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I've read some of the bad reviews, and they seem focused on a few things: 1) Scary scenes, 2) Nudity, 3) Lack of romance. Well, my three year old is super brave so I do agree that a lot of sensitive littles may have an issue with the movie, but it's not really an issue in our household. Nudity? Well, that's kind of laughable as it's an animated movie. I guess some people would rather hear fart humor and characters calling each other jackass ("Shrek"), and if that's you then skip this one, but it's really just two quick scenes and not in a scandalous way. And about that lack of romance... one of the reasons I love this movie for my daughter is the lack of romance for the main character. In fact, the whole plot is about teenager Merida trying to change her "fate" which is to get married before she's ready. She passionately pleads during one speech to the parents of her suitors to let their children decide when they are ready for marriage and to choose their own spouses. This is beyond refreshing after decades of Disney princess schlock where the all too young princess gets into a scrape and must be rescued by a man and then lives "happily ever after". Also, I found the romantic sparks between Merida's parents to be pretty sweet.

If you're raising an independent daughter you want to think for herself and not think girls are meant to be saved by boyfriends, don't skip this movie. (If she's sensitive and scares easily, wait until she's at least school age, though.)

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Pixar Animation Studios has always been known for their unique approach to filmmaking. They have always put the story first and foremost, something that so many other studios seem to take for granted. They also know the rest of the ingredients to add to make their films stand out from the rest: Great characters, lots of heart, and a goodly quantity of humor.

While not continuing the 21st century tradition of turning the fairy-tale on its head, as in the case of "Shrek", "Brave", feels like a rediscovered story by Grimm's with an unmistakably Pixarian flavor. Legends and myths abound in Scots folklore, and the writers at Pixar didn't have far to go in order to come up with their own story, one that is at once relevant, quite original, and yet entirely congruous with one's expectations of the perfect fairy-tale. As fresh and surprising as any of the studio's previous successes, I enjoyed it immensely, and could watch it many times over without growing tired of it. It's hard to find a real family film that everyone can enjoy together, but this one comes pretty to close to that ideal.

In the ultimate cautionary tale of being careful what you wish for, the film, set in 10th century Scotland, concerns Princess Merida, a feisty, strong-willed, adventure-seeking lass, skilled with both a sword and a bow and arrow, who would rather practice archery and ride through the woods with her horse, Angus, than follow the path desired for her by her parents; or more specifically, her mother. Determined to avoid her fate, she runs away, and manages to find a way to alter her destiny. To make a long story short, this ill-chosen wish sets off a chain of events that threaten to destroy everything Merida holds dear and the entire kingdom of DunBroch along with it.

This fresh take on a typical princess character pleasantly surprised me, as well as the fact that the emotional core of the film, as well as most of the plot, stems not from a romantic relationship between prince and princess, but from the mother/daughter relationship between Merida and Queen Elinor. Anyone who is a daughter like I am will easily relate to how complicated the bond can be between a mother and her child, and this film portrays that unique bond beautifully. Without giving too much away, it is their love for each other and their clashing of personalities that ultimately moves the entire film forward, and the changes they both experience throughout the course of the film give them both a better understanding of each other, and emphasize the importance of empathy, bravery, courage, family, and love.

Not content with just being an entertaining theatrical experience, the film goes into a level of moral and emotional depth that even fans of Pixar may be unfamiliar with. It takes a very special film to bring me to tears, and I was moved quite often. Not to say that "Brave" is strictly a tear-jerker, because it is not. I'd estimate that there is more action, adventure, and humor than in any other Pixar movie to date.

There is no doubt that "Brave" is one of Pixar's most beautifully animated films. The amount of detail is simply brilliant, and computer technology being what it is today, there are times when the visuals on screen almost rival the real world. I've never been to Scotland, but the richness and beauty of the country expressed in the film makes me feel as if I had. The landscapes are simply breathtaking, and so photo-realistic you might feel as if you've just fallen into the wilds of the Highlands; I'm sure that more than one viewing would be needed to absorb it all. The rendering on the hair and fabric is especially lifelike, and certain scenes involving non-human characters might make you do a double-take, they appear so true-to-life!

Composer Patrick Doyle's score is appropriately Scottish in flavor, combining the expected Gaelic melodies (jigs, reels, and such like), with more modern, atmospheric, incidental scoring. Sprightly where it needs to be and brooding where it doesn't, it perfectly enhances the movie to the point that it feels as organic as the moss on the trees. The gentle lullaby, "A Mhaighdean Bhan Uasal", sung by Emma Thompson, is one of the stand-out pieces, and serves as the kind of musical representation of the love between Merida and Elinor. I also quite enjoyed "Song of Mor'du", a sort of Scotch drinking song, heard mainly in the background, but reiterated often throughout the rest of the score. There are also three other songs: "Touch The Sky" and "Into The Open Air", performed by Scots songstress Julie Fowlis, and "Learn Me Right", sung by Birdy, with Mumford and Sons, which, while not written by Doyle, fit expertly into their places in the story and aptly enhance the film.

Now, a good animated character needs a good voice to bring them to life, and the entire cast is all very well-chosen and very well-acted. Comprised mainly of Scottish and English actors, including Billy Connolly as King Fergus, Emma Thompson as Queen Elinor, Robbie Coltrane as Lord Dingwall, Julie Walters as the Witch, and the incomparable Kelly Macdonald as Merida herself, it would be hard to find another group of people so perfect in their roles. Macdonald is wonderful as the flame-haired heroine, and Thompson simply shines as the equally obstinate but caring mother. Billy Connolly is a great counterpoint to her more level-headed and dutiful Queen, but gets far less screen time than either of the two female protagonists.

To sum it all up, "Brave" is a beautiful, touching, exciting, and refreshingly original film, one that is entertaining on so many levels and can stand proudly alongside any of Pixar's previous masterpieces. I would rank it as one of my favorite (if not my favorite) Pixar film, and would not hesitate to recommend it to anyone.

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I don't enjoy every box office hit animated movie, but I thoroughly enjoyed Brave. The ending theme may be about bravery, but the story is rich in family relationship and in choosing who you are, who you want to be and how you treat others. It's a great movie to take your kids to see with you.

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I like Pixar films. I like those lovely and likable characters this animation studio continues to create Woody and Buzz, Sulley and Mike, Lightning McQueen and Remy the gourmet mouse chef. I also like Merida, the heroine of Pixar's new film "Brave." (She is the first female protagonist of the company's films.) And I tried to like the film itself, which is certainly entertaining, but fails to offer a story that this brave and independent heroine really needs. In short, Merida deserves a better story.

The story begins promisingly. Merida is a princess of a Scottish clan, with formidable skills with a bow and arrow. Being dissatisfied with a marriage arranged by her parents, she obtains a magic spell from a witch living in the woods so that she can thwart the marriage plan. As you expect, Merida's conduct results in a terrible disaster that she must somehow fix on her own.

The best part of the film is its visuals, especially those of Merida and her hair. Voice acting is also wonderful. Kelly Macdonald captures the spirit of strong-mined Princess Merida. Another good point is that the film sometimes seems having fun with genre conventions.. Witches are often depicted in a negative light, but in "Brave" the Witch (voice by Julie Walters) may be strange, but definitely not evil.

But the weak storyline needs improvement. That Merida looks often selfish didn't bother me. We know she will change, and she actually does, but the point is how she changes. "Brave" does not give the heroine a real challenge. A big bad bear is not good enough. A considerable portion of the film's second half is spent on silly slapstick involving her young brothers. Curiously Merida, a skilled archer, is not given enough chance to show what she can do.

"Brave" is better than last years' disappointment "Cars 2," but the film, despite its interesting heroine, is still a letdown.

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I went into this movie with very high expectations, because I am a huge Pixar fan. From the trailers, it appeared to be about Merida and possibly other clan members, on the hunt to slay an evil beast and save their people. The movie started out great, with the competition, a lot of laughs, introducing the characters, and an all around great time. Still, I was waiting for those glorious bow and arrow scenes that the trailers and posters had constantly teased. I was waiting for Merida to ride around on her horse and go into battle. Essentially, due to the trailers, I was expecting a Mulan sort of movie.

When we get to the part of the movie where Merida meets the witch and things start ramping up, I was thinking, "oh great this is going to get really fun." Still, I saw no sign of that happening. Don't get me wrong, I really enjoyed the mother and daughter scenes and thought they were touching. Once the mother was a bear, it was endearing, cute, and playful to watch the bear and Merida together.

Then, suddenly the movie seemed to end, and still there was no battle, no rush of adrenaline on the scale that I had expected, and nothing to make me cheer out loud for the protagonists. Basically, I didn't have the fun rush of previous Pixar movies that I had come to expect. Having said that, I still give the movie 4 out of 5 stars, because it looked gorgeous, the voice acting was top notch, and the story did touch my heart.

To sum it all up, if you watch Brave for combat, whether it's single person or on a grander scale, it won't live up to what you are expecting. However if you go into it with the mindset that it's going to be a princess fairy tale and a bonding movie, you will relate to it and love it.

(This is my first ever movie review on Amazon, so let me know what you think. :) )

Reviews of Race to Witch Mountain (Three-Disc Edition: Blu-ray/DVD/Digital

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You'd think a Las Vegas cab driver had seen it all, especially with that UFO convention in town, right? Almost right, until two solemn children show up in his car. They have a wad of cash that they don't seem to understand very well, an urgent need to reach some desert destination, and a schoolbook way of speaking. It seems as legal as anything in Las Vegas and the money's green, so they're off.

So, a moment later, are the government goons in their black SUVs, in hot pursuit. The kids turn out to be something pretty special. The big bad gov guy calls them "illegal aliens," without stating just which laws they broke or just how alien. Then the chase is on with a few extras thrown in, like a killer robot and the only UFOlogist in the world who actually has a clue.

There's plenty of action, a bit of bloodless violence, some ominous but ambiguous threats against the kids, and a steady stream of one-liners to keep the mood from getting too grim. Maybe this isn't one for the ages, but it provides some popcorn entertainment where no one gets killed and everyone keeps their clothes on. Enjoy!

-wiredweird

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More action than the original! A new step forward for the popular sci-fi Walt Disney film.

As a fan of the original 1975 film "Escape to Witch Mountain", I have to admit that I felt a bit standoffish about a retelling of the film series. With Dwayne Johnson cast as the primary character in the film, it was evident to me that the new film "Race to Witch Mountain" would be a more action-based film but over 35 years since the first film, you can only wonder how far special effects would go for and how campy but yet entertaining and family friendly, the new storyline would be.

Taking on the helm as director for "Race to Witch Mountain" would be Andy Fickman (producer for "Anaconda" and director of "The Game Plan", "Who's Your Daddy"). The screenplay would be written by Matt Lopez ("Bedtime Stories") and Mark Bomback ("Deception", "Live Free or Die Hard" and "Godsend"). Music by Trevor Rabin ("12 Rounds", "Get Smart", "National Treasure: Book of Secrets", etc.) and cinematography by Greg Gardiner ("Herbie Fully Loaded", "Elf", "New York Minute", etc.).

