Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs: Food Lover’s Paradise

This is something of a dream come true stories. As the saying goes: ‘The way to reach a man’s heart is through his stomach”, this one definitely reached my heart.

The movie has a relatively simple concept and that makes it a beautiful one for kids to enjoy it too. The story has a weird inventor named Flint Lockwood living in Sardine Town and he is apparently bored with all the sardines that he gets. He thus sets into a task of creating a satellite which will change the weather … with one small variant: the weather is now food - flavored.

As he prepares to launch the satellite, something goes wrong and there is a lot of property mashed up as the satellite goes through the city and then finally launches into orbit. Everyone is now angry with Flint, but all the anger gets dissipated as a shower of burgers starts up. The whole city gets up in spirits and loves the taste of something new other than sardines.

The mayor now has high hopes of making his town the tourist spot where parents could bring their kids to have any kind of junk food at any time. He gets Flint to make three meals a day with the help of the satellite which is now considered the best thing since ‘canned sardines’.

But as with every story, there is a catch and this time it’s an overload of junk food. Flint, with the help of a was-a-weather-nerd-now-a-weather-reporter girl called Sam, has to insert the kill code into the satellite to prevent the entire town from turning into junk.

The story has really good effects if you watch it in 3D. I think if it is once watched in 3D, then the 2D version may seem a bit bland. But irrespective of whichever version you watch, gear up for a fun experience with a funny story and loads of food.

Chew On!

Contributed by Rakesh Nair

9? Not Even Once!!!

There is something amiss when you keep looking at your watch after just 10 minutes into a movie. “9″, directed by Shane Acker, manages to do just that to you about 10 times in its running length of 79 minutes.

Set in the distant future, the story (?!!?) is about an artificial being called , well, 9 and other 8 like him, who have been created by a scientist during World War 3 as human beings have killed themselves and these life forms are last remnants of life on earth. When 9 comes to life, he realizes that everything’s not quite right in the world as most of it has been destroyed due to war. Setting of in search of others like him he quickly befriends 2 - another artificial being - who is kidnapped by The Beast trying to save 9, who sets of to find 2 amidst the city ruins accompanied by 5 (please try to keep up with the names, there’s nine of them) against the advice of their leader named (guess what ???) 1.

During their search they encounter 7, a femme fatale of sorts, and 6 who has lost his mind and keeps drawing a set of strange symbols. This assorted bunch of numerals finally find 2 but awaken a mechanical monster (not named, thankfully !!!), a remnant of the war, in the process who feeds on souls. It’s upto 9 now to kill this monster and save his friends to ensure that life on earth continues.

While not exactly a bad concept, the problem lies with the execution. The narrative just moves from one set piece to another serving as a sorry excuse to show another bunch of special effects. Apart from the great VFX there is not a single redeeming point about 9. Neither a kiddie movie or an engaging adult story, “9″ is a futile and pointless exercise and makes you wonder why someone would make this movie in the first place.

Take my advice and don’t touch this one with a 9-foot barge pole !!!

Contributed by Runil Motwani

Ice Age 3: Quite a Rollercoaster Ride

Fox’ latest animated venture will be highly entertaining to those who’ve not caught the earlier two installments. Ice Age purists may find the pace deliberate and supposedly funny moments a tad bland. Still, don’t miss this one for its sheer ingenuity, quality 3D effects and slick storytelling.

Manny and Ellie are set to become parents for the first time, causing the anxious father to get a tad impatient with Diego and Sid, who, on the other hand, have an agenda of their own- Sid wants to be Mommy to three dinosaur eggs he found, and Diego wants to find his edge.  But when the frantic she-dinosaur notices her brood missing, she gets down to business, tracks her babies and carries them off to her lair, along with Sid, which provides the others with a mission- to rescue Sid from the dinosaurs. Interestingly, the dinosaurs live in an amazing flora and fauna-rich world complete with pre-historic birds and volcanic activity, while totally being under the surface of ice. It is here that the friends meet Buck, the Jack Sparrow of the animated kingdom, who rescues Sid and the others from the clutches of a mean machine of a T-Rex called Rudy.

Ice Age 3 works well mostly because of the interesting twists the new characters bring to the movie. Scratte, the flying squirrel who competes for the acorn has no lines but simply delights. A pair of possums, likewise. Buck, voiced by Simon Pegg charms with his daredevilry and coolth, and single-handedly steals the show. His skills while navigating a flight bird  through lava rocks and predatory birds and trying to ‘diffuse’ a giant Venus Flytrap are topnotch. However, there’s nothing much to write home about the ”Sub Zero Heroes”, who seem to have just jumped on the bandwagon for the heck of it.

Ice Age 3 is also refreshing for the clean content. You don’t have to worry about the language or visuals if you have kids with you.  So grab those 3D glasses and get set. You may not be laughing your guts out but you won’t stop smiling either.

