KIDS FIRST! News

Love boxing and rooting for the underdog? Even those squeamish about seeing real people get bloodied can pretty much relax about the violence in this robot-boxing movie released by Walt Disney Studios Pictures. Add an engaging kid for extra depth to the storyline, and here’s a movie that’s proving its mettle at the box office. Thirteen-year-old KIDS FIRST! youth film critic Jonah Menegaz calls it “magic.”

Real Steel
Reviewed by Jonah Menegaz

Real steel. What do you think of when you hear those two words? For some, it’s just “steal”; for others, it’s a competition to see which robot is left standing. Real Steel is a movie starring Hugh Jackman as Charlie Kenton, a broke, unlucky dad trying to bond with his son again. Oh, and yes, there are robots beating the metal off each other, too. At first, Charlie keeps losing robot battles and has no money to pay his debts. Then he has to spend the summer with his son and is not a very loving father. But when his son goes with him to find parts for a new robot and finds a Level 2 sparring robot with a shadow function, the magic begins.

Shawn Levy is the director of this movie, and he works great with kids and just about everyone else, too. The movie was wonderfully acted and scripted. Not to mention that the concept of boxing robots is pretty cool. I also thought the special effects were unbelievable — the robots looked completely real. But I’d have to say one thing they could have improved on was what a robot looked like after being hit. The robots could have been dented and scratched a little more and not so good-looking after a couple blows to the head. The music set the mood and carried the emotion in the movie. (What would a movie be without a good soundtrack?)

Overall, this movie is about 4 out of 5 stars, but I would only recommend this movie for around 11-12 and up because of the bad example the characters set. A kid would have to be able to know that he/she can’t go home and start punching things.

Go out and see Real Steel!

And check out the KIDS FIRST! website for the review by Jonah’s brother and fellow KF youth film critic Daniel Menegaz.

Photos: Real Steel poster (top), Jonah Menegaz (bottom)

With Lionsgate release Abduction making its way through theaters across the country, KIDS FIRST! youth film critic Gabriella Chu (age 14) shares a thoughtful view from the age group the film seems to be intended for.

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

If you like to watch action movies or are a fan of Taylor Lautner, then Abduction is the fast-paced one for you. It’s about a teen boy named Nathan, played by Taylor Lautner, who finds a baby pciture of him on a missing persons website. As he investigates, he finds out his parents aren’t his biological parents. They get killed, and the CIA starts chasing after him.

If you want to unlock the mystery to why all these astonishing events are happening to Nathan in just one day, watch the movie.

In the beginning, the director films Nathan’s normal life, and then quickly transitions to a suspenseful action movie.

It’s exciting because Nathan constantly finds himself in the midst of an obstacle. On the other hand, the storyline and plot didn’t exactly work out for me. Although the movie shows that you shouldn’t trust anyone but yourself and close friends, some parts of the movie didn’t quite make sense to me.

I recommend this movie to teen 13 and up. There are intense fighting scenes, brief language and other teen behaviors not appropriate for children.

Photo: Abduction poster (top), Gabriella Chu (bottom)

With Columbia Pictures’ Moneyball opening in theaters today, KIDS FIRST! film critic Jonah Menegaz (age 13) scoops a preview for our KIDS FIRST! community. Yes, the movie’s got Brad Pitt, Jonah Hill and Philip Seymour Hoffman onscreen, but Menegaz point to the cinematography as also worth paying attention to. Fellow KIDS FIRST! film critics Daniel Menegaz (age 13) and Gabriella Chu (age 14) make it unanimous: Moneyball scores a hit on all counts.

Moneyball
Reviewed by Jonah Menegaz

Moneyball is a great movie, starring Brad Pitt as Billy Beane and Jonah Hill as Peter Brand. Together, the two completely recreate how baseball is looked at and how it changed [as to] how the players are picked.

Since I am not a sporty person, I don’t like baseball very much and it kind of bores me, but this movie was fantastic and very interesting. I thought the acting was great and the actors got into their characters, and it kept me wondering what will happen next. I also thought the DP (director of photography) was awesome and how [the movie] displayed shots that set the mood for the scene. I also thought it was really cool how they used real footage from when the game was actually being played.

This movie was rightfully rated PG-13 because of the language — there was often cussing — and I think this movie is great for kids 11 and up. Overall, this is an excellent movie and you should go see it!

Moneyball
Reviewed by Daniel Menegaz

Moneyball is the invigorating true story about the rise of the Oakland A’s — a baseball team with a tiny budget. Starring Brad Pitt as Billy Beane and Jonah Hill as Peter Brand, the duo try to re-invent the game of baseball by using a new way of recruiting players. 

The movie was serious at times, but the comic relief is very funny. I thought it was really clever when they used real footage of baseball games in the film, as well as recreating games. The acting was also spot on. Considering I’m not the biggest baseball fan, this movie was actually really good.

I think the age group is about ten and up because, aside from two or three curse words, all of the subject matter was appropriate. Over all, I would give Moneyball 4 out of 5 stars.