The film would star Dwyane Johnson ("The Scorpion King", "Gridiron Gang", "The Game Plan" and "Get Smart"), Carla Gugino ("Sin City", "American Gangster", "The One", etc.), AnnaSophia Robb ("Bridge to Terabithia", "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" and "Jumper"), Alexander Ludwig ("The Sandlot 3' and "A Little Thing Called Murder"), Ciaran Hinds ("The Sum of All Fears", "Lara Coft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life", "The Phantom of the Opera", etc.) and Garry Marshall ("Pretty Woman", "Chicken Little" and "Murphy Brown").

"Race to Witch Mountain" continues Disney's dedication of a 3-Disc release with the Blu-ray, DVD version of the film and a Digital Copy.

VIDEO & AUDIO:

"Race to Witch Mountain" is featured in 1080p High Definition (with an aspect ratio of 2:40:1). Overall, picture quality is good but where many other Walt Disney films tend to utilize more daylight scenes, "Race to Witch Mountain" is shot indoors in dark spaces or outdoors during the night. There are daylight scenes but more the most part, you find the main characters trying to utilize darkness in order to give a sense of the group trying to hide out. So, for the most part, the film is not exactly vibrant or colorful but you can expect a lot of blacks and blues being utilized during the darker scenes in the film.

During the daylight scenes, there is a little softness (not by digital noise reduction) but picture quality is not as vibrant as other recently released live-action Disney-related films but I think the somewhat muted colors was a personal decision by cinematographer Greg Gardiner. But overall, picture quality is good, it's just a film that leans more towards darkness with a lot of shadows.

As for audio quality, the audio is well done. The English 5.1 DTS-HD lossless soundtrack really capture the action. There were several scenes that I just had to replay because it really shook my living room (a scene where Jack and the kids are riding on the railroad tracks), there is serious LFE in this film and you can expect your subwoofer to be utilized. Where the dialogue is crisp and clear through the center and front channels, there is also a lot of surround and rear surround usage during the action scenes.

Frankly speaking, "Race to Witch Mountain" was quite pleasing to listen to. It's an aggressive soundtrack and maybe not as aggressive as a film like "Transformers" or "Quantum of Solace" but still a lossless soundtrack that you can expect metal shrieking, car crashes and deep explosions that you can feel through seat. This is one of the most aggressive lossless soundtracks I have heard from Disney (for a live-action film) thus far.

Subtitles are featured in English SDH, French and Spanish.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

"Race to Witch Mountain" comes with the following special features presented in HD and standard with English 2.0 Dolby Digital audio:

* Deleted Scenes (23:21) Optional introduction by Director Andy Fickman, the following deleted scenes are featured: Intro, Extended Opening Ray's, Extended Ray's Telekinesis, Jack Beats Up Zacha, Tina Meets Siphon, Sara Foils Security Fence, Alex Foils Guard, Extended Goodbye Scene and the Original Ending. It's important to note that the alternate ending which is literally an extended version is quite important and would build up to a sequel. Personally, the alternative ending would have worked but Director Andy Fickman decided to keep it simple which is understandable.

* Bloopers (3:37) The blooper reel featuring Dwayne Johnson, Carla Gugino, AnnaSophia Robb, Alexander Ludwig and Garry Marshall having fun and messing up their lines.

* Backstage Disney (8:20) Director Andy Fickman reveals hidden references to the original movies "Escape to Witch Mountain" and "Return from Witch Mountain" and other Disney tie-ins.

* Learn How to Take Your Favorite Movies on a Go (1:04) Your typical Disney information trailer of what digital copy is.

JUDGMENT CALL:

With the recent release of "Escape to Witch Mountain" and "Return from Witch Mountain" on DVD, it was good to rewatch the classic films since so much time has passed since I watched those two films and prepare me for "Race to Witch Mountain".

For the most part, "Race to Witch Mountain" has no similarities to the original with the exception that the antagonist are going after the children. And also, in this case, also Jack Bruno. The other major difference is that the children in "Escape to Witch Mountain" are orphans who just want a loving family and are blessed with supernatural abilities which they don't know why. It's not revealed of what they are until the end of the film, whereas "Race to Witch Mountain" reveals what the kids are right after the beginning and from then on the film becomes more action-based and a more aggressive cat vs. mouse type of film.

So, needless to say, the film is not the same type of film that children in the 1970's grew up with. Where the older films were definitely crafted as innocent family films, "Race to Witch Mountain" is a film that was created to appeal to both children and adults. You know that with Dwayne Johnson, you're going to see some major butt kicking and with these two extraterrestrial kids, really take advantage of their power and of course, with modern technology, definitely giving the film a much more modern spin to their powers, the look of their spacecraft and of course, everything looks quite slick.

It's important to note that despite the film being much different than the previous two films, director Andy Fickman who was a big fan of the original knew that there should be some tie-in to the original. So, the original characters that played Tony (Ike Eisenmann) and Tia (Kim Richards) in the first two films, have a significant part in this film rather than short few second cameos. Also, Fickman made sure to put a lot of references of the original film, in this new film as well (note: there is a special feature dedicated to director Andy Fickman showing the various homage paid to the original film).

For parents who are wondering if the film is safe, I watched this film with my six year old and we both enjoyed the film. If anything, its the aggressive soundtrack that I think that freaked him out (of course, I loved it) because there are plenty of explosions and action sequences that will utilize your home theater but might be a bit too much for the kids. There are scenes with the kids being manhandled by the alien Siphon and since it is an action film, there is many chase scenes and fighting. So, there is violence in that regard. But for the most part, the film doesn't show any blood. In fact, despite the beating Jack Bruno (Dwayne Johnson) goes through, he's not bruised and bloody. Disney made sure the film is kept tame for families to watch.

Overall, I understand that if some parents who felt the wholesomeness of the original films has been thrown out the door with this new film "Race to Witch Mountain". Personally, I enjoyed this film and enjoyed the hidden tie-ins of the original film and to see the original talent in this film... that was fun!

But this is a more action-driven film that focuses on a man who has had his troubles in the past, keeping his promise in making sure that these kids get to their destination. Of course, Dwayne Johnson's Jack Bruno is no Eddie Albert's Jason O'Day but there is a feeling of guardianship that both Jack and Dr. Alex Friedman feel for the children and are willing to sacrifice their own lives to protect them.

As for the Blu-ray release, "Race to Witch Mountain" sports one of the most aggressive Disney lossless soundtracks that I have heard so far. But it's also important to note that the picture quality was good but not as magnificent and unlike other Disney releases on Blu-ray, there are far less special features included. But you do get the two other discs which include a DVD and a digital copy of the film.

"Race to Witch Mountain" is an enjoyable film and definitely a step forward in bringing the "Witch Mountain" to a more modern time for today's audiences. But for those who enjoyed "Escape to Witch Mountain", personally I feel that director Andy Fickman did the best thing by leaving the original alone and let that film be known for its merit and not copy it but showing his own respect for the original film film his way and it worked. I can also understand those who loved the originals, as they were more character driven, feel-good family storylines whereas this film goes in another direction and focuses primarily on the action. And it's also important to note that the sequel "Return from Witch Mountain" is also a film that is very different from the original film and a bit more darker in its storyline as well. So, in a way all three "Witch Mountain" films are quite different in presentation but yet they all retain a sense of family, it's just presented differently.

Overall, "Race to Witch Mountain" is a fun, enjoyable film definitely worth recommending!

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Jack Bruno (Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson) is a cab driver. He has a shady past but is trying to put all that behind him. It's time for the annual science fiction convention in Las Vegas, which means his cab is filled with weirdos, including Dr. Alex Friedman (Carla Gugino), one of the speakers.

Yet the trouble comes in the forms of two teenagers. Seth (Alexander Ludwig) and Sara (AnnaSophia Robb) appear in his cab at the start of one shift. They offer him a wad of cash and ask to be taken to an undisclosed location. When they arrive, Jack discovers it is an abandoned cabin in the middle of the nowhere. Not wanting to leave them alone, he discovers something he never imagined. Is he in over his head? Can he help Seth and Sara complete their mission?

I hadn't watched the originals growing up, but I did watch them earlier this year to prepare for this one hitting theaters. It turns out it really didn't matter. They could have slapped any name on this and it would have been just as enjoyable. That's not saying they didn't acknowledge their roots. Original Witch Mountain kids Kim Richards and Ike Eisenmann make cameos in a diner scene as Tina and Anthony. There are another couple fun nods to the original.

The movie got going pretty quickly and only increased in intensity from there. Our heroes have several different groups hunting them, so there is never a dull moments. Yet the comic moments are plentiful as well, especially any time Garry Marshall is around as a science fiction writer. And the movie made me truly care for these characters.

The special effects were impressive with several truly mouth dropping moments. The preview pretty much gave those away, but I still loved them. There is plenty of action and stunts, too, which are probably what earned the movie its PG rating. It is intense at times, so kids who frighten easily should steer clear. Every one will enjoy it.

I do have two minor gripes about the movie. The first is a scene that preaches to us about global warming. It feels a little out of place and gratuitous instead of a real part of the film. Secondly, a sub-plot about Jack's past coming back to get him is dropped near the end.

Just so you know, there are a few scenes during the credits you'll want to catch.

Despite the dropped plot point, I had a smile on my face when the movie was over. In fact, I was kind of surprised at just how much I enjoyed it. If you are at all interested in seeing it, do. You'll have a good time with an enjoyable movie.

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As I continue to smell what the Rock is cooking, it strikes me that it's been a while since I've thought of him as a wrestler in WWE. Nowadays dude is doing big things in Hollywood. The trend seems to be that wrestlers don't become movie stars, their over-the-top ring personas being hard to translate into serviceable movie acting chops. 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin and Hulk Hogan both fell on their faces, and John Cena doesn't impress me. Before the Rock, I think only 'Rowdy' Roddy Piper had successfully parlayed his wrestling cachet into a noteworthy flick (and that would be John Carpenter's cult classic They Live). Oh, and Andre the Giant had a small cute part in the quite awesome The Princess Bride (20th Anniversary Edition).

But it's looking more and more as if Dwayne "the Rock" Johnson really is here to stay as an actor and a big box office draw, and never mind that he seems to have put the people's eyebrow on ice. RACE TO WITCH MOUNTAIN is his latest flick with Disney (after The Game Plan (Widescreen Edition)), and sure enough it garnered the number one spot in its first week of theatrical release. Not that it's so overwhelmingly a terrific picture, mind you. It's got its flaws. Suffice to say that overall I liked enough about it to give it a semi-warm recommendation. But the key reason the movie works is that the Rock is in the thing. As always the Rock brings in his reliable physicality, along with a certain comfort level in front of the camera and an easy-going sense of humor.

Did you know there were three Witch Mountain pictures before this one? I grew up on Escape to Witch Mountain Special Edition (1975) and Return from Witch Mountain Special Edition (1978), and as a kid I had a serious crush on Kim Richards who played Tia (I remember having one on Pippi Longstocking, as well). So it's particularly gratifying to see Kim Richards here in a cameo role as a helpful diner waitress. Ike Eisenmann, who played her brother Tony, also resurfaces as a sheriff in the same scene. I missed out on the third Witch Mountain project, a failed pilot that aired on the Wonderful World of Disney and was intended to lead into a television show, except that the series never got off the ground. Anyway, back on point...

I think the best word to describe RACE TO WITCH MOUNTAIN is "nice." It's a nice sci-fi adventure movie for the family, but it won't blow you away with its scope or special effects or acting. But neither does it suck arse. It's middle of the road stuff, with the Rock turning in another ingratiating performance, Carla Gugino again being criminally underused, and the kid actors showing enough range to sorta kinda make you care about what happens to them. There's nothing here that's too disturbing or violent or inappropriate for de kids. Yeah, it's nice. It really could've used more of an edge.

