Oct 10 2014

Disney Movie Review – Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day

Photo Courtesy of Disney.com

Today my boys and I decided it was time to hit the movies again. This time, we ventured out to the theatre to see the newest Disney release, Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day. We have been seeing the preview for this film for months, and we’ve been eagerly awaiting its release. From the trailers, it looked like it would be a perfect combination of comedy and a meaningful message. We were not disappointed!

WARNING – SPOILERS FOLLOWING THE PHOTO!!

Photo Courtesy of Disney.com

This film is based on a book by the same name and follows the story of Alexander who is about to turn 12 years old. The day before his birthday, he has a particularly bad day while the rest of his family’s lives couldn’t be better. He makes a wish that his family could experience a day like his and the rest, as they say, is history. What follows is the hilarious and heart-warming story of what happens to each member of his family over the course of Alexander’s birthday. The script, characters and acting are all exceptional and there is a little bit of something that everyone can relate to in this film. Seriously, who hasn’t had such a bad day that you just have to laugh?

Overall, my boys and I loved Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day! This is by far one of the best family movies that we have seen this year. I would definitely recommend this film to families with kids of all ages! I’ve included the trailer below and for more details, reviews, ratings and for help determining if it might be right for your family, please check out this link.

Have you seen Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day?
Did you enjoy it? Please leave a comment!

Aug 2 2014

Disney Marvel Movie Review – Guardians of the Galaxy

Photo Courtesy of Marvel.com

On Friday, my boys and I decided it was time to hit the movies again. This time, we ventured out to the theatre to see the newest Disney Marvel release, Guardians of the Galaxy. I had a few concerns heading into this movie. First, I am typically not a fan of science fiction or superheroes. To be honest, the first superhero movie I ever saw was The Avengers that came out a couple of years ago. I surprisingly loved The Avengers so I went into this film with an open mind. Secondly, I was a bit concerned about the violence in Guardians of the Galaxy and if it would be suitable for my boys (ages 8 and 11) considering that it had received a PG13 rating. Finally, I wondered just how bad the language in this movie would actually be and would I have a lot of things to explain when we got home. Luckily, my worries were for nothing and we all truly enjoyed it!

WARNING – SPOILERS FOLLOWING THE PHOTO!!

Photo Courtesy of Marvel.com

This film follows the story of Peter Quill who was abducted from earth after his mother’s death. Years later, Quill steals an orb that contains an infinity stone that he plans to sell for an enormous sum. After being arrested, Peter teams up with a unique gang of characters; Rocket, Gamora, Groot and Drax each dealing with their own issues of loss and uncertainty. Together they have to fight against the evil Ronan who plans to use the orb to destroy a planet. The things my boys and I enjoyed the most were the humor and themes of teamwork and friendship that were incorporated throughout the movie. The character of Rocket the Raccoon, voiced by Bradley Cooper, stole the show! Things to keep in mind before seeing this film:

This movie begins with the gut wrenching death of Peter’s mother.
This movie is violent. My boys thought the level fell more violent than Star Wars less violent than Lord of the Rings. It was what I would consider sci-fi violence; mostly hand-to-hand fighting, lasers, explosions and similar.
Death is spoken about often in the film. One character talks about avenging the death of his wife and daughter. There are also a lot of death threats made.
There are at least a dozen uses of profanity during the movie and one obscene gesture.
There are some veiled references to Peter being with a lot of women. These would easily go over the heads of younger kids.

Overall, my boys and I really enjoyed Guardians of the Galaxy. I would definitely recommend this film to lovers of science fiction and superheroes! I’ve included the trailer below and for more details, reviews, ratings and for help determining if it might be right for your family, please check out this link.

Have you seen Guardians of the Galaxy? Did you enjoy it? Please leave a comment!

Jul 23 2014

Disney Movie Review – Planes: Fire & Rescue

Photo Courtesy of http://www.movies.disney.com

On Friday, after returning from our Disney cruise to Alaska, my boys and I were exhausted from traveling, unpacking and doing laundry. We decided it was time to take a break, so we headed off to the movies to see Disney’s newest feature Planes: Fire & Rescue. To be honest, I was less than thrilled to be seeing this movie. I was not a fan of the first Planes movie and couldn’t imagine that this one would be any better. However, I was pleasantly surprised!

WARNING – SPOILERS FOLLOWING THE PHOTO!!

Photo Courtesy of http://www.movies.disney.com

In this sequel, we continue to follow the story of Dusty Crophopper, the former crop duster. He is now a famous champion training for his next important race, when he discovers his gearbox is damaged and out of production. When he realizes his racing days may be over, he accidentally starts a fire that starts a chain of events that has him training to become a firefighter. Planes: Fire & Rescue is so much better than the original in every way. The characters are more likable, the storyline is well-developed, there is more action and the scenery is spectacular. I would definitely recommend seeing this movie and my boys (ages 11 and 8) loved it! I’ve included the extended trailer below and for more details, reviews and ratings, please check out this link.

Have you seen Planes: Fire & Rescue? Did you enjoy it? Please leave a comment!

Jun 6 2014

Disney Movie Review – Maleficent

Photo courtesy of http://www.disney.wikia.com

This past weekend I was in Texas for a family wedding and had a few hours free before the big event. My husband, my boys and I decided that would be the perfect time to check out Disney’s latest movie, Maleficent. I had no idea what to expect of the movie, and I was very pleasantly surprised. It reminded me a lot of Wicked in the idea of telling the story from the villain’s perspective. My husband really enjoyed the fantasy-like quality of the film and there was just enough action for my boys to enjoy it as well. I would definitely recommend seeing this movie!

A couple of things to be aware of if you are taking very young children…this movie contains a lot of dark and scary images including war scenes and an attempted murder. In spite of this there is no real gore or blood shown. For a more detailed description and reviews, please check out this link.

Have you seen Maleficent? Did you enjoy it? Please leave a comment!

May 16 2014

Disney Movie Review – Million Dollar Arm

Photo Courtesy of http://www.facebook.com/milliondollararm

Today I was lucky enough to spend some time seeing the new Disney movie, Million Dollar Arm, with my oldest son. We’ve been eager to see this movie for weeks ever since we saw the first preview. My son is a huge sports fan! Over the years he’s played a variety of sports like soccer, baseball and flag football and knows more about the NFL than most grown men I know. We had high hopes going into this movie and we weren’t disappointed!

WARNING – SPOILERS FOLLOWING THE PHOTO!!

Photo Courtesy of http://www.facebook.com/milliondollararm

Million Dollar Arm is a heart warming film based on a true story about a sports agent who tries to save his failing business by traveling to India to recruit a cricket player to play major league baseball in the United States.

My 11-year-old son and I really enjoyed this show! The two-hour film moved along at a steady pace and kept us entertained throughout. This movie had moments that were funny, touching, sentimental, romantic (which was met by loud groans and a couple shouts of “gross!” from some young boys in the audience) and inspiring! While the story line and characters weren’t quite as well-developed as some other classics like the movie Rudy, you couldn’t help but become invested in these individuals and root for everything to work out well for them.

A few things to be aware of when taking young children to this film…there is minimal bad language, no violence, no nudity, some alcohol use, some sexual innuendo that would go over the heads of very young kids and some scenes of vomiting. Million Dollar Arm showed positive and meaningful messages about the importance of family, fun, love, perseverance and going for your dreams. Overall, this feel-good sports movie would be terrific for the entire family!

For more detailed information about the film and its content, check out this link.

Have you seen Million Dollar Arm? What did you think? Please leave a comment!