KIDS FIRST! News

It’s unanimous. Both of our KIDS FIRST! youth film critics who reviewed Disneynature’s documentary Chimpanzee (see below) loved the film - and the chimps it depicts. Talia Rashba (age 11) says, “If you aren’t a fan of chimpanzees now, then this film will make you love them!” Brianna Beaton (age 12) calls the film “amazing” and “heartwarming” as she shares, “I absolutely love how it captures the bond between a loving mother (Isha) and her adorable young son (Oscar).” And it’s spiced with humor, thanks to narrator Tim Allen. The film starts its theatrical run on April 20.

Chimpanzee
Reviewed by Brianna Beaton
(See her full review on video.)

This is a very heartwarming and lovable film.

I absolutely love how it captures the bond between a loving mother (Isha) and her adorable young son (Oscar). Tim Allen narrates this amazing, heartwarming film, and boy is he doing it well! I like how he uses humor and is really describing the chimpanzees’ actions. My favorite scene is when Oscar is trying to open a nut with several tree limbs that fail, but then, after much determination, he realizes that the rock is the right tool to use to crack it open. I really enjoy the music; it captures the feeling of what is going on. When it is suspense, the music is suspenseful. When the rival groups are fighting for territory, the music is really dramatic. The cinematography is extremely well-done, with tons of close-ups of nature and Oscar. It gives you a feel of what the forest is like.

Chimpanzee is a documentary set in the deep forests of Africa. It tells the story of Oscar, a young and playful chimpanzee that has a good life with his friends and family. Oscar is curious and wants to learn everything he can. But when separated from his mother Isha, during a fight for territory between their group and a rival group, the learning stops and he has to look out for himself. When everyone else he knows is rejecting him, the one person that you would never expect to take him in does — and changes his life forever.

Alastair Fothergill (African Cats and Earth) and Mark Linfield (Earth) share in directing this nature film. It’s giving you an up-close and personal experience of what the chimpanzee life is all about. During this film, you will see that chimpanzees have needs and feelings just like humans do.

Chimpanzee is great for ages 7 and up. During the battle seen, it may be a little too much for younger ages.

I give this film 5 out of 5 stars because of all the touching scenes between Oscar and his fellow chimpanzees. It left me wanting to know more and more about Oscar. 

Chimpanzee is genuinely a great film and I’m sure you will enjoy it as well. It swings into theaters on April 20th, just in time for Earth Day, so please go and check it out.

Chimpanzee
Reviewed by Talia Rashba

This is the best nature movie ever! I had a wild adventure in the beautiful African rainforest, watching a group of chimpanzees live their lives. This movie has no human characters - the real stars of the movie are actual chimps that live in the rainforst off the coast of West Africa.

This film is a documentary, so the story is very real. We meet a little chimp named Oscar, and his mom Isha, who live in the forest with a group of several other chimps. We see their everyday life and how they interact with each other. When they get attacked by a group of rival chimps, Oscar is left all alone until someone comes to help him.

Oscar is a fun, playful and adorable little chimp who always stays by his mother’s side. When you first look at little Oscar, you will instantly fall in love with him. He sometimes gets confused, especially when he is searching for food. This makes for some very laughable moments.

Isha, Oscar’s mother, is a very loving and protective parent who will do anything to keep her son safe. Freddie is the leader of the troop and is very dependable and strong. He protects and guards the group and he knows how to do everything that they need.

Chimpanzee is narrated by actor Tim Allen. You might recognize him as the voice of Buzz Lightyear from all three Toy Story movies. He definitely adds a lot of humor to the film and he helps explain a lot of what is happening with the animals.

There are SO MANY amazing parts to this movie. The rainforest is absolutely gorgeous, and the way they get close-ups of tiny creatures and plants is outstanding. Just the way they capture raindrops falling onto a leaf or a mushroom blew my mind. The directors of this movie are the same ones who made the award-winning film Earth, and I think they did an excellent job with this movie as well.
Chimpanzee is rated G, and I think that it is a great film for children and adults from ages four to 100. There are, however, some scenes that may be too intense for very young children.