Dwayne Johnson plays Jack Bruno, a former wheelman for the Las Vegas mob but currently a cabbie in Sin City. Bruno's trying to stay on the straight, even though his shady past keeps trying to pull him back in. So any more grief is not what he needs. It's what he gets, though, when two odd kids suddenly show up in the back seat of his cab, sporting formal speech patterns and with a desert destination in mind and waving fistfuls of cha-ching. And there goes Jack Bruno, embarking on a very strange, very dangerous journey.

If you've caught the trailer or seen the prior Witch Mountain films, then it's no spoiler that the two kids, Sara and Seth, turn out to be extra-terrestrial children. Sara is a telepath who also happens to be telekinetic. Seth is able to adjust his molecular density and can therefore phase thru solid objects or stop an SUV cold with his superdense body. Sara and Seth's planet is dying, and they've come to Earth to retrieve their scientist parents' rejuvenation device. This device, hidden in an isolated cabin in the Nevadan desert, can in theory save their world. However, their planet's military has its own pretty insidious plans for Earth.

Jack Bruno, a bit (or a lot) out of his depth, still finds himself channeling his inner dad or inner older brother. That, or he's a really dedicated taxi driver because the man intends to carry on until the kids get home, and that means making sure Sara and Seth end up in their spacecraft, which is currently being heavily guarded and poked and prodded by the government in full-on paranoid mode. The movie is pretty much Bruno and the kids and, later on, a sexy down-and-out astrophycisist (Carla Gugino, natch!) scrambling like crazy and trying to stay one step ahead of an unstoppable alien assassin, a shady government agency focusing on extraterrestrial threats, and Bruno's former hoodlum associates.

As said, the special effects are decent, and I got a nostalgic kick out of the diner scene. The Las Vegas science convention sequences are also a hoot, even if I feel that the movie could've mined more comedic/satiric gold out of those scenarios. An unexpectedly touching emotional core is built around the rapport and warm interplay between Dwayne Johnson and AnnaSophia Robb, who was so good in Bridge to Terabithia (Widescreen Edition) and she does pretty okay here as well, as the more appealing kid alien. Sorry to say, but Alexander Ludwig as Seth remained somewhat of a cold fish.

Disney, the bastion of fluffy family friendly fare, plays it safe, and the result is a tepidness to the film, a lack of punch, despite all the glitzy swagger onscreen. I saw RACE TO WITCH MOUNTAIN during an eighteen hour overseas flight, and I'm forever grateful that it kept me engaged enough that I wasn't as miserable as I would've been (because I really loathe flying!). The film is basically an extended chase scene, with several pit stops made so that the Rock and the kids can bond and the Rock can crack jokes. In the final say, I had fun in watching it, and wouldn't say no to a sequel, which going by how the movie ends (check out the end credits), seems very likely. The Witch Mountain franchise continues...

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This was a really fun movie to watch. Dwayne Johnson is perfect as the reluctant hero, slowly going from driver to protector. Carla Gugino is the true scientist who so wants to prove ETs really exist, beyond the scifi world. Great fun for those of all ages.

The Pirates! Band of Misfits (Three-Disc Combo: Blu-ray 3D Review

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The book is great. The movie is great. That doesn't usually happen. I guess it is because Gideon Defoe, the author of the book, also wrote the screenplay for the movie, intending one not to be a "spoiler" for the other. The movie was definitely more of a kids' movie, where the pirates were the ragtag underdogs struggling to keep up in the increasingly competitive pirate world (you are judged for your "booty"--double entendre?). The book has different characters and a completely different villain! That is how much the stories differed. The book also contains more grown-up humour more people being run-through by swords, more blood, more walking the plank, more steely pirate bad-assedness. Queen Victoria is one crazy woman in this movie, enough to get PETA up-in-arms for ages. The other pirates the Pirate Captain competes against for the Pirate of the Year Award (Salma Hayek, Jeremy Piven) are swashbuckling good fun, even if they are more than a little rude toward the beloved Hugh Grant's character. Also, Hugh Grant gives a surprisingly different performance than the one he's known for in his rom-coms; his pitch is deep and fierce and his performance is touchingly funny without any over-saturated fluff. Gideon Defoe is spot on for creating a movie that is appropriate for the kiddies and a book that has humour for the older kids. See the movie because Aardman's stuff is always funny, but definitely read the book to get the original story.

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After years of disappointment the Pirate Captain (Hugh Grant) resolves to finally win the Pirate of the Year competition and so embarks on a series of raids on passing ships in the hope of earning sufficient booty to compete with the his rivals Cutlass Liz (Salma Hayek) and Black Belamy (Jeremy Piven). However he is still plagued by bad luck with the best produced by a succession of raids being the capture of Charles Darwin (David Tennant). Still at least Darwin is able to identify that Pirate Captain's beloved parrot Polly is in fact a dodo, supposedly extinct for over a hundred years. This gives them both an idea...!

Pirates! is a gloriously hilarious, exquisitely produced movie. Its very much a children's movie but with plenty of sly asides to keep adults on their toes as well. The sets are stupendous and almost beg a second viewing in themselves to allow the viewer to try to aborb all the teeming detail. Both the voice performances of the cast, and the painstaking detail of the stop-motion animation are flawless.

I thought it as close to perfect a piece of film-making as I have seen in many years and I hope for more adventures of the Pirate Captain and his crew in the not to distant future.

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I'm really picky about kids' movies. If my daughter enjoys it, fine, but she isn't what you might call discerning. This is one of the few that I actually enjoyed watching with her. Sharp humor, clever writing and fantastic to look at. It even has David Tennant! What else could you want?

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Pirates have become cool again with the trilogy of films made by Johnny Depp but those films might be just a tad too intense for the youngest of children. With that in mind the folks at Aardman studios, the stop motion group responsible for Wallace and Gromitt among other things, have come up with some pirates of their own. They've just been unleashed with this film.

The story follows a group of pirates that aren't quite up to snuff in the pirate hierarchy. Sure they have the peg legs and eye patches, but this ragtag group just doesn't seem to pillage near as much as most. They're led by the Pirate Captain who does his best to keep his crew happy and content (hey, don't forget ham night!). But Pirate Captain has dreams of his own, of becoming the Pirate of the Year.

The only problem is the amount of pirating he and his crew does. With Cutlass Liz and Black Bellamy always bringing in more booty they win the competition every year. Rather than allow him the chance to do better, the group always ridicules him as well.

That could all change when Captain Pirate and his crew board a boat stocked with all sorts of stuffed animals and body parts. The boat belongs to Charles Darwin who's been seeking a special scientific discovery so that he can become the Scientist of the Year award back in London. He too has had a tuff time but when he sees Captain Pirate's parrot he recognizes it is not a parrot at all but the extinct dodo bird. Darwin convinces Captain Pirate to take him to London along with the bird where they will win all sorts of treasures for their discovery.

Even though the queen has placed a bounty on the heads of every pirate to sail the seven seas the group heads for London. Once there Darwin attempts to steal the bird from Captain Pirate to claim the award for himself. He fails and Captain Pirate wins the award, stunned to find that it isn't booty at all but an award along with the chance for time with, of all people, the Queen! Darwin failed to mention the reward would be time spent with the woman of his dreams.

The Queen also wants possession of the dodo bird for her private zoo but Captain Pirate doesn't give in easily. After discovering he is a pirate and nearly decapitating him, she stops and pardons him in the hopes he will turn over the bird. When she offers treasure as well, Captain Pirate sees the chance to return to Blood Island with more booty than anyone has ever claimed and win the prized Pirate of the Year award. But all doesn't go as planned, something that always seems the case with this group.

The story may seem pretty well straight forward but in truth there is more beneath the obvious here. It's not just about Captain Pirate winning the award and gaining some self esteem. Instead the story is more about discovering who you really are and what is really important in life. For Captain Pirate that boils down to winning the award he's cherished for so long or remaining true to both Polly (the dodo bird) and his crew.

As with all Aardman Studio films this one is chock full of sight gags that run from beginning to end. Each one may be a small portion of the film seen but they all will garner laughs from adults as well as children. They do a nice combination of jokes that older viewers will get but won't offend the young crowd.

The stop motion animation is as always amazing. In a world where computer animation seems to have taken over, it's nice to see someone using this technique and not allowing it to fade away. Somehow just watching it makes you realize how creative and artistic it is in comparison.

The final word about this film though is that it is truly entertaining. It's a movie that both young and old will enjoy and have fun with. Topping that off is the fact that it offers something that youngsters will not realize they are getting and that is a set of morals to accompany the tale. They'll learn that wanting something and doing anything for it at the sake of losing everything that is truly important isn't quite worth it. And for a movie to entertain and get that point across is truly an amazing feat. So hoist the rigging and set sale for the high seas with this film that the whole family can enjoy.

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We (husband, myself, and first grader) went to watch this movie last weekend, and though my husband hated it, my daughter and I thought it was a fun movie. There is nothing ground-breaking in terms of animation, effects, or plot here it is what it is a fun movie that will probably be enjoyed better by kids than by adults.

The storyline is simple enough (and I can't compare it to its source work as I've not read the book this is based on) Pirate Captain (Hugh Grant delivering quite a good voice-over) is a pirate that has seen better days and who has never really achieved any pirating glory. He has however amassed a loyal following in his rag tag crew members, and a pet bird that turns out to be quite, quite unique.

Pirate Captain decides he absolutely must enter the Pirate of the Year contest though he is up against some renowned pirates, i.e. sexy female pirate Cutlass Liz (Salma Hayek delivering her lines in a swoon-worthy performance) and several other prominent pirates, all of whom have garnered many glories in their pirating adventures. Feeling out of his depth, Pirate Captain decides to give it up but fate of course has other plans.

Pirate Captain and his crew, together with naturalist Charles Darwin (David Tennant) find themselves heading to England, where the pirate-hating Queen Victoria dwells. Will Pirate Captain get what he wants, or will he be doomed like other unfortunate pirates who've felt Victoria's wrath?

The story moves along at a mercifully quick pace, and the laughs are there, though nothing stellar. My daughter enjoyed the movie and I thought it was good fun too though of the forgettable variety. The animation in the tradition of Walllace and Gromit is cool and that was the highlight of the movie for me really. Final verdict great fun for kids.

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Real Steel, directed by Shawn Levy, is one of the very few movies I've seen in recent years where the audience I was in actually broke into applause in various scenes. A masterfully done tale of underdogs a boy and his dad and a discarded robot going against the odds, it really does get you pumped up to that level. I got a bigger kick out of this movie than I have from any other this year. It really is that much fun to watch.

The germ idea for Real Steel comes from a 1956 short story by Richard Matheson that was made into a classic Twilight Zone episode, and the look is right out of the Transformers franchise, but the heart and there's a lot of it in this film comes in equal measure from two films one would ordinarily have never linked together: John Avildsen's boxing classic Rocky (1976) and Peter Bogdanovich's Depression-era con-man & kid road trip classic Paper Moon (1973).