Bolt

Bolt is an animated flick about a dog, that’s all i knew about the movie as I went in for it. Being a fan of animated films apart from being an animal lover I had high expectations from this movie and it did not disappoint.

Sitting amongst a truckload of children, who just can’t eat popcorn without spilling it, I dreaded that it would be a herculean task to watch the movie in peace. The movie began and the noisy kids just did not matter. The onscreen action began within 2 minutes, the first ten minutes make you wonder if you are watching a trailer of a film, such is the pace of the story telling.  The animation is ultra-realistic but at the same time keeps the cartoon element of the movie alive. Its amazing how off-late a lot of animated movie seem to stress on great animation (almost too real) and pay no heed to story lines or lovable characters. Bolt is a great mix of all of the above.

The story revolves around a dog who has spent all is life on the sets of a TV show, not knowing that he is just an actor. The dog is fooled into believing that he has special powers like Superbark, and a stare that melts metal amongst many others. His person, Penny and he are always trying to save Penny’s father from the evil man with a green eye. Unfortunately for Bolt he is transported from the sets in Hollywood to the New York.

The journey back is a path of self-realization for Bolt and acceptance of the fact that he is just another cute dog. In the process he befriends a cat(Mittens) and a hamster (Rhino). Mittens is a very lovable character and reminds us of Dorry (Nemo) and Ellie (Iceage 2).  It’s hilarious to see a cat, who teaches a dog “How to be a dog”, join forces with a hamster, who strongly believes that Bolt IS actually a Superdog, helping Bolt on his journey back. Along the way other cute characters like pigeons & two cats (who pick on Bolt) add to the humor element of the movie.

The movie keeps you gripped all along the ride with great sequences, witty dialogues and a great background score. As the movie ended I just wanted to go home and check if my dog could “Superbark”. Overall it’s a must-watch for animated movie lovers, and all you parents who plan to take your kids, teach your children how to eat popcorn without spilling it.

Final Verdict:- Walt Disney hits another home run with BOLT. It’s a shame that it released in USA in Nov 2008 and India had to wait so long.

Contributed by Vijay Gokhale

Asterix and the Vikings

Four years and $ 27 million later the animated version of Asterix and the Vikings sees the light of the day, with spirited soundtracks, Gaulish antics and modern twists that make watching the BC characters even more fun.

The indomitable Gauls take on another adventure with the arrival of Chief Vitalstatistix’ nephew Justforkix. Sent by his dad to the village to “make a man of him”, the lad is a nature-loving softie and is happiest when dancing to MC Hammer’s “U Can’t Touch This” than doing warrior activities. Taking him to be the Champion of Fear, Viking Chief Timandahaf carries him along to learn how to fear for he believes that it can make him fly. But Asterix and Obelix are not far behind, and cruise along to help the hapless brat.

Watching the lovable Gauls on screen evokes mixed feelings. There’s always the nagging doubt that the film might not do justice to the comic book, but luckily the film keeps the interest up with superb technicolor imagery and slick storytelling. Though there are times when you think the gags are a bit too obvious, you simply cannot but smile at the Vikings’ ‘discotheque’ party complete with pre-Y2K hits, Timandahaf’s daughter Abba and her pro-feminist ideas, Cacofonix’ attempts at singing, and Justforkix’ pet bird Essemmess carving out messages on wood.

If you watch the English version you simply cannot miss the voice of Brad Garrett (Everybody Loves Raymond) for Obelix and Sean Astin (Lord of the Rings) for Justforkix, which are apt and endearing.

Asterix and the Vikings may disappoint fans of the comic book, but for others it’s an enjoyable party. Unfortunately at 78 minutes the party gets over in a jiffy.

Monsters Vs Aliens: For People of All Ages

Dreamworks 3D animated venture featuring wily aliens and a group of monsters is entertaining with a generous dose of hilarity and brilliant animated effects. The good versus bad premise unfolds as “good” monsters get their act together to fight “bad” aliens that have dared to land on earth.

A meteorite falls in Modesto, California where an unassuming young girl Susan (voiced by Reese Witherspoon) is caught in the fray, turning into a giant version of herself with incredible strength, and is quickly whisked away by General Monger (Kiefer Sutherland), who has in his hi-tech lair other “monsters”; a blue gelatinous blob, a super sized insect, a talking frog and Dr Cockroach. When the aliens’ destruction reaches San Francisco, the General convinces the President of USA that his monsters can do what the special forces cannot and sends the five off on a mission to protect Planet Earth and save the inhabitants. And thus begins an intergalactic war, where the earthly misfits fight Gallaxar and his clones in a thrilling showdown.

Monsters Vs Aliens will appeal to a wide range of audience given the action, melodrama, comic relief and sci-fi adventure. While the gags are clearly for children, adults can enjoy the action-packed virtual battle with space-age guns and imaginative technology where hordes of loyal followers can be created by an instant cloning machine.

Watch it on 3D though, it only gets better.