If you aren’t a fan of chimpanzees now, then this film will make you love them! You will see just how smart they are and how much they are really like us. I thought this movie was so terrific that I am giving it a 5 out of 5 stars! This film will teach you so much about the life of a chimpanzee.

You can see this incredible film in theaters April 20th! An extra bonus is that if you see this movie during opening week, Disneynature will make a donation to the Jane Goodall Institute, an organization that helps save chimpanzees all over the world. You DO NOT want to miss seeing this movie!

Photos: Chimpanzee poster (top), Brianna Beaton (middle), Talia Rashba (bottom) 

A two-and-a-half-year labor of love, Return of the Horse gets its first screening May 17 at the School for Advanced Research in Santa Fe, ahead of an upcoming schedule of screenings at film festivals and museums. The painstakingly researched documentary chronicles the history of America’s wild horses, North America’s native horse, interrelated with the “lifes and times” of the people - heroes, villains and victims - whose lives shaped their destiny.

“Painstakingly” is an unusually apt description in this case. Co-filmmaker Leo Hubbard notes that there is a lot of pain in the history of the American peoples’ relationship with the horse. The mustangs, prized for their endurance (and preferred by cattlemen for those long cattle drives popularized by Western, until the proliferation of railroad spurs shortened the drives to where the European horses could be utilized), were also cruelly treated pawns in the United States’ attempts to subdue the Native Americans.

The movie, aimed for an adult audience – with the ability to be presented to advanced high school students – was a challenge to husband-wife filmmakers Hubbard and Sharon Eliashar, both of whom produced, wrote, directed, filmed, edited and animated the film. Says Eliashar, “The challenge was to take complex scientific things and make it easy to explain them – to take historical concepts and show how connected they are to our relationship with the horse.” And also, she adds, to not make the movie a marathon eight-hour piece – an especially difficult task given the number of “Aha” moments they experienced during their research.

In addition to their background as educators, Eliashar and Hubbard bring a unique combination of artistic talents to the project. While they stress that Return of the Horse is not an entertainment film but is as accurate an account as science and history will allow from our 21st-century vantage point – the script was verified by leading historians at such respected institutions as The Smithsonian – its artistic elements are undeniable.

Eliashar, a musician as well as photographer (she was the film’s cinematographer), focused on creating an experience of authentic music throughout the film. Explains Hubbard, “When trying to get the flavor of the relationship, [she asked], ‘What were the sounds they were listening to? What music was Thomas Jefferson playing?’” She worked with the Library of Congress, for instance, to learn the first cowboy songs, and traced family records to track down living relatives in order to get the rights to include the music in the film – with more “Aha” moments along the way, for instance finding out that Jess Morris got the lyrics to “Goodbye Old Paint” from one of the era’s tremendous population of black cattle drivers.

Hubbard, an architect, artist and printmaker, put his talents into the graphics. Including maps, which are necessary to explaining history but commonly look like power point presentations. Not so in Return of the Horse. The goal, he explains, was to create powerful and beautiful images. “Every graphic should look like art you’d put on your wall,” he says.

While creating a film for “people who really want to learn,” as Hubbard expresses it, he and Eliashar have also crafted a sensory experience.

Photo: film still from Return of the Horse

The inspiring tale of the little guys fighting powerful moguls, Newsies is built around the timeless and always popular theme of fairness for the everyman versus corporate greed. Setting it up as a musical gives it additional punch. In fact, KIDS FIRST! youth film critic Hunter Willow (age 11) says in her review (below), “It was the singing and dancing that kept me watching.” And Brianna Beaton (age 12), another KIDS FIRST! youth film critic who reviewed the film (also below), says, “I love the music because it’s giving you a feeling of what’s going on at that particular moment.” Brianna also credits the costuming for helping define the characters. Newsies is one of the classic films being screened on HDNet Movies kidScene several times throughout the month of April.