The plot is set in the not so distant future of 2020, where human boxing has been completely displaced by robot boxing. Charlie Kenton (Hugh Jackman), a former boxer who now gets by "managing" a robot boxer named Ambush, is about as down on his luck as it gets. Deep in debt and barely able to keep Ambush functional, Charlie is reduced to working the fringes of the boxing circuit and even exhibiting Ambush in county fairs where he puts the robot up against things like wild bulls. Which turns out to be a really bad idea when Ambush ends up getting smashed to pieces by a bull that weighs almost three times what he had agreed to, leaving Charlie fleeing in his van afterwards to avoid the exhibition promoter (Kevin Durand) to whom he now owes twenty thousand dollars. In this opening scene, we learn two things that tell us why Charlie is in the straits he's in: (1) he frequently makes really bad decisions, especially when he's desperate, and (2) he lets himself get distracted instead of keeping his mind on what he's doing a bad thing to have happen when your robot is fighting a two-and-a-half ton bull.

Shortly after this disaster, while wondering how he's going to be able to afford another robot, Charlie unexpectedly finds out that an old ex-girlfriend of his has died, leaving behind an eleven-year-old boy named Max (Dakota Goyo), a son Charlie hasn't seen since he was an infant. Thinking that it's just a matter of signing over custody to the boy's aunt Debra (Hope Davis) and her new husband Marvin (James Rebhorn), Charlie shows up at the courthouse, only to quickly realize that Marvin is rich and that the opportunity he's been needing has landed right in his lap. Abruptly seeming to change his mind about signing the boy over, Charlie privately talks Marvin into an agreement where he'll give up custody rights to the boy, but only for $100K. Not wild about adopting Max to begin with, Marvin grudgingly agrees, but only on the condition that Charlie keep the boy for the next three months so that the kid doesn't interfere with his plans for their summer vacation in Europe. Charlie, not wild about being saddled with a kid, reluctantly agrees, getting half the money up front, the other half to be handed over when he delivers the kid at the end of the summer. The deal done, Marvin departs with Debra, leaving Charlie face-to-face with Max for the first time. And clearly, neither of them are thrilled by this arrangement. Max is even less thrilled when he finds out that he's been "sold" to his aunt and uncle and angrily demands that Charlie give him half the money. Which Charlie can't because he's already spent most of it buying a replacement robot named Noisy Boy. Seem familiar? It's right out of Paper Moon, as are some other key moments in the film.)

Charlie takes Max to an old boxing gym that now serves largely as a repair shop for robot boxers, run by his friend Bailey Tallet (Evangeline Lily). The two of them have history together as Bailey's father was Max's trainer back in the days when Max was a boxer and the boxing gym was still a boxing gym. Bailey knows Max better than he knows himself, and she's the first one to recognize just how much Max and Charlie are alike. But the similarities quickly come out when Noisy Boy is delivered and Max stares at the robot with fanboy adoration, rattling off a string of fight statistics that even Charlie wasn't aware of. He also turns out to know the Japanese commands needed to operate Noisy Boy from all of the video games he's played.

Things finally seem to be looking up and Charlie gets an old fight promoting friend Finn (Anthony Mackie) to get Noisy Boy on the evening's fight card at the local arena. But once again, Charlie's hopes are dashed by bad decisions and not keeping his mind on what he's doing. Faced with once again having to try to come up with a robot but with no money to pay for one, Charlie takes Max along as he night-raids a junkyard looking for robot parts. As they wander through the place in the dark and the rain, Max falls off the edge of a pit and is barely saved when he's snagged on the exposed arm of a buried junked robot. Excited over having found an entire robot, Max insists on digging him out, which Charlie wants no part of. Hours later, when the sun is finally rising, we see a worn-out and thoroughly mud-bedraggled Max hauling the recovered robot back to the van where Charlie is waiting. Max just glares at his father for a moment, then starts hitting and kicking at him in a blind, exhausted and exasperated fury. The scene is absolutely priceless.

Back at the gym, Max sets about cleaning up the salvaged robot, an older-gen sparring `bot built to take massive punishment but not to deal it out. He discovers that the `bot is named Atom, and that Atom has a shadow mode where he copies the movements of whoever is operating him. Max, convinced that Atom can take on actual boxer robots and win, pesters Charlie until Charlie finally arranges for Atom to get a match in an unsanctioned off-the-grid makeshift outdoor arena. In spite of himself, Charlie gets caught up in Max's dogged determination and enthusiasm and the two begin working together. From there on, the film shifts into Rocky mode and its Charlie and Max and their underdog robot Atom going up against the odds.

The supporting cast is superb. Evangeline Lilly's Bailey is quite convincing as a woman who knows Charlie well enough to care about him but to be wary of him at the same time. The same holds true for Anthony Mackie's Finn, who lets Charlie talk him into match-ups that he knows are a bad bet but he can't prevent from happening. Kevin Durand's Ricky is affably ruthless as a "good ol' boy" promoter who gets Charlie in hock and then takes it out of his hide later. John Gatins (who wrote the screenplay) brings over-the-top trash-talk bravado to his pierced and mohawked Kingpin, the manager of the robot Atom is first put up against. And Karl Yune and Olga Fonda are pitch perfect as Tak Mashido and Farra Lemkova, the arrogant brains and ice-cold business savvy behind the reigning World Robot Boxing League champion, Zeus, the ultramodern engine of destruction that Max, Charlie and Atom must ultimately face.

And the robots themselves are impressive. Not mere CGI fabrications, twenty-six animatronic robots were created for the movie. A combination of CGI and the simul-cam motion capture technology developed for Avatar was used for the scenes where you see the robots moving independently or fighting in the ring. Each boxing robot has a distinctive look and feel tailored to suggest varying levels of sophistication and menace. Everything about Atom, on the other hand, symbolizes the underdog nature of Charlie and Max. Older generation, less sophisticated, more scarred and far less shiny, and a little smaller than most of the robots he's put up against, Atom also has soft blue-oval eyes that subtly suggest empathic connection. There's no sentience behind them, no artificial intelligence, but Atom nonetheless "sees" Max and Charlie, and in him they see themselves.

But the heavy lifting rests on the chemistry between Hugh Jackman's Charlie and Dakota Goyo's Max. Hugh Jackman's Charlie is spot on, a subtle portrayal of a man always reaching for the brass ring and always tripping himself up before he can grab it. Jackman brings this out beautifully you can see the desperate agony on his face each time when Charlie realizes the brass ring is slipping away from him yet again. But something nonetheless keeps Charlie going on, something inside him just won't let him quit, and Jackman brings out that side of him as well. Dakota Goyo's Max is a younger and very possibly smarter Charlie that life hasn't beaten down yet. He is that voice inside Charlie that won't let him give up. And in Max, Charlie finds himself all over again.

Highly, highly recommended.

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Technically a Sci-Fi movie, this movie is really a story of a father redeeming his relationship with a son he never knew, and of the character change that occurs in the father throughout the movie. The story is very well told, drawing you into the characters experiences, and although my wife loathes Sci-Fi movies, she loved this movie and cried during some scenes. It's got a lot action in it as well and is fun to watch. I do not watch many movies twice, but I'll be buying this movie and we'll be enjoying it repeatedly. The robot they prepare together serves as a device for a David and Goliath storyline as well. Hard to believe when reading this, but you'll be cheering for the father and son and their robot as well.

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What a great movie. Sure, the storyline is predictable, but the entertainment value is huge. The thing about this movie is that I could see the depicted robot fights, the computer technology, basically everything about it, as coming about in the normal course of our society. A wholly believable story, probably one of the easiest SF movies to watch in terms of suspending disbelief in quite some time -and it's worth mentioning that this actually *is* science fiction in the classic sense; a little technology, all of it reasonable, around which wraps a good story. It's not a fantasy, as are many so-called SF stories today.

So here we have really great robots, some awesome robot fighting, a not-overly annoying kid, and scenes that are (obviously intentionally) reminiscent of big-arena sports today, all combined with some feel-good stuff in the classic sense.

It kind of looks like a kid's movie before you watch it; then when you watch it, there are adult-ish elements; at the end, I wondered who they thought they were marketing to? Perhaps that's why this didn't do all that well at the box office: the kid probably turned off the hard core SF types, the violence probably turned off legions of mommies and daddies, and the people who did go and enjoy it didn't make the case to others that it really wasn't a kid's movie or a movie that is all that violent in the living-things-getting-hurt sense of the word.

Well, whatever the case there may be, I say, forget anything anyone says and just sit down with the desire to be entertained. I think you'll find that entertainment is delivered as desired, and in spades.

They clearly set it up (very well) for a sequel, but it's unlikely we'll see one, again because of the box office performance. Too bad. I really, really liked it. I think you probably will too.

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I rented this from Amazon because I didn't expect much from it as movies go. I thought it was going to be a bunch od CGI with not much more. I was wrong. This movie is much more than just a movie about an underdog robot fighting the big man on the block. It was a mixture of a father son bonding experience blended with Rocky I. Three under dogs and they all do fine. Great acting and great story line combine for a really good movie. I guess I am going to have to buy the movie because I will definitly watch it again.

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Here's Real Steel in a nutshell. Remember that old board game called Rock Em' Sock 'Em Robots? Well now it's a movie. I mean the old game was just two robots fighting it out in a boxing ring. That's Real Steel. Rocky with hydraulic fluid. Your average underdog story. Add a love interest tired of her beau staying the underdog and a dysfunctional father/son relationship and you pretty much hit all the standard marks for an average plot line. I know that's what I thought when I was hearing about the movie. However when I saw the trailers something about it told me this was going to be a really fun movie to watch. Sure enough it was.

So Real Steel is essentially the same, tired old story told that has been spun in Hollywood over and over again, but with robots. Sounds mediocre, huh? Unoriginal plot points is actually the norm these days. Only Real Steel hits these marks with such gusto and polish that it really stands out in that rat race. It's not a masterpiece of script and story, mind you. But then again that's not the intent. This is a feel good, popcorn movie through and through. It's good to see one that at least takes its audience seriously enough to make a well thought out escape.

Lets start off with our main character Charlie (Hugh Jackman). To put it simply he is a jerk for better half of the movie. I mean the kind of jerk you just simply cannot like. Eventually the jerk gets a clue and starts to become the kind of guy you can't help but root for. This takes take a well written script and a talented actor to make the jerk and his eventual turnaround believable. You gotta give Jackman credit for his portrayal of Charlie. It's a character with a lot of heart, even when you hate him.

Next character of focus is Charlie's estranged son Max (Dakota Goyo). As kid actors go we have a winner. Enough teen indignant defiance to carry the family feuding and enough big eyed wonder of a child to carry the story. From there you have a very good ensemble of supporting actors. Again good, solid acting with very few boughs of melodrama (most of which just feels like it was needed).

Since this is a movie about fighting robots the "real" stars have to be just as good as the live actors. The robots in the film all come in a wide variety of designs and demeanor. More so the designs also give off a lot of character. The starring robot, Atom, has just enough characteristics to make him the likeable robot with stuff like rounded features on the face and glowing blue 'eyes'. It's not just with the look of the robot that keep you interested, which can range from junkyard mean to dark and polished shiny monsters, but also with other qualities like poise and stance, how they walk, even how they fight. The production used motion capture technology used in the movie Avatar and had boxing star Suger-Ray Leonard advise in the fight scenes. Again the results show a refinement in design and execution that makes the whole experience with the 'bot feel more real and organic.

