There is no question that animated films have universally looked great on Blu-ray, whether they be computer based animation such as the Pixar films, hand drawn films or stop action animation. Unfortunately, the subject of this review, James and the Giant Peach is an exception to this general rule. Read the full story

As I am constantly bombarded with trailers, posters and ads for Cats & Dogs: The Return of Kitty Galore, I found it interesting to go back and review the original film in order to make an educated guess on whether or not I should spend some money to see the sequel. I love animals and if the Pixar films have taught me anything, don’t judge a film just because it looks like a kid’s flick, so I figure there may be a chance I will enjoy this. Let’s see how the experience went.

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I always find family movies a bit of a challenge to watch.  As a grown-up, I don’t find certain things as interesting as kids do.  Conversely, I’m sure my kids wouldn’t find the societal subtext in A Clockwork Orange all that compelling.  They’d likely run screaming from the room, or sit bug-eyed with jaws agape.

This being said, I can at least watch a movie and determine if it is safe for parents to let their kids watch, and if it’s something the parents can stomach for the 90 minutes they’d maybe want to spend watching it with their kids.

At first blush, this film doesn’t look too promising.  It has an anthromorphized animal, Bindi Irwin (yes, Bindi the Jungle Girl, daughter of the late Steve Irwin), and a surprisingly slim Beau Bridges.  It is also the fourth film in a series that should have only been one movie long, and was direct-to-video.  So, can this movie rise above this dubious pedigree?  Read the full story

The first Alvin & the Chipmunks film was a surprise blockbuster, especially to me. I remembered watching the cartoon as a child and then when they announced a live action film, I immediately thought that it was way too late. Who would want to watch these archaic characters? Flash forward to today, where I received copy of the blockbuster ‘s ‘squeakquel’… I decided to give it a shot, was I wrong to immediately put down the chipmunk trio?

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For those who have never seen a Hayao Miyazaki movie, you do not know what you are missing.  Period.  His films have a magical ability to entertain people of all ages, warming your heart while touching your soul.  Characters in his movies (regardless of their appearance) are all inherently good, and talk to each other like real people talk to each other.  Parents do not condescend to their children, children are independent and brave, and although things may be dramatic, they are never overtly scary.

So it was with this “lowered” set of expectations that I viewed Ponyo.    Read the full story

Toy Story 2 was an eagerly awaited sequel prior to its first theatrical run in 1999, in part because of the success of Toy Story and in part, by the incredible success of Pixar’s second full length feature, A Bug’s Life. After A Bug’s Life, it was apparent that Pixar, in addition to being technical wizards, were master story tellers as well in the tradition of the old Disney masters. There were clear advances made in the Pixar CGI effects in A Bug’s Life, and it would be interesting to see how those improved techniques would be employed in Toy Story 2, to improve on what were already considered to be stellar images in the original. It would also be interesting to see how they could possibly improve on the original in terms of the actual story. Needless to say, Pixar outdid themselves in both areas on Toy Story 2, which has now finally made its way to Blu-ray, and it the subject of today’s review. Read the full story

For most of the us, the movie that ushered in the world of computer animation is Toy Story, originally released in theaters in 1995. Has it really been 15 years? My kids were a bit too young at the time to see it in theaters and they didn’t get to see the original until its release on DVD. For me, the Pixar films I couldn’t wait to see on Blu-ray, were the two Toy Story films along with The Incredibles. Well, at least as far as the Toy Story films are concerned, the wait is over, as both are being released on Blu-ray. Was it worth the wait? Yes, as all I can say is WOW! Read the full story

Ever since Toy Story burst on the scene with its incredible computer generated images, hand drawn animation began to fade away. After the release of Toy Story, each new CGI feature seemed to outdo the others, advancing the state of art even further, with more realistic and lifelike animation and movement. When it comes to CGI, the sky really seems to be the limit. However, lost in all this technical advancement was the sheer beauty of hand drawn animation, the kind that the folks at Disney Studios made so famous. I guess it was fitting that Disney, under the helm of John Lassiter of Pixar fame, would be the ones to bring hand drawn animation back to the screen with 2009′s The Princess and the Frog, which has finally made its way to Blu-ray. Read the full story