Newsies
Reviewed by Hunter Willow
(See her full review on video.)

Newsies is fun-filled with lively music and dancing, which I LOVE!

It’s 1899, and Joseph Pulitzer, publisher of the New York World newspaper, and William Randolph Hurst, publisher of the New York Journal, decide to raise the prices of the distribution cost for the newsboys. Already poor, the newsboys won’t stand for it and they decide to strike.

Jack Kelly (Christian Bale — Batman Begins, The Dark Knight) leads the strike with David Jacobs (David Moscow), Jack’s best friend and the brains behind the strike. Gabriel Damon is Spot Conlon, the leader of the Brooklyn boys. It takes newspaper boys from all the boroughs of New York to come together to make a difference. Bryan Denton (Bill Pullman), a reporter for the Sun, who is writing about the strike in a competing paper and trying to help the boys by making sure people know what is happening.

I love musicals! It was the singing and dancing that kept me watching, but I only rate the movie a 3 out of 5 stars. Technically, the film is top-notch; however, the story is hard to follow at times and I had to ask what things meant. I think this movie is better for teens and adults, but it’s definitely worthwhile for younger kids who like musicals, like me!

All this month you can see Newsies on HDNet Movies kidScene! It’s been 20 years since the original release of Newsies. Finally, Disney is taking the movie to the stage! Newsies is now on Broadway for a limited run March 15 to June 10!

Newsies
Reviewed by Brianna Beaton
(See her full review on video.)

Newsies is one of the best musicals I have ever seen.

I really like this film – it has a little touch of what New York is like, including the strong accents of the actors. I love the music because it’s giving you a feel of what’s going on at that particular moment. I must mention the choreography – it is absolutely outstanding, with tons of energy and precision.

Jack Kelly (Christian Bale) plays a young newspaper seller who tries to stand up for his fellow paper sellers, the “newsies.” Their boss has a little trouble making money and figures that since the newsies pay for their own stock before selling, he could raise the amount they pay for it. But they aren’t exactly happy with this decision and decide to stand up for what they want.

Kenny Ortega (High School Musical) directed this great film in 1992. It also stars David Moscow, playing David Jacobs.

The costumes are on point for this specific time period, late 1800s to early 1900s. You can tell who the characters are just by the costumes they are wearing.

This film sends a great message to stand up for what you want and is made for the music lovers at heart.
I recommend this film for ages 10 to adults.

I give this film 5 out of 5 stars.

Look for this classic film on HDNet Movies kidScene, sit back and enjoy the music!

Photos: Newsies poster (top), Hunter Willow (middle), Brianna Beaton (bottom)

The Wild West inspired some of Americana’s best-loved legends - such as Paul Bunyan, Pecos Bill and Calamity Jane - and the “tall tales” of their deeds, in turn, inspire a young boy to stand up to a greedy land baron in the real world. “They teach him that if you believe in yourself and have the guts to stand up for yourself, you can accomplish anything you put your mind to,” says KIDS FIRST! youth film critic Julianna Noone (age 12) in her review (below). Her fellow KIDS FIRST! youth film critic Blake Hawes is especially taken with the movie’s concept. “I’ve never seen a movie quite like this one. Such an original idea,” he says in his review (below). Both also share how much they enjoyed watching the film, and HDNet Movies kidScene is making it easy for our KIDS FIRST! family to share the experience, giving the film several screenings throughout the month of April.

Tall Tale
Reviewed by Julianna Noone
(See her full review on video.)