Moneyball
Reviewed by Gabriella Chu

If you are a baseball fan, then Moneyball is an inspirational movie for you. It’s about a baseball team manager, Billy Beane, played by Brad Pitt, who tries his best to repair the Oakland A’s baseball team with his constrained budget. He hires a Yale graduate, Peter Brand, played by Jonah Hill, who teaches him to use statistics to compare baseball players among each other, instead of the conventional method of following his instincts to decide which players to choose and keep. If you’re wondering whether Beane’s uncommon and distrusted method will help his baseball team win more games, watch the movie to find out!

I think this movie is inspirational because its messages are very straightforward. The movie shows that sticking to the status quo is not always the best decision you can make, and it’s not money that makes something worthwhile, but it’s the journey that counts. Brad Pitt’s acting is exceptional, and the strong personality and ambition his character possesses emphasizes these messages.

Besides a few well-timed flashbacks, the director made the movie seem more like a book told through visuals, and not so much as a film. In addition, if Peter Brand didn’t exist as a character in the movie, there would be no story to the film.

I recommend this movie to teens 13 and up because there is some cursing, but nothing too serious. Moneyball tells a splendid story, and will be sure to delight baseball fans.  

Photo, top to bottom: Moneyball poster, Jonah Menegaz, Daniel Menegaz, Gabriella Chu 

Animation is for every age, especially when it comes from leaders of the genre at Pixar Animation Studios and Walt Disney Pictures. This sequel to 2006’s award-winning movie Cars is in theaters now, and KIDS FIRST! film critic Ny’Asia Bell (age 7) gives us several reasons to make Cars 2 a summer entertainment choice.

Cars 2
Reviewed by Ny’Asia Bell

Today I will be reviewing the new Cars 2.

This movie was great – full of fast cars, lots of action and flawless animation.

Lightning McQueen is voiced by Owen Wilson, and his long-time best friend, tow Mater, is voiced by Larry the Cable Guy. They accept a challenge from Francesco Bernoulli (John Turturro) to compete in the World Grand Prix in Tokyo. While there, Mater gets mistaken for an American secret agent, and eventually helps to solve a big and dangerous case.

My favorite characters are Mater, because of his courage and humor. He is a real hero.
Then there are the characters Holley Shiftwell (Emily Mortimer) and Finn McMissile (Michael Caine). I loved all their cool gadgets.
 
My favorite part of the film is when Mater cracks the case and finds out what car is behind all this mayhem.
 
I rate this movie 4 out of 5 stars, because it does contain some violent scenes. I recommend this movie to kids ages 7 and up.
 
Photos: Cars 2 poster (top), Ny’Asia Bell (bottom)

Howl’s Moving Castle, from the renowned Japanese director Hayao Miyazaki (who also wrote the screenplay adaptation from the novel of the same name), was nominated for numerous film awards followiong its theatrical release in 2004. Among its wins was Animation of the Year from the 2005 Hollywood Film Festival. The film is presented in July on HDNet KidScene. KIDS FIRST! film critic Sam Connan (age 12) gives us the low-down on it, with high praise:

Howl’s Moving Castle
Reviewed by Sam Connan
(and see his review on video)

I just finished watching Howl’s Moving Castle and I thought it was a wonderful movie. I’ve seen it before and I still think it’s a wonderful movie. It’s about a young girl named Sophie who gets turned into an old woman by the evil Witch of the Waste. She seeks the help of a wizard named Howl, but the problem is that she can’t tell anybody about this curse that she’s under.

There are a lot of references to war in this. Howl is against the war. He doesn’t care what flag the ship is flying or what uniform the soldiers are wearing, he just wants the war to end. He doesn’t want to hurt anybody; he just wants a peaceful resolution.

Hayao Miyazaki is the man who directed and animated this film, and he did an absolutely wonderful job. Each frame is like its own piece of art, and when it’s all strung together, it makes a beautiful movie.

The music is also very good.

I would recommend this for all ages. For littler kids, there are no real scary parts, and there’s a lot of colors and excitement and funny parts. And for older kids and adults, it’s a very interesting plot line.

If I had to characterize this, which would be very hard to do because it’s a very unique kind of movie, I would categorize this in the “great” category. I would put it up with Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Lord of the Rings – not that it’s anything like them, but it’s just as wonderful as them.

All in all, I would have to give this a three out of three stars, which is a very hard ranking to get.

Photos: Howl’s Moving Castle poster (top), Sam Connan (bottom)

Howl’s Moving Castle is one of many film classics being brought to your home by HDNet Movies, a KIDS FIRST! sponsor. HDNet Movies offers subscribers a premium movie viewing experience in true HD, including the best classics of the 1950s-1970s, favorites from the 1980s and 1990s, to recently released theatrical films. Additionally, HDNet Movies offers kidScene, a morning and Friday night programming block specifically for kids and families. HDNet Movies kidScene can be followed at hdnetmovies.com and via Facebook at facebook.com/HDNetMovies.

Launched in 2001 by Mark Cuban and General Manager Philip Garvin, the HDNet networks are available in the U.S. via AT&T U-verse, Charter, DIRECTV, DISH Network, Insight and Verizon FiOS.