The story flows with good pacing. It's not all fights all the time, and the off-time is worth watching. The underdog success story at first feels like it stays in the under part for a while, but then again that's part of the charm as you see just how much Charlie screws up his life. When we are full on in the big leagues is where all the previous stuff really pays off with the big exciting fight and all that feel-good emotions you would be used to by now on movies like this. The only segment in Real Steel that I have a gripe about is the middle when they start the transition from underdog to rising star. There simply isn't any significant robots fights in between. We don't really see Atom build up his reputation with any additional matches. This is a shame because the movie is really at its best showing these fights. You don't even get a decent fight montage. Still that's my only gripe for an otherwise very entertaining movie.

The Blu-Ray release will of course be in 1080p and have a DTS-HD 7.1 Master Audio soundtrack. DVD will have Dolby Digital 2.0. Both the DVD and Blu-Ray are announced with a host of features with the Blu-Ray rounding out some nice extra features. Here are the list list of extras (* denotes Blu-Ray exclusive):

Audio Commentary With Director Shawn Levy*

Countdown to the Fight: The Charlie Kenton Story* An ESPN-esque expose set right before Atom's big fight with the champ. It covers Charlie's boxing career with interviews with key characters in the film. It also talk about Atom from a sports commentator perspective. Pretty neat little featurette.

Sugar Ray Leonard: Cornerman's Champ* Really cool featurette on Sugar Ray and his involvement with the movie. Hearing him talk in the interviews and hearing how the producers and actors take to his direction gives me a renewed level of respect for the boxing champ. Probably the most feel-good extra in the bunch.

Making of Metal Valley Behind the scenes of the what it took to create the robot junk yard as well as the development of the biggest stunt in the movie in said junkyard.

Building the Bots Interest, if short, making of documentary on the robots. Most of the 'bots were built as well as computer generated and there is a lot of talk about the virtues of using practical effects. Only problem is you don't see enough of the practical effects in action on this feature.

Deleted and extended scenes One of each. There is a slightly extended scene with Charlie's first robot Ambush that has more stuff with the kids. I can see why they took most of the stuff out, but there is a second of footage here and there that would have done well to stay on the final cut. Next is not so much a deleted scene as a set of deleted or extended scenes that follow a particular story arc. Again I agree with the deletion, but I have to admit there was some nice scenes taken out (even if they did mess with the flow of the movie).

Bloopers and outtakes Just as it sounds. A montage of mess-ups for you to enjoy. Not much in the way of belly busting funny, but if you like the behind the scenes camaraderie that you usually see in stuff like this it will satisfy.

Real Steel Second Screen: Ringside With Director Shawn Levy* This is to access interactive content on your PC or iPad while simultaneously watching the movie. It's worthless if you do not have a device to sync to.

I am normally the type of person who shies away from "popcorn flicks" but this one is very well worth making the exception. It's fun and excitement for the whole family. If you ever liked underdog sports movies you gotta check this one out.

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In response to some of the bad reviews here, I consider myself a pretty demanding adult but when I go to see a movie with little blue people in it I don't expect Hamlet. I expect cute, funny, light entertainment and this movie delivered in a big way. Like the previous movie, there are some simple wholesome life messages as well; "to be or not to be" it's not, but loving family members despite their faults is pretty good too. As in the previous movie, this theme repeats for the humans and the smurfs in a nice way. I'd like to comment on the short scene about peanut allergies. I didn't see it as making fun of peanut allergies but making fun of irresponsible adults who don't pay attention to allergies!. The acting is extremely appropriate, the comedy was great. There were some pretty special effects and I loved seeing bits of Paris in 3D.

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For those of you that enjoyed this movie for what it is, congratulations!, you've grown up. As for you haters, this is a kids movie, intended for kids. It should not be filled with over-complicated plots, innuendos, or gratuitous violence to appease adult intellect or lack thereof. This movie did exactly what it was intended to do. It made my thirteen year old daughter happy and that alone is enough for me. As an adult, if you go into it light hearted, not looking for 'The Terminator' or 'Gone with the Wind', you may actually enjoy bonding with your kids. It's the 'Smurfs' people. Little blue folk that live in mushrooms and spend their existence running from a wizard and his cat. Lighten up & have fun!

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Unlike the cartoon version, the films are strictly for kids and not much entertainment for adults. The second installment assumes you know the characters from the first feature. In this feature, Gargamel (Hank Azaria) manages to kidnap Smurfette (Katy Perry) to CG Paris. The Smurfs mount a rescue.

The film is simple enough for a 5 year old. Older kids might have trouble sitting still through it. The movie makes light of peanut allergies, in spite of them being deadly. Many famous character voices: Jonathan Winters, Christina Ricci, Shaq, Jeff Foxworthy, Jimmy Kimmel, J.B. Smoove, and Peewee Herman.

My suggestion is to make this one a rental unless you have money to burn.

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Feeling Blue? Join the exciting adventures of our stalwart crew as they join forces to rescue Smurfette, who knows a secret....

The opening credits feature pop-up pages in a child's book. Every child in the screening audience recognized them right away. In fact, other than the toddler who was instantly (and vocally) bored, the rug-rats seemed very involved; they were quiet and well-behaved. These opening credits, by the way, are the only time I felt the 3D was used to any special effect. It's lovely for the travelogue/story that follows, but it does NOT enhance the plot.

New Yorkers Patrick and Grace dash off to Paris to help their friends when Smurfette needs to be rescued. To me, the joy was to recognize Montmartre, the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, the Arc de Triomphe, the Champs-Élysées, Jardin des Tuileries, and Place de la Concorde, with a few more thrown in for good measure! (Like the ferris wheel that seems to come and go in Paris these days.)

We saw:

* Neil Patrick Harris ("The Smurfs") as Patrick, the Smurfs' Number One friend who helps them when sweet little Smurfette is lured away by the evil wizard's cute henchmen.

* Jayma Mays ("The Smurfs") is Grace, Patrick's wife, and mother to their four-year-old boy named Blue.

* Hank Azaria ("The Smurfs") is Gargamel, the evil wizard who needs two things: 1) The Secret Formula, and 2) the "Essence" of a few Smurfs.

* Brendan Gleeson ("The Guard") is Victor, Patrick's most UNwelcome step-father, who has all the finesse of a bull in a china shop.

* Katy Perry (Lots of TV) is the voice for Smurfette.

* An amazing Computer Generated cat. Technology wins again!

The Smurfs each have their own personalities and are portrayed by "name brand" actors. I won't go into that here, as there is nothing distinctive to note. You can review their names and characters when you get the DVD from Amazon.

The message in this movie is that parents love their adopted children as though they are their own. Not a bad thing...

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It's another time-traveling trip for the Smurfs (though thankfully not in the same fashion as the dreaded final season of the Smurfs cartoon show that pulled its plug), but this time it's to rescue Smurfette, who seems to be having issues over who's her real family -the Smurfs or her creator Gargamel with his new creations, the Naughties. Again Gargamel is after the Smurfs for stealing their essence to power up his magic (instead of his usual purpose of making the Philosopher's Stone as in the comic books and the cartoon show), and again we have the Winslows along for the ride, this time with their son Blue and Patrick's stepfather Victor Doyle for the respective additions of charm and embarrassment. Throughout the story, Smurfette, Patrick Winslow, and the Naughties get to learn the lesson that family isn't about who brought you into this world, but who really cares for you as a person and who wants to see you grow as a person. Besides this, the movie still has its share of laughs from the previous movie, even if the number of Smurfs that appear in it is still limited to the five that are the main focus of the story, with the others (such as the former leads Brainy and Gutsy) having minor or even cameo roles.

Fantastic Mr. Fox (Three-Disc Blu-ray/DVD Combo) (2009) Reviews

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Ordinarily, I watch a movie one time. On rare occasion, twice. Has to be a really special movie (or highly quotable, a la Caddyshack or Pulp Fiction) for me to desire multiple viewings.

That said, I can't stop watching "The Fantastic Mr. Fox". The animation is fascinating, the voices are perfect, and the writing and vibe are pure Wes Anderson. On every subsequent viewing, more details come to light. The expressions on the faces of the characters, the way they eat (you'll have to see it), etc. Can't stop watching. Every wordless gesture invites repeated viewing. i.e., something as simple as Kylie shrugging his shoulders and grinning caused me to watch it over and over. Same with Ash turning to look at the camera after a redemption of sorts.

I'm almost embarrassed by how much I like this movie. I'm 46 years old, for crying out loud. But I do.

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When we meet Mr. Fox he's in a bind he and Mrs. Fox get caught in a trap and she tells him she's pregnant and he promises never ever but never again to risk his life taking from farmers. He'll get a respectable job, as a columnist for the local paper, but two years later (12 in fox years) they have a misfit teen and a visiting cousin and Mr. Fox is feeling middle aged and anxious, and itchy for the danger and criminal excitement of stealing poultry.

He's a wild animal at heart, he insists, not made to settle down into age and oblivion. He comes up with a plan, and along with his friend, the possum plumber, plans one last heist, not just any heist but the big one, stealing from the fiercest farmers around: Boggis, Bunce and Bean (you know: one fat, one short, one lean, but uniformly mean). They don't take it lying down. Mr. Fox's carefree and careless indiscretions turn into an all out war between the farmers and the animals, and everyone will have to work together and set aside rivalries and resentment and hurt feelings. The danger is real, and they take unnecessary risks, but they have a lot of fun and adventure along the way.

I really dig the quirky and stylish vibe of the irresponsibly fantastic Mr. Fox. Voiced by George Clooney with flair and a fancy whistle and a click, and animated in a silly and stylish retro stop motion approach. It's a very fun film, and my wife and I loved it and laughed out loud, a lot, but so did our kids (and so, apparently, did lots of others who couldn't stop busting up or exclaiming around us in the theaters). The film's got something for everyone, and stays true to the feel of Roald Dahl's classic tale while giving it the whimsical feel and quirky delights that can only be found in a Wes Anderson film. The retro-stylish clothing and settings and the family dynamics, especially that between a larger than life but aloof father and a struggling son (played perfectly by Jason Schwartzmann), fit easily into his oeuvre. I loved the look of the film, the delightful attention to detail, the colors and lighting were perfect, and the deliberately low tech touches, where you could see the ruffling hair and wobbling of water, just add to the charm. Great stuff, highly recommended.

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When I saw previews for this film in the theatre, by wife and I exchanged eye-rolls. So when I borrowed a friend's copy out of sheer boredom with the current panoply of predictable, music video children's films, my expectations were low. In fact, we began this film close to the kid's bedtime so I'd have a reasonable excuse to bail out early.

Well, the kids loved this movie and so did I. It's wonderfully paced, the animal characters are idiosyncratic and immensely likable, and the dialogue is conversational and amusing. I don't like when an animated children's film includes a stratum of adult innuendo. That, to me, is targeted marketing, and those carefully distributed oblique references that make mom and dad chuckle exist to compensate for a weak story. No gimmicks here. Funny situations, cleverly crafted characters, technically superb animation, and a novel story.

We've must've seen it 10x since that first night. Any other film and I would have accidentally lost the video by now.

Honest reviews on Fantastic Mr. Fox (Three-Disc Blu-ray/DVD Combo) (2009)

It's been a long time since I've seen a movie like this. At first, the animation looks a little cheap. The walks aren't that realistic. But after you get into the story, you don't care. The world is textured. It's beautiful. We don't see this kind of movie anymore, this stop-motion, and I don't know if it's simply just been too long since I've seen other stop-motion films like Chicken Run or what--I was enthralled.