Making a movie out of a popular book is hard enough. Having the condense several hundred pages of text into a coherent two hour film can be quite a daunting task. The list of great books being made into mediocre films is long indeed. Even more difficult I would imagine is taking a very popular short illustrated children’s book and fleshing it out into a full length motion picture, while keeping true to the spirit of the book. Well that is just what director Spike Jonze has accomplished with the subject of today’s review. Where the Wild Things Are. Read the full story

For the most part, it seems that sequels to popular films are nothing but money grabs, attempts to cash in yet again on the popularity of the first film. It this regard, they show little in the way of originality and feature the same cast and essentially the same story line as the prior film, albeit often times taking place a few years later. Same cast, same story and essentially the same film. I am not saying that sequels are bad…  far from it, as they have been several tremendous sequels, especially recent ones, with The Bourne films and The Dark Knight coming to mind. It is just that I look at sequels with a bit of a jaded eye, especially comedies. Which brings us to the subject of this review, Cheaper By The Dozen 2. Read the full story

Adding your typical Jerry Bruckheimer action fare and his team’s excellent CGI capability with a kids story about guinea pigs who are trained by the FBI to be secret agents sounded like an iffy proposition. The trailer did look promising so I was hoping to get my hands on a review copy of the film G-Force once it debuted on Blu-ray. Well, the review copy arrived yesterday and I popped it in to the player for a look last night. I was glad I did. Read the full story

I can’t really say that I was a huge fan of Night of the Museum. Sure it had its funny moments but a comic masterpiece is was not. It did have a side benefit of getting more kids interested in history which may be the film’s greatest lasting legacy. While I was sure that a sequel would follow (don’t they always?), it was difficult to envision how a sequel would be anything other than the same film in a different locale. Well, the sequel has arrived on Blu-ray. Will it prove to be an improvement on the first film or simply more of the same? Read the full story

We all know Tinker Bell as the inspirational fairy who stood alongside Peter Pan with motivational support and knowledge. Well since her original conception she has quite literally taken on wings of her own spawning her own line of books, plays, video games, TV shows, and yes even her own movies. Really she needs no introduction, but can this buzzing side kick really carry her own movie? Preceded by 2008′s self titled Tinker Bell, Tinker Bell and the Great Fairy Rescue made its way straight to DVD and Blu ray with respectable cast of voice actors. With a third installment already planned this sequel can’t be all that bad, right? Read the full story

There are times when a concept that sounds good on paper fails to live up to expectations once it appears on the big screen. Aliens in the Attic is just such one of those concepts. Looked cute on the trailer but as a film… Here is the full review. Read the full story

Monsters, Inc. was one of those films that simply looked great on DVD on any HDTV. I was really interested to see just how much better the film could look in high def and even better on Blu-ray. Given that the same team involved with UP were involved in the production of Monsters, Inc. I guess it is appropriate that the release of Monsters, Inc. on Blu-ray is timed to the release of UP. I am pleased to report that the video as well as the audio improvement on the Blu-ray edition of Monsters, Inc. over the DVD is simply staggering and a must buy for fans of the film. Read the full story

The folks at Pixar have quite a track record in a rather short period of time. They crank out one great film after another, amazingly topping themselves each time in the process, both in terms of the quality of their computer generated images as well as their story telling. As all Phillies fans know thanks to Brad Lidge, a perfect streak must eventually come to an end and when they do, the result is not a pretty sight. Thankfully, with their latest effort, UP, the folks at Pixar have avoided a Brad Lidge-ish meltdown and continue their streak of incredible films, releasing what is probably, all things considered, their best ever film. UP is a release that is a must have for all film fans. Read the full story

Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs is the third film in the Ice Age trilogy and is making its way to Blu-ray this month. While I enjoyed the first film, Ice Age a lot, I found the second installment, Ice Age: The Meltdown, to be a bit of a let down although is sure did well at the box office. Will the third installment continue the downward slid or match the level of the first? Read the full story