul when I went to work for them awhile back). That being said, my reviews of said movies might be slightly bias. Ahem.

THE INSIDE SCOOP:

Good and Plenty:
~The opening of this movie is fabulous, and my brother and I were hooked from the start. We were "blinded by awesomeness," as it were.
~Great voice characterization and computer animation.
~HILARIOUS. Enough silly jokes to entertain the kiddies, but also some jokes that are a little more grown up. Best part? There weren't any fart jokes! Zomg.
~I think that even if you don't like Jack Black, or any of his other movies, you'll like this one. He does a cute job as the panda, yet you totally know its him, because he says things like, "Skadoosh!"
~Cute plot, and as far as an animated feature moral goes, a nice one.
~My favorite scene is totally the acupuncture scene. This movie wins simply for this scene and both Jack Black and Seth Rogan's participation in it.

Sour Patch Kids:
When I left the theater last night, I literally couldn't think of anything to put here. Since I've had some time to think about it a little, I've come up with two things:

~I couldn't figure out what the hell type of animal Shifu (the Kung Fu teacher) was. Google tells me he was a "red panda," which? PRECIOUS.
~I was puzzled near the beginning that the Tiger, called Tigress (dar), didn't look particularly feminine, yet had a feminine name. Until she spoke and I realized it was totally Angelina Jolie.