This movie did not have an overly-typical storyline, but at the same time, it was not devoid of one either. The jokes were not written to try and provoke you to laugh out loud; you'll simply find them funny, perhaps to chuckle. But the thing I really loved about the movie was this--there was a lot of life in the film. Real life, something I identified with in the characters.

Don't expect a typical Phase 1, Phase 2, Climax, Ending, kind of film. Don't expect to be drawn into the story and be spit back out. This isn't exactly a story that ends with a clever line--it ends with the characters dancing. But I can guarantee you that you will enjoy this movie. It wasn't a "good" movie. It wasn't a "bad" movie. It was an "enjoyable" movie. And it's a higher honor to be an enjoyable movie rather than just a "good" one.

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Frankly, they had me by opening the movie with "The Ballad of Davy Crockett," which by the way, is mistakenly listed in the credits as performed by The Wellingtons. Actually it is the soundtrack version by the MelloMen, but I've seen it mislabeled elsewhere too. And the highly underrated "Love" from "Robin Hood." How nice.

The entire score is as unconventional as the film -dominated by banjo and rhythm tracks to give it an "independent film" texture rather than the now-obligatory John Williams-type score (not that I don't love those scores too, this is just a fresh approach and avoids the modern factory film feel).

Even the titles are clever, all in keeping not only with a singular director's vision, but also very much in the Roald Dahl style. This particular book, by the way, is perhaps one of the most challenging to bring to film since it is one of the few Dahl stories without magical fantasy elements.

I think the overall takeaway, and the thread through all the other comments on this topic is -intelligence. That's a prized commodity in so much of today's entertainment, animated or otherwise. This is a film as smart as a fox.

Cheap Kung Fu Panda Three-Disc DVD Boxed Set (Kung Fu Panda / Kung Fu

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i could watch these movies over and over again. great picture awsome sound,i'm glad i chose to go blu ray with this. i can't wait for another sequel

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I loved it!! a must have collection. it was the bundle i was waiting for. Im really happy with this buy

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My Wife and I love this movie, and our kids love it even more! I cannot wait for the additional sequels to release that they have planned for. I wish they would hurry up with them!

Love this series and highly recommend for your Familiy. Nice, clean fun entertainment.

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I ordered the Blu-ray version. Quality and delivery were as expected (I have Prime).

Fun times for the entire family but more for the kids. They have quickly learned the Kung Fu moves and they are asking to sign up for martial arts classes. I guess that is good!

The movie also promotes awareness of endangered species such as the pandas. It allows the audience (specially the little ones) to learn more about Asia. Fun with a bit of educational touch. I recommend this movie.

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these movies are hilarious and well made! We've watched these movies so many times, that we can quote the dialogue! So good and funny!

Winnie the Pooh (Three-Disc Blu-ray/DVD Combo + Digital Copy) (2011) Reviews

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We took our 4 year old to see this movie in the theater. It was so cute! We read the original stories at home and it was neat for him to see them come to life on the screen. (Albeit with a few tweaks and changes.) He enjoyed the play on words and seeing the words on the screen. He has since been trying to sound out words more and asking how to spell things. The movie theater had people of all ages in it and we heard more laughter during the movie than we did at the theater during Cars II. It was refreshing to see a kids movie without explosions or violence. I recommended this movie to a lot of friends and for once I didn't have to say "it was a great movie except...". There was nothing in the movie that scared our little one at all. We will be purchasing this DVD as soon as it is available.

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I have to say that Winnie the Pooh haven't been much appealing to me like other Disney films and characters have. Mostly relegated to direct-to video market, Pooh is somewhat kiddie fare without much transcendance. Still, The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (1977) remains an endearing classic with excellent stories and appealing characters. The Many Adventures approaches Pooh in a very low-key manner but this is an excellent way to envision Pooh, a low key affair that nontheless provides good quality entertainment for everyone and that's why this film succeds where all the other Pooh films have failed.

When I heard that Winnie the Pooh was returning to theaters this year, I approached the news cautiously, as I said before, Pooh is not my cup of tea and aside from The Many Adventures is just not appealing to grown ups. Here in Latin America the now simply titled "Winnie the Pooh" premiered on May 6 (it opened in the States on July 15). I have to report that Disney Animation Studios did an excellent job with this film. Instead of a compillation of short films like its predecessor, this one takes some A. A. Milne original stories and mesh them in one single long film (although long is not the appropiate word because the film runs barely 70 minutes). Although it's not a compillation of shorts, the film feels a little episodic with Pooh & Co. stumbilng into one problem after another. I won't give away any spoliers but let me tell you that this film not only feels true to its original source, it also feels true to the original film. The same low key approach is seen here so don't expect a grand spectacle like last year's Tangled. The animation is remiscent of the original film with of course a newer quality on it. The characters are endearing and not obnoxious (except for the Owl but only in some scenes) and the Hundred Acre Wood retains that magic quality of the first film. Also the characters address the audience and the voice cast is remarkable. Kids will surely enjoy it and grown ups will also smile looking at this level of innocence and simplicity that will remind them what was to be a kid. The new songs are not memorable but serves the film right.

Video & Audio

Winnie the Pooh looks absolutely spectacular in HD. Detail, colors and contrast are exquisite in every scene, in every character. This is another top-notch transfer from Disney.

The 5.1 DTS-HD MA is also excellent. This is not a bombastic film but sound is great with no signs of compression and good directionality.

Bonus Material

Winnie the Pooh does not come as packed as other Disney titles but has some good bonus material including:

"Winnie the Pooh and his Story too" is a kind of making of featurette of the film that is too short but still informative.

"Deleted Scenes": You have five deleted scenes each one with an introduction from the director.

Bonus Shorts: This BD comes with two shorts. The first one is "The Ballad of Nessie" that accompanied Winnie the Pooh in theaters, the other is Mini Adventures of Winnie the Pooh: Pooh's Balloon that features Pooh, Christopher Robin and a blue balloon.

You also have a sing along option, Disney's song selection and a featurette of how to create a Pooh nursery.

A DVD and a Digital Copy are also included.

Closing Thoughts

Winnie the Pooh is a great film that breathes new life to the old bear. It has a lot going for it and I really recommend you give Pooh a chance especially if you have kids, you won't regret it. The BD features an amazing presentation of the film with stellar picture and sound and a healthy collection of bonus material. Highly Recommended!!

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We took our two children for a super extra special treat a trip to the theater to watch Winnie Pooh, a character they had previously only seen in books. I had high hopes for this movie and they were exceeded.

I love the animation. I love the styling and the fact that it looks like they are in a book.

I love the story. I love the plot and I love the character development and I love how close to the original books they are.

I love the length. One hour is just long enough to be a sit down movie but not so long my children completely lose interest.

Overall I loved this movie. It was nostalgic, classic, clever, and funny in all the right ways. I don't buy a lot of videos, but this one is definitely going on my shelf!

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It wasn't loaded with special effects, blaring music, big splashy stars or explosions. Summer 2011's Disney theatrical release, "Winnie the Pooh," was exactly the kind of animated film Walt Disney was making in the late '50s/early '60s -not sweeping epics, nor pop music short packages, but simple, glowing stories packed with rich characterizations (both in writing and animation), superb voice work and hummable tunes.

Some found this film to be too much of a throwback, but how many modern films can truly rekindle the texture and charm of a classic without succumbing to the present day trappings and trends? Like the TV series "Seinfeld" was in its deceptively self effacing claim to be "about nothing," Pooh's power lies shines his basic plotlines, only without the cynicism. A.A. Milne's books had slim storylines, too, and attempts to clutter them have met with mixed results.

First and foremost, "Winnie the Pooh" is one of the funniest movies of the year. I don't say this with any hint of irony or sarcasm, it's just true. Without messing around with the characters or updating the humor, you find yourself laughing at the clever "who's on first" wordplay. Pooh and pals may be guileless, a bit deluded and sometimes clueless, but they're not stupid or held to ridicule. This is very, very hard humor to pull off successfully.

The most clueless character of all is Owl, a character never fully realized in past "Poohs" but brought to scene-stealing fervor by the sharp vocal timing of Craig Ferguson, who with narrator John Cleese and Zooey Deschanel, are as far as the voice casting ventured into celebrity (but with respect to suitability, not just fame). Cheers to the creative team for retaining the seemingly endless talents of Jim Cummings as Pooh and Piglet rather than hiring a marquee name and wrecking the character for an easy marketing hook. Tom Kenny also does a wonderfully neurotic Rabbit, and my kids got a kick out of hearing wisps of his Spongebob voice peeking out within the characterization.

The musical score by Robert Rodriguez and Kristen Anderson-Rodriguez (she also voices Kanga) is a tribute to the Sherman Brothers' art of the deceptively simple and infinitely singable song. I can't help but assume that the chorus singing "hunny, hunny..." was a nod to the Wonderful World of Color theme ("color, color...").

The Blu-ray looks marvelous, but I was a little let down by the lack of extras. No commentary, not much behind the scenes stuff, pretty lacking all around. Most interesting were the deleted scenes. Charming as they were, the scenes were cut because, it seems from the explanation, to keep the story focused and evenhanded. Although Owl is a scene stealer, he's never the complete focus. Each character gets a sufficient time to shine, even "B'loon." The filmmakers even resisted padding the feature to make it longer, instead adding on The Ballad of Nessie (another film that could have been released in the early Disney/Pooh days). Historically, "Dumbo" was a short feature too, but it's a gem at its ideal running time.

I can only hope they're saving some additional features for a reissue in the future, because this Pooh should not get lost in a sea of direct-to-video movies. Not to slight them all (many were very nice), but it's pretty crowded out there with Pooh videos. Maybe that's why the title is simply "Winnie the Pooh" with no subtitle, in order to set it apart from the pack.

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I bought this movie, not having seen it in the theater, because of all the raves I read about how faithful it was to the style of the original. Now that I've seen it, I'm not that impressed. It's good that the story is based on material from the original book, and visually it's mostly there, but the dialogue and the jokes are decidedly modern. It's all stuff that I wouldn't mind at all in another movie, but in this context it constitutes a failure to recapture the spirit of the original stories. In fact, it makes it seem like they weren't even trying that hard. The movie falls victim to the modern "edginess" which I think is the opposite of the charm and innocence that made the original Pooh stories so special.

I think the example that stuck with me the most is the scene where Pooh is stuck in a hole, and the others are arguing over who should investigate whether he was the monster they were trying to catch. At one point, Roo says "Send the pig", referring to Piglet. That just strikes me as far too callous a thing for little Roo to say.

Buy Star Trek (Three-Disc Special Edition) (2009)

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The Blu-Ray:

"Star Trek (2009)" is presented in a 1080p 2.40:1 aspect ratio Blu-Ray. Video quality is terrific. A very light film grain is present which is quite accurate compared to the theatrical presentation. Black levels are inky and deep, colors are vivid but still accurate. Close-ups demonstrate a lot of detail, especially facial close-ups. Space scenes are also swimming with detail, since most every space ship in this film is in various numbers of pieces or states of damage. Noticeable edge-enhancement and digital noise reduction are non-existent.