Today, I am reviewing the 1995 film Tall Tale. This film is an action-packed film with a positive message to believe in yourself. This film is about a boy named Daniel Hackett (Nick Stahl — Terminator 3). In this movie, Daniel tries to save his family’s farm from Stiles, a greedy businessman, played by Scott Glenn, whom you might have seen in the movie Secretariat.  Throughout this film, Daniel is helped by Pecos Bill (Patrick Swayze — Ghost, Dirty Dancing), Paul Bunyan (Oliver Platt — 2012, Xmen, Dr. Dolittle) and John Henry (Roger Aaron Brown — TV shows “House, M.D.” and “Supernatural”). Together, they help Daniel save not only his farm, but all of Paradise Valley. They teach him that if you believe in yourself and have the guts to stand up for yourself, you can accomplish anything you put your mind to.

The director, Jeremiah S. Chechik (Chuck, Warehouse 13), and the writers Steve Bloom (Jack Frost, James and the Giant Peach) and Robert Rodat (Fly Away Home and TV’s “Falling Skies”) really do a great job with this film. I rate this film 4 out of 5 stars.  I believe this film is great for kids 7 to 14 and I hope they enjoy it as much as I did. Look for this classic family film on HDNet Movies kidScene this month.

Tall Tale
Reviewed by Blake Hawes
(See his full review on video.)

Tall Tale is a very interesting movie. I’ve never seen a movie quite like this one. Such an original idea, and I loved it.

Tall Tale is about some classic folk tales from early America. Tales like these, like Paul Bunyan and Pecos Bill, are brought to life in cinema in a way I’ve never seen before in theaters.

Now, this movie is about a young boy trying to get his father’s farm back. That story is very emotional and touching, and it’s one of my favorite parts of this movie.

The music in this movie, however, is either good or bad. In the beginning of the movie, the music is awe-inspiring, and it had me wanting more. However, during the action scenes, it got a bit repetitive and a little cheesy after a while.

I recommend this movie for kids 7 through 12 just ’cause kids a little younger will be a little scared of the action scenes but kids over 12 will think this movie’s a bit cheesy.  And it is a bit cheesy, but that doesn’t take away from the mood of the story. The mood of the story is very good, and I love the feeling that is found in this movie.

And this movie actually has Patrick Swayze, one of cinema’s best actors, as a kid actor. It’s really interesting watching him act at such an early age. I can see where they got his fan-dom from.

Photos: Tall Tale poster (top), Julianna Noone (middle), Blake Hawes (bottom)

Is it fun to be on the Red Carpet to talk to the celebrities when a film studio celebrates a new release? KIDS FIRST! youth film critics Morgan Bertsch (age seven) and Cheyenne Nguyen (age eight) eagerly share their excitement at the Twentieth Century Fox Red Carpet event on March 27 for the DVD and Blu-ray release that same day of Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked. Reporting live from the El Rey Theatre in Los Angeles, they capture interviews with producers Ross Bagdasarian Jr. and Janice Karman, Andy Buckley (who plays Captain Correlli), Jason Lee (who plays Dave), Matthew Gray Gubler (who voices Simon), and actress Ariana Grande (who doesn’t appear in Chipwrecked but does add her voice to the concert that was part of the Red Carpet festivities).

Clips from the concert and clips from the movie are interspersed with Morgan and Cheyenne’s reporting and their interviews. Watching the KIDS FIRST! video coverage of the Red Carpet event is almost as much fun as being there, so do click and enjoy the video of KIDS FIRST! youth film critics Morgan and Cheyenne with the Chipmunks and friends.

For Cheyenne, the Chipmunks Red Carpet rounded out a full week that also had her representing KIDS FIRST! at the 2012 Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Awards on March 31. The video is a high-energy few minutes of Cheyenne catching cast members of “Victorious!,” “A.N.T. Farm,” “America’s Got Talent,” “Big Time Rush” and the latest Wimpy Kid lead (Zachary Gordon) on the Red Carpet. Her charm gets them to open up and interact with her.

The video continues into the backstage after the Awards were presented, and some of the winners share with Cheyenne their excitement about the evening. Nickelodeon shares its coverage of the event, which was hosted by Will Smith, on its website.

