Recently I went to go see Disney’s return to the two-dimensional world, The Princess Frog. Now there’s really no excuse for a grown man seeing a cartoon so I would like to thank Alex for going with me so I didn’t look like complete child. First and foremost, before I rip this movie for what I didn’t like, I would like to say: go see this movie. Go take your kids to see this movie. If you don’t have children go borrow one or take your girlfriend so you have an excuse. Every kid’s flick that is produced today is computer animated and in 3D. The only way we can stop this madness is supporting the different, which in this case is old-school 2D cartoons.

Watching The Princess Frog was refreshing. It was almost like going into a time capsule and going to the movie theatre as a kid. Almost. This movie is criticized mainly for being just a shadow of what 2D greatness Disney used to offer. Of course this movie is going to fall short of Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin and The Lion King. It’s almost not fair to try an compare Disney’s first 2D, musical outing in years to those amazing films.

Princess Frog offers lovable supporting characters, lavish musical numbers, the idea of true love and the beauty of New Orleans. I think the main critique I have for this film is that it seems like they sacrificed character development for getting the movie under a certain time. I felt like the main character Titana and the villain, the Shadow Man, were under developed. Especially the Shadowman, I felt like there was so much promise for this villain but nothings ever really explained about him. He has a evil shadow that has a mind of it’s own that’s really never addressed. I think Disney might have thought an audience wouldn’t pay much attention to a 2D film and opted to move the story as quick as possible.

There also has been talks of it being too scary or even possibly evil because of the use of voodoo. This, in my opinion, is over sensitivity. In every Disney movie there are villains that use magic, which I believe when evil is referred to as witchcraft. From Snow White’s evil witch with her poison apple all the way to Hercules’ Hades…who is the mythology form of the devil. I thought this movie was not too scary for most children, but then again the last children’s movie I watched was the horribly frightening Christmas Carol.

At the end of the day this movie is not going to be remembered as one of the greatest Disney movies of all time, but it could be the beginning of a revival in good, quality Disney cartoons. All you have to do is support it.

I went to see Armored the other night. And all I have to say is that it was not a good decision. I mean, if you want to watch a less than mediocre movie with The Professional, Morpheus, The Guy From Scream, Sucre, Matt Dillon and a guy that sort of looks like a young Hootie without his blowfish; than this is a movie from you. This movie was a mess. The first act was slow, the second act started to show promise towards the end and then it ended. Right when I thought it was maybe watchable it ended. If you want to make an action movie, make an action movie. This movie tried so hard to attempt to have deep, real characters and relationships but it failed to a comical extent. Not every movie needs to make you think. A popcorn movie can just be a popcorn movie sometimes. Seeing this movie was almost too embarrassing to admit to.

Many people have felt the same way I have the past couple of years: Hollywood is ruining my childhood. Case in point GI Joe: The Rise of Cobra. The special effects were more believable than Channing Tatum in that waste of film. Sometimes it seems like every fond memory I have of watching TV as a child is being turned into a bad movie.

So I was horrified when it was announced that ‘Where the Wild Things Are’ was being adapted into a movie. Then I was glad to hear Spike Jonze was involved. Then when the movie’s release date was pushed back I was skeptical. This movie has been pushed back for a long time, it was filmed in 2006. That’s no typo, 3 years ago. However, when I saw the trailer I got excited again.

To be fair to Spike Jonze the studio was scared to release the movie. Spike Jonze is risky (Adaptation, Being John Malkovich) and studios want to make money not take risks.  Now adapting a children’s book, essentially a couple of sentences,  into a full length major motion picture is crazy. Then put Spike into that formula and the studio is asking for something that will be bizarre and different. So even though it took three years and countless arguments Where the Wild Things Are is finally released. And I loved it.

Where the Wild Things is a beautiful piece of work that will not be appreciated by the masses. This movie is destined to be a cult classic, a rare treat for the adult looking back on their childhood. I connected with this film from the beginning. Max (Max Records) is just a little boy causing terror and making a trail of mess wherever he goes. He’s basically a boy.

The movie takes off and goes to strange and unusual places, figuratively and literally. But what I most appreciate is that it is told with the imaginative innocence of a young child. Max has his feelings hurt and doesn’t know how to deal with it, he acts out and misbehaves, he runs away from home. Recklessly acting out of emotion like a child who hasn’t yet been trained how to properly deal with stress. The movie moves with Max caring not for justification, moving out of quick and carnal decisions not worrying about consequences. I thought it to be an accurate portrayal of how children can act out. Then I realized I was in a theatre filled with children and parents who were maybe not appreciating this on the same level I was.

The bad thing about Spike Jonze making an adaptation of Where the Wild Things Are is that Spike Jonze is very cerebral. Artsy and smart is not usually what parents and children look for in movies. While I did hear children giggle and gasp I felt like me and my girlfriend were the only ones laughing and having a blast. Children’s movies are not usually like this and are more marketable. Even Wall-E and Up, which had their moments of film snobbery, made sure to make a likable movie for kids. This movie is about kids, not necessarily for them. Yet at the same time there’s huge puppets from Jim Henson’s Creature Shop and not many themes that will appeal to adults. I’m not all too sure if this movie will find a wide audience. It will be too slow and strange for most people and possibly even a disappointment for families.

While this review could end there I would like to mention what I’m sure some people are concerned about, the actual ‘Wild Things’ or monsters. These creatures have so much life in them and mirror the concerns and attitudes of children it is amazing. As someone who works with kids I can see the similarities loud and clear. You hardly ever notice that these things are puppets, you completely buy into their world. It’s the world of children each wild thing is trying to vie for attention and be liked. The innocence and insecurities of children are showcased in each monster. Reminding us that every now and then we can all be a little monster having problems that faced us in childhood. Like how to appropriately show anger, trying to make friends, not wanting to play with others and feeling like no one ever listens to you. The cast of creatures all do an amazing job. James Gandolfini is incredible as Carol, the main creature, who is meant to be a mirror to Max’s own beastly behavior. Chris Cooper, Catherine O’Hara, Forrest Whitiker, and Paul Dano all give brilliant vocal performances with words that broke my heart and made me laugh in memory of my own childhood.

For people like me, who have fond memories of this book as a child and enjoy indie films and Spike Jonze body of work this is a must see. However, I think most parents of young children might want to look elsewhere for their theatre experience.