Simply put, this is five star material all the way. Anyone who enjoys action/sci-fi eye candy for their HD setup would do well to purchase this disc. It is demo-worthy material. This may be the single best Blu-Ray I have seen it at least ties in visual quality with the excellent Braveheart and Frost/Nixon discs.

Sound is presented in a well-balanced Dolby TrueHD mix, which is notable for not only its punch and vibrancy, but also the fact that it never drowns out dialogue. This is something that many action movies fail to accomplish, and it is most appreciated, at least by this viewer. I HATE it when I have to constantly adjust the volume on the fly in order to hear whispers of dialogue, only to have my speakers threaten to blow out when some sudden burst of noisy action occurs. "Star Trek (2009)" is wonderfully well-done in this respect. Surround channels get a lot of work, bass is booming at appropriate moments, so just like the video, audio is stellar. Also included are commentaries with Director and writers (no, they do not apologize for various inconsistencies and mistakes) and some foreign language tracks. The subtitles are a little odd sometimes they fail to transcribe dialogue. 95% of the stuff is there, but there are clearly things missing Kirk says "wow" upon seeing the Enterprise, and it is nowhere to be found in the subtitle track. Not a deal-breaker, just weird.

Extras are copious and presented in HD, which is great. However, this disc suffers from a recent trend in home video extras they are split into 30 separate chunks, presumably to look better on box copy. So you are forced to navigate a menu with 30 choices, with no markers for what you've already seen, in order to see all of the features. This is too bad, because the features are really, really good. If they had been spliced into one 2-hour making of feature, one set of deleted scenes, and one gag reel, this would be just about the perfect set of extras. Instead, you are made to do "work" instead of just enjoying the "fun." The deleted scenes, by the way, are also in HD, and most would have made the movie better. They should have just finished the effects and incorporated them into the film proper.

The Movie:

In the special features, the producers and director make it very clear that their guiding question when making the film was "Can we make it cool?" Well, they've succeeded at making it "cool." Unfortunately in making this their emphasis, they have also made some severe missteps that make it difficult to swallow as a serious Trek fan.

So I'll review this movie wearing two hats. First, for "the rest of you:"

"Star Trek (2009)" offers a bold re-imagining of a venerable television science fiction franchise. To a certain extent, it sheds much of the baggage accumulated over 40 years of television and films, giving non-Trekkies an easy entree into the universe.

We are given the tale of Kirk, Spock and McCoy taking the reins of the Starship Enterprise, in a galaxy populated by both humans and other races. James T. Kirk (Chris Pine) is a brash young man who is set adrift by the attack of a Romulan villain upon the ship carrying his parents. Without the influence of his father, a Starfleet officer, Kirk has an aimless childhood, squandering his intellect and his drive on bar brawls and car thefts. Luckily, he is intercepted by the wise, gruff Captain Christopher Pike (Bruce Greenwood) and challenged to make a better life for himself and to live up to his ability by joining Starfleet.

There, he meets fellow cadets Uhura (Zoe Saldana), McCoy (Karl Urban), Chekov (Anton Yelchin), Sulu (John Cho), and an irritating instructor, the cool, logical Mr. Spock (Zachary Quinto). Their contrasting styles immediately put them at odds with each other. Spock has grown up the child of two worlds, with a human mother, and a father from Vulcan, a planet whose culture has embraced logic and the shedding of emotion, except perhaps the emotion of racism against humans.

Before their education is complete, they are presented with the threat of the same villain who had killed Kirk's dad 25 years prior Nero (Eric Bana). Turns out Nero is from the future, and is bent on revenge for the destruction of his home world, Romulus. In a plot development somewhat like "Space Camp," for some unstated reason, every other ship is somewhere else, and there are no trained crew members available for the newly-built Enterprise. So the cadets are drafted into service right then and there.

Various plot twists and turns see Kirk marooned on an ice planet, where he meets not only Scotty (a very funny Simon Pegg) but also a much older Spock (Leonard Nimoy). This old Spock explains that the visitor from the future has changed history, and that Kirk must team up with the younger Spock, melding their disparate styles and talents into a team that can defeat the threat.

Overall, the plot moves very quickly, and might be a bit confusing to those not versed in Trek lore. But the speed, noise, and bombast are such that pausing to consider holes in story logic (and there are quite a few) is not really feasible until after the movie has finished. The effects, music, and performances are all flashy and dazzling, and it is hard not to feel aggressively entertained by the whole spectacle. Especially charming are Pine as Kirk and Quinto as Spock. Their chemistry works well. There were really no casting problems for the heroes. The villain, Nero, is somewhat less successful, as his motivations are rather obscure, especially to an audience not familiar with Romulans, time travel, and the like.

It is all done with ample brio and verve enough panache to surmount its sometimes lazy storytelling and slipshod logic. On a scale of ten, I'd give it a solid 7, perhaps even an 8. It is much more entertaining than the average Hollywood popcorn movie, mainly on the strength of the characters and the performances.

Now, for the Trekkies:

"Star Trek (2009)" is the product of Hollywood corporate committees, shedding "baggage" in such a way that it dilutes some of the core concepts and appeal of the show which gave rise to the Trekkie faithful in the first place.

The characters from the original series are brought together in a way which feels quite far from organic, presumably because Hollywood executives were worried that a slower tale that realistically developed their relationships would fail to satisfy audiences unused to thinking and realism. Instead of being members of a logically coherent military organization, each with careers and internal lives of their own, all of our principal characters are roughly the same age and have the same amount of experience, despite the fact that by the end of the film, they all have different ranks and specialties. Especially galling at the end is the instantaneous promotion of Kirk from 25-year-old Starfleet cadet (not even a graduate, as he is in his third year of studies) directly to Captain of the fleet's newest and most advanced flagship. It would be akin to a fresh West Point graduate being given command of the invasion of Afghanistan, or an Annapolis cadet being given command of an aircraft carrier. Why would anyone who had invested a lifetime in this organization respect any order that escapes his lips? Equally puzzling are the promotions of all the other crew members at the end as well why is Kirk a Captain, but McCoy a Commander, Uhura a Lieutenant, Chekov an Ensign? They all have the same amount of experience and "seasoning" (i.e. none).

This is the sort of world-breaking contrivance that litters the film (want some more examples? "Transwarp Beaming" immediately springs to mind...). Which is too bad, because "Star Trek (2009)" ably captures the feel of the previous shows, mixing humor, fisticuffs, and dazzling gadgetry in nearly the perfect proportions. It fails, however, to add the integral piece a logically consistent world, one that creates and follows its own rules, one that is similar enough to our own to be comprehensible, but different and better enough that it inspires admiration and wonder, and makes you yearn to live in it. It is a bit of a tragedy, since just a few tweaks and edits could have turned a story full of world-breaking holes and missteps into pretty much the best Trek movie ever.

The quality of special effects is above that of the other films and series, and will definitely impress Trek veterans who are used to less. Many in-jokes and subtler references abound, and will no doubt elicit smiles and chuckles from those who are "in the know."

But that certain something is missing. That special thing which makes something "Trek," and not just "Generic Space Opera #12." There isn't much "Real" science fiction, for one thing black holes and space ships could have been substituted with quicksand and stage coaches they are not concepts that drive the plot or the characters or the world, instead they are generic perils, and devices to surmount those dangers. But heck, that could be said of some of the other films, those films that, despite their failings, we would still call "real" Trek. What is missing is the logical consistency of the world. Continuity. "Baggage." In stripping "Star Trek (2009)" down to something that will appeal to a "mass" audience, the producers of this film have denatured it into something reminiscent, but not recognizable.

In summary:

This is an entertaining film, no doubt about it. If you are not a Trekkie, you will probably love it. You should buy it. It's a terrific disc to give your home theater a workout.

If you are a Trekkie, you may have mixed feelings. I do. But you should still probably buy it. Consider it a riff on Star Trek. The greatest, biggest budget fan film ever made. It doesn't all work, the writing isn't all good, and a certain something is missing. But it's an entertaining ride that will probably make you yearn for the "real thing" all the more.

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The minor disappointments I had with some little items are buried by the amount of great things that is the Star Trek Blu. The packaging is the single hinged chassis with cardboard slip cover, but the info sheet (typical rear cover art) is a hot-glued paper that cannot fit anywhere once it comes off. The resulting Blu art front is a head shot of Pine and the back is Quinto.

The picture is as good as would be expected, with plenty of great space effects, the heavy lens glare that Abrams likes does not bleed too bad but ILM does not disappoint. They went with TrueHD which gives an adequate immersion, some of the best tests were with Spocks ship and that unique sound (but 7.1 DTS would have been nice). Plenty of reference points throughout, but even with that clarity I still couldn't get a read on some of the little things (tried freezing the fence signs in the Corvette scene, freezing some of the panel displays to read what the actors were looking at, etc.). But what takes the time and is worth every moment for the supplement geeks like me is the entire disc 2.

Disc 1: Menus are unfortunately only minimal still animation (no live action or HD pics).

Commentary by the makers.

Disc 2: Blue screen animated left sided selections. Most items pop up with an "extended" option that has an icon appear when watching each documentary to facilitate viewing little snippets of additional material, or each one can be watched individually no play all on anything with this disc.

* 16:41 To Boldly Go. Several extensions including the Kirk dilemma (1:58), more Green Girl stuff (3:25). The main piece covers aspects of creation, whys and what fors. All of these supplements are HD interviews of the filmmakers spliced with low def footage (past and present Treks).

* 28:53 Casting. Once again all HD present footage mixed with grainy low def shots of behind the scenes gives some good material on why we saw who we did.

* 24:33 Starships. Concepts, art design and some of my favorite stuff on the making of regarding construction. Seven extensions are selectable here including Warp Drive and Paint stuff.

* 16:30 Aliens. Shows the meetings and thought process behind some of the critters and humanoids. Five extensions here.

* 16:10 Planets. Some nice history for Trek regarding the Vasquez Rocks, which showed an obvious deleted sequence made me look forward to those even more.

* 9:22 Props and Costumes. One extension here about Klingons which led to another whole deleted sequence I was now REALLY wanting to watch them.

* 9:45 Sounds. I enjoyed this one the most as the sounds intrigued me when I first saw this in theaters. Nice homage/respect paid to the old series connections.

* 8:47 Gene Roddenberry vision. A nice history with at least half of it being Nimoy narrating/being interviewed (there was a blatant absence of someone here but you will notice that through this entire set).

* 13:30 Deleted Scenes FINALLY. Play all option with commentary on/off of Abrams, Kurtzman.

Spock's birth. Throughout all of these you notice Winona's entire screen time was removed. Nice little plug on how he gets his name.

Klingon battle with the Narada, effects unfinished which leads into an entire storyline removal did not agree with the reasons for the removal but oh well.

Dysfunctional home life of the early Kirk sequence. Explains who that kid was on the road and who the voice was on the car phone.

Spock's parents arguing about which side Spock should embrace.

Klingon Prison Planet sequence wow. I want this in the director's cut. Would have explained a great deal of how Nero and the Narada disappeared.

Vulcan sequence prior to destruction (Vasquez Rocks).

Kirk and Green Girl can never have too much of that. Once you see this you can find out what Uhura and Kirk were really talking about in the theatrical cut (Klingon Prison not battle).

Scene involving more Green Girl and Kirk defeating the Maru test good scene.

Kirk apologizing to Green Girl had to go once the others were cut.