Photo: KIDS FIRST! youth film critics Morgan Bertsch and Cheyenne Nguyen at the Red Carpet event for Twentieth Century Fox’s DVD and Blu-ray release of Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked.

Relativity Media gives us a new view of Snow White’s adventures in Mirror Mirror, released to theaters nationwide last Friday. In fact, the movie’s longer name - by which it was released in the United Kingdom - is Mirror Mirror: The Untold Adventures of Snow White. To help differentiate it from the classic, the seven dwarfs have new names. Don’t look for Grumpy, Sneezy, Doc or any of the other familiar characters; Mirror Mirror introduces us to Half Pint, Chuckles and Grub, to name a few. Julia Roberts is well-cast as the evil queen, and Lily Collins (who played Collins Tuohy in The Blind Side) and Armie Hammer (whose most recent film role was in J. Edgar) give us an appealing Snow White and Prince Alcott. KIDS FIRST! youth film critic Anthony Aranda (age 9) finds Mirror Mirror “has a lot more action than the classic Snow White and there are a lot more cool parts.”

Mirror Mirror
Reviewed by Anthony Aranda
(See his full review on video.)

I am reviewing a really funny and family-friendly movie called Mirror Mirror. This movie is about Snow White and the seven dwarfs. I really like this movie because it has a lot more action than the classic Snow White and there are a lot more cool parts.  

This movie is all about a girl named Snow White whose evil stepmother mistreats her and the people who live in the kingdom. Snow White gets help from seven unusual dwarfs to take back her kingdom and help her people.    

Some of the main characters in the movie are Snow White, the seven dwarfs, the evil queen and Prince Alcott. My favorite character is Prince Alcott because he is a really funny character. He drinks a potion that gives him puppy love and he does some really funny things. When The Queen throws a book out the window, the prince runs down all the stairs to try and fetch it. It is really funny! 

My favorite part in the movie is when the evil queen gets help from black magic and two puppets on strings go to where the seven dwarfs live to try and hurt Snow White. These puppets are dancing around trying to get the dwarfs while Snow White is running to help them. Snow White gets a sword and cuts the strings and the puppets fall down. Another really cool part of the movie is when The Queen goes into her mirror. She walks right though it and comes out of the water into a place out in the middle of nowhere where she does her black magic. That is really cool.

I would recommend this movie for ages 5 and up because there are some sword-fighting scenes and a few parts that might scare little kids. Kids older than 5 would enjoy this movie especially if they know the classic Snow White story. Go out and see this movie in theaters now!

Photos: Mirror Mirror poster (top), Anthony Aranda (bottom)

KIDS FIRST! youth film critics Camille Bajema (age 10) and Morgan Bertsch (age 7) give enthusiastic kudos to a couple of DVDs that are highly educational in their purpose. Growing Up with Hello Kitty - a two-DVD series released today - teaches kids about manners and about some very basic personal skills. The reason for Camille’s and Morgan’s enthusiasm is clear - it’s Hello Kitty, of course! The fact that it’s Hello Kitty whose experiences are the teaching moments is exactly what drew Natsumi Ueki and Robert Woodhead to the videos’ potential, and their company AnimEigo prepared the Japanese videos for the United States audience. Robert Woodhead visited on the KIDS FIRST! Coming Attractions radio show to talk about the project, and shares more in the blog posted just before this one with Camille Bajema’s and Morgan Bertsch’s reviews (below).

Growing Up with Hello Kitty 1
Reviewed by Camille Bajema
(See her full review on video.)

I’m reviewing the movie Growing Up with Hello Kitty 1. This movie is about two sisters, Mimi and Hello Kitty, growing up. Throughout these six seven-minute episodes, Mimi and Hello Kitty learn how to answer the telephone, eat their vegetables, clean up their messes, change their clothes, sleep by themselves and help their mother with chores around the house.

I like this movie because Mimi and Hello Kitty learn to have a positive attitude toward doing things that their parents want them to. They also learn how to be more independent. Parents will like these movies for their kids because it teaches basic skills and to respect and listen to their parents.

These episodes are short, so they hold a young child’s attention.

I recommend this movie for girls aged 4 through 7. I give this movie four out of five stars.

Growing Up with Hello Kitty
Reviewed by Morgan Bertsch
(See her full review on video.)

Today, we’re going to learn about the movie Growing Up with Hello Kitty. She has six episodes in each of two DVDs. You guys will love these episodes, just like I did.

It teaches you these: Talking on the phone; eating their vegetables; and also saying, “I’m sorry.” And cleaning your own mess. Oh, and [Hello Kitty] also has a twin sister – which they are nothing alike – and she has friends.

I loved it! Five twinkling stars. [It’s for] boys and girls, or anyone who’s a fan of Hello Kitty. The ages are 2 to 7. It’s coming out on March 27.

Photo: DVD box art for Growing Up with Hello Kitty 1 and Growing Up with Hello Kitty 2 (top), Camille Bajema (middle), Morgan Bertsch (bottom)

Growing Up with Hello Kitty comes to the United States courtesy of entertainment company AnimEigo after a chance discovery during a business trip to Japan. “My wife [Natsumi Ueki] was in Japan in a business meeting, and this title caught her eye,” says AnimEigo CEO Robert Woodhead. A fan of Hello Kitty, she brought the videos home to consider what the company might do with them.

Not only were the Hello Kitty videos different for AnimEigo in the fact that they were teaching videos, but, Woodhead says, “We had never done children’s video before.”

Each story is short, focused on something a small child needs to learn or is having difficulty with - like proper table manners, being patient, or “Don’t touch Daddy’s computer,” explains Woodhead. “They’re getting these messages from their parents all the time. This is a way to reinforce those lessons through characters they know and identify with. It’s a useful thing — it’s why they were made, in Japan.”

Preparing the videos for a U.S. market involved not just translating the words but adjusting the messages. “We had to make adjustments to deal with differences in culture between Japan and the U.S.” He points to having an omelet for dinner — which ended up staying in the new videos — as one such cultural difference.

This would be a very specialized project for the Wilmington, N.C.-based entertainment company, but resources were in their very backyard. “In Wilmington is one of the best voice directors in animation in the world,” Woodhead says. “We were confident we could hand the project to him, with the translated script and cultural notes.” Scott Houle’s final version is so well-dubbed, Woodhead says, that viewers can’t tell it was dubbed.

Growing Up with Hello Kitty is a series of two DVDs, each with six videos. “We picked the 12 most appropriate to the U.S.,” says Woodhead. All but two episodes made the cut; the two unused ones depicted too Japanese-culturally specific situations, such as how to bow properly. Both discs are being released on March 26.

The videos’ core audience is 2- to 9-year-olds. Woodhead expects the kids to be drawn to the Hello Kitty character, and anticipates parents being attracted to the educational quality. “It’s not just entertainment,” he notes. “It has positive messages.”

“One of the fun things about this business is, every so often we run into the opportunity to do a really interesting project. This is the most special one we’ve done,” Woodhead shares. “We thought it would be an interesting challenge, and expected it to be just a niche title. We had no idea it would hit the way it has.”

Photo: Robert Woodhead, getting the creative juices flowing (top), Growing Up with Hello Kitty 1 and 2 DVD box art (bottom)

If an Earthling goes to Mars, who’s the alien? Civil War veteran John Carter has amazing powers in an environment inhabited by creatures twice his size when he’s transported to that distant planet. Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures’ theatrical release brings to the screen another epic adventure from the same creative imagination that gave us the well-beloved Tarzan series, Edgar Rice Burroughs. John Carter is based on Burroughs’ A Princess of Mars, which predated Tarzan in publication by mere months but has taken much longer to make it to the screen. KIDS FIRST! youth film critic Gabriella Chu, age 15, shares insights on both the story and the film adaptation.

John Carter
Reviewed by Gabriella Chu
(See her full review on video.)