* Simulator: Mix of animated and slight HD footage of interactive material on the Enterprise and the Narada. The vast majority of material centers on the Narada (weapons, propulsion etc.).

* 6:22 Gag Reel. A brief retro title sequence followed by a hilarious slew of swearing by even the best (priceless watching Nimoy cuss his lines). Fast paced and fun.

* 3 trailers.

Everything subtitled in French, Spanish, & Port.

Disc 3. Digital copy and game demo. Did not use either.

Overall, I had a great time going through all of this and I honestly think even the discerning Trekkie will be happy with this product. Yes, I feel the deleted scenes should have been left in as they explained some obvious gaps in the film, but at least we got to see them. The HD screenings have been very popular and I don't tire of watching this through and through. Enjoy.

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9/8/66. It's a badge that Original Trekkers wear proudly -the date that the very first Star Trek episode ("The Man Eater") appeared on television. I bear it, and Star Trek hooked me that very Thursday evening, and for the next three years, I sat through all 69 episodes, both the best ("Oh Boy! The Trouble with Tribbles") and the worse ("Oh, no! Not that one!"). When they began to appear in syndication, I watched them over and over until I could repeat the lines with the characters. And, no, I'm not going to tell you who my favorite character was.

It's been 43 years since that first episode. I'm still hooked.

A lot of my compatriots have said that J.J. Adams' "reboot" of the Star Trek franchise went too far -they weren't ready for some of the things that happened (and, for the sake of those readers who have not seen the movie, I'm not going to reveal what those things are). They didn't like the changes in the mythos that occurred. OK, fine. Different strokes ...

I, however, love this film, and would have gone to see it over and over again if it hadn't been that my darling didn't really want to (and our budget didn't allow it). So what if things changed? It's an alternate universe -and any Trekker worth her salt will recognize those occur -Remember "Mirror, Mirror?" A planet blows up, and I admit, given the planet, I'm pretty sad (no, it's not Earth). I'm also sad that Scottie used Admiral Archer's favorite beagle for an experiment, and it hasn't been seen since (Okay, so one slipped out).

However, the most powerful ideas and characters remain true to their alternate others: Kirk is strong, handsome, creative in a crisis (and may be a womanizer, although he doesn't get the woman he wants here), even if he's not William Shatner. Spock struggles to keep his emotions in check and his logic foremost (tremendously well-played by Zachary Quinto). "Bones" McCoy (Karl Urban, unexpectedly unlike many of his fantasy and SF rolls)is humane, funny, and passionate -and a lot better looking than the well-beloved, late DeForest Kelley. Bruce Greenwood ("The Core"), Simon Pegg, Ben Cross (superb as Sarak) and Winona Ryder (Amanda! And I am getting to be too old) are all wonderful, and add strength, passion and substance to both their characters and the film. It was, however, sad to see Leonard Nimoy, as "our" Mr./Abassador Spock, late in his life, and know we probably never see him in another Star Trek film.

So. Buy it? Damn straight. Get it for your children and yourselves.

Star Trek would have never died for me, anyway, because I've dreamed of walking on another planet ever since I saw that first episode. But now, Star Trek will come alive for a fourth generation to learn those same dreams.

Honest reviews on Star Trek (Three-Disc Special Edition) (2009)

In order to get big rewards in life you have to take big risks. If there is one thing that the Star Trek universe hasn't done in 20-25 years its take risks. The franchise has suffered greatly for it, continuing to follow a formulaic approach that has made the franchise stale, predictable, and for quite a while... DEAD. Not sick, not on life support, but D-E-A-D.

Those days are over.

The 11th feature presentation is quite simply the first GREAT Star Trek movie ever made. While others in the series have been enjoyable, there was no definitive movie that stood out, nothing that could be pointed to as something unique, something special, something that takes RISKS.

What you get here is the biggest risk that has ever been taken in the Star Trek universe in its 40+ years of existence.

I will not ruin this risk but if you are a fan of the movies at all you will know it when you see it. Being a long time fan of Star Trek (I am a Next Generation first and foremost) and having seen the trailer numerous times I figured out what was going to happen about 20 minutes before it did but that didn't stop the shock when I witnessed this awesome writing decision played out on the big screen. The strongest of Star Trek lovers (especially TOS people) will no doubt have a lot of outrage at this risk but it was the right move to make. The Star Trek franchise needed to be shaken up, it needed something fresh and it needed a movie to shock and awe the audience.

Man did it ever deliver.

This movie is an absolute JOY to experience. Spock was always my favorite TOS personality as he probably was for most fans, but I never felt the connection to this cast that I did to Picard, Data, Worf and the Next Gen cast so I really didn't care what changes they made (and there is another major change that involves 2 characters that you never have experienced before in TOS history) if they were for the better. In all cases these were for the better and executed with near-perfection by JJ Abrams (who might later be revered on the same level as Gene Rodenberry if this re-visioning [this is much more than a simple reboot] succeeds like I think it will).

Since I don't like getting too deep into spoilers with reviews instead of focusing on the story (try your best to stay ignorant as possible of the story so its fresher when you see the film) I will instead focus on the characters we know so well (and some we don't).

True To The Character We Know

Spock (played by Zachary Quinto) Even though Kirk (ahhem William Shatner) was advertised as the lead of TOS, the real centerpiece was Spock. The work here by Quinto is beyond exceptional and complements the amazing work done by Leonard Nimoy the past 40 years. Quinto plays the character as well as you could imagine and the real special thing in this movie is that finally (FINALLY) the half human side of Spock is heavily examined. It is a major part of the movie and no doubt will continue to be focused on in future films. Spock is no more or less important to the crew and story as he always has been. Other actors could do lesser work (they didn't) but the movie franchise will only succeed as well as Quinto acts. The character is in the best of hands.

Bones (played by Karl Urban) The gem of the entire movie without question. Karl Urban takes the difficult role of playing not only Bones but Bones played by DeForest Kelley and is he ever amazing. It's a complete joy to watch his character on the screen. Urban doesn't need to do anything different in future films. You can tell how hard he worked to keep the Bones character as he has always been and he hits a home run out of the park. Wonderful wonderful wonderful

Scotty (played by Simon Pegg) We don't meet Scotty until far into the movie but Pegg does a great job doing James Doohan. Since Scotty was always kind of the "middle" character on the show where he wasn't wasted but wasn't the tops (Spock, Kirk, Bones) all Pegg had to do was do a good Scotty and hopefully the script-writers would give him more to do. This is the case here.

Revisions And Improvements Made

Kirk (played by Chris Pine) No longer do we get the ultra womanizing, overacting of Kirk/William Shatner but we get instead a focus on the risk-taking side of Kirk and this is the Kirk that I could truly learn to love. Over and over again we see why Kirk in Star Trek canon is revered so much and his take no prisoners approach is put on the front burner all throughout this film. Pine is confident and does a fantastic job. I don't care how revered Shatner is, the writers got it right with this re-visioning of Kirk and it's thumbs up all the way.

Sulu (played by John Cho) Not much to say here. Cho was fine but nothing amazing in his performance. Sulu fights a little bit but hopefully more focus can be made on him in the future, no problems here but nothing jumps out.

Uhura (played by Zoe Saldana) As a communications officer her role is MUCH better in this re-visioning. She is given more intelligent input by the script-writers but the one major canon change of Uhura (which I can't go into detail in this review) I am still trying to determine how I feel about. Her mod is the 2nd biggest risk/mod taken in the movie.

Complete Rewrite

Chekov (played by Anton Yeltin) Except for being Russian and making fun of his thick accent this is a completely new character and man was this a serious improvement. Instead of the bumbling doofus that really doesn't do anything now Chekov is a ultra-young uber-intelligent officer that plays pivotal parts in the movie. Yes this was a serious canon change but I can't imagine how any fan wouldn't approve because now you have a real character you can be emotionally attached to.

New Characters

Nero (played by Eric Bana) Bana instantly becomes one of the main villains in Star Trek lore and in my opinion because of events in the movie he now becomes THE single villain in Star Trek history. I wish Nero could have been on the screen more but with only 2 hours and so many people to get on the screen I think the right balance was struck.

Old Friends

XXX You will know who this is when you see them. I have no complaints other than one voice-over part where the narration seems a bit droll and uninspired but I also think this is because of the circumstance how they are speaking. This old friend was a +++ to the movie and not just a ploy to get people in the seats. A welcome addition to the movie and plot.

Intangibles

Bridge The new bridge is the most gorgeous bridge you will ever see. Some say it looks 'too sexy' or 'too bright' but THIS is how the bridge should have always looked. Please please please don't change it for the future films. You have already achieved the perfect look.

Score The one downside of the movie. The 3rd trailer featured some of the most gorgeous background score ever and my hopes were very high. The score that is featured in the movie is serviceable but doesn't inspire. I was disappointed with the end result. It's alright but it could have been so much more.

IMO 'Star Trek' achieves what only 1 Star Trek movie (IV The Voyage Home) came close to doing and that is being a successful film to the general public, not just Star Trek fans in general. This is the quickest 2 hours you will spend this summer and an absolute joy. I can see several movies being made with this cast and I hope several are made. The events of this film make for a realistic approach to the original cast working anew in these new revisions. As the movie ended I wished I could move ahead 2-3 years in time to see the next chapter and the next and the next.

Everyone likes to rank the movies in order and I knew 1 hour in this was EASILY (note I don't even flinch when I say EASILY EASILY EASILY) the greatest Star Trek movie ever made. You know a movie succeeds when a character or a movie itself feels like candy for the brain (last year Heath Ledgers Joker was the ultimate 'candy') and this is some yummy candy.

If you are a Star Trek fan go see it and try to have an open mind for what you will see. Many will be fine with the changes made. For the ones that aren't would you rather have changes and new Star Trek movies or the same old same old that had ruined the franchise for so long (kudos to Rick Berman as the official murderer of ST)??? If you are just a person that loves movies you (yes YOU) can even enjoy Star Trek as this movie has been produced not just for the Trekkie but the every day Joe and Jane.

***** HIGHEST POSSIBLE RECOMMENDATION

Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Star Trek (Three-Disc Special Edition) (2009)

I would encourage anyone who has neglected to read the one star reviews to breeze by a few. They overanalyze, nit-pick, cry canon, and all the while they forget where Star Trek came from. Plot holes, fuzzy science, continuity problems and totally illogical sequences of events are all par for the course. Star Trek was pitched, forty-odd years ago, as a "wagon train to the stars." Your archetypical white hats shoot it out with your archetypical black hats and justice prevails. Star Trek swapped out six shooters for phasers and recast Tonto as a guy with pointy ears and an unfortunate hair cut. It's kitsch with just the right amount of heart. Those among you who regard this movie as a corruption of the creator's vision, let me remind you that his vision included: Nazi planets, Mafia planets, space hippies, badly choreographed fight sequences with stunt doubles that bear no resemblance to the actors, and less than a dozen filmed sequences and stills of the starship Enterprise that were reused over and over again for the duration of the series (all very grainy and since they have been digitized, you can see the wire the ship was hanging by.) Silliness, but we love it. Like a big old spacey cheeseburger. And I think that J.J. Abrams cinematic offering is a clear demonstration of that same love. There are a number of things that don't make sense ... but now, when people crack jokes about James T. Kirk making out with green women, they will actually have some basis for it. Never actually happened on the show.