From Disney’s latest $250-million-film comes the exhilarating 3-D adventure of John Carter. This movie is based on the first of 11 novels of the series series A Princess of Mars, written about a century ago by Edgar Rice Burroughs. In this film, John Carter is a Civil War veteran who finds a medallion that teleports him to Mars. There, he makes allies and foes with the aliens he encounters and falls in love with the princess of Helium. At the same time, massive war is occurring between the aliens, so Mars is in a chaotic state, and there is also an antagonist who tries to use schemes to put Carter back on Earth. Can John Carter manage to stay with his princess despite these obstacles?

Writer and director Andrew Stanton wrote the magnificent screenplays for Toy Story 1, 2 and 3; Wall-E; and Finding Nemo; but John Carter is not one of his best works. Some parts are not well rendered and a bit corny, but I did enjoy the ending of the film because it is interesting and unpredictable, and I am sure this movie will become very popular. I also liked the main theme of the movie regarding to cultural differences. The movie shows how different the norms and appearances are for aliens on Mars compared to people on Earth, yet it is universal for both life forms to have good intentions.

The CGI animation is also impressive, for it details even on the smallest of aspects. Its vividness combined with the 3-D makes the movie pop to life, particularly during the action scenes. The CGI animation is very compatible with movies such as Avatar and Planet of the Apes. The cinematography is also beautiful since the landscape of the film is set in the desert, which makes the movie more interesting to me since I rarely see action scenes occur in such an isolated, dry and hot place.

As for the actors, all of them performed their roles well, but I think Taylor Kitsch was especially well suited to his heroic character John Carter.

I recommend this movie to teens 13 and older because there are a few violent scenes. The movie is a great family film, especially for tweens and some teens. Overall, the movie is an entertaining cinematic experience. There is a myriad of action scenes and the entire film is in 3-D, which adds a lot of depth and makes the movie seem realistic. You will definitely be thrilled if you’re into science fiction movies and video games. Watch John Carter, as it is out in theaters now!

Paramount Pictures now offers you on DVD and Blu-ray last year’s theatrical hit The Adventures of Tintin. Racking up an impressive list of award nominations, including an Oscar for the music, the film took home the International Animated Film Association’s Annie Award for Animated Effects in an Animated Production. The characters, although animation, look mroe like real people than cartoon. In fact, 12-year-old KIDS FIRST! youth film critic Brianna Beaton says, “I almost forget that I am watching an animated film, and several times I get lost in the moment and think it’s real life.” It’s an appreciation fellow KIDS FIRST! youth film critic Blake Hawes (age 15) shares in his review, too (which can also be seen on video).

The Adventures of Tintin
Reviewed by Brianna Beaton
(See her full review on video.)

This is a great animated film! I absolutely love it. The Adventures of Tintin has lots of action and mystery, and will keep you on the edge of your seat. I almost forget that I am watching an animated film, and several times I get lost in the moment and think it’s real life. I like Snowy, Tintin’s dog, because he is very loyal and will go anywhere with Master.
 
The fearless reporter, Tintin (voiced by Jamie Bell), and Captain Haddock (voiced by Andy Serkis) set off on an adventure, hunting for a sunken ship, the Unicorn, which had been commanded by Haddock’s ancestor. Trying to find three scrolls, which contain clues to where the treasure is hidden, Tintin and his new friend, the Captain, become closer and closer friends as they get deeper and deeper into their adventure.

Steven Spielberg (War Horse) directs this outstanding film and reminds me there is a little kid in all of us. This film sends a great message that sometimes you just need someone to rely on when going through your own adventure.

I recommend this film for ages 8 to 13. And because of all the suspense and tons of action it has, I give this film 5 out of 5 stars.

The Adventures of Tintin is truly a great treasure and a must-see, so get your copy on DVD or Blu-ray and enjoy the adventure!

Photos: The Adventures of Tintin DVD box art (top), Brianna Beaton (bottom)