Neil deGrasse Tyson’s marvelous “Cosmos” reboot comes out on DVD and Blu-Ray this week and it is well worth adding to every family and classroom library. It is a very worthy successor to Carl Sagan’s classic PBS series of the 80’s, updated to make use of the latest technology and to present the most exciting discoveries about our world and the worlds beyond.
Dazzling graphics, mind-blowing outer space images, and clear, frank presentation of core principles of the scientific method not only cover what we know but why we know it. We also learn about the fearless men and women who made these discoveries, with nothing but passionate curiosity and fierce intellectual integrity to guide them. We learn that answers are important but that it is questions that drive knowledge forward.
This is the story of young boy named Billy, his lovable dog, Buster, an adorable, curious tiger cub named Luna. When Billy accidentally brings home Luna from a wild animal park, he turns to his best friend, Koby, and his faithful canine companion Buster to find a way to bring Luna back safely. A Tiger’s Tail is an amazing story of teamwork that celebrates the incredible and unpredictable journey of life and PURRfect friendships formed along the way.
And I have a copy to give away! Send an email to moviemom@moviemom.com with Tiger in the subject line and tell me your favorite fictional feline. Don’t forget your address! (US addresses only). I’ll pick a winner at random on June 9, 2014. Good luck!
Peril and cartoon-style violence, bad guy swallowed by snake, discussion of risks to the environment and species
Diversity Issues:
Diverse characters
Date Released to Theaters:
April 11, 2014
Date Released to DVD:
July 14, 2014
Amazon.com ASIN:
B00I6JEPF8
Just because a South American frog has toxic venom that can cause instant death does not mean she cannot be adorably lovesick. Broadway belter Kristin Chenoweth (“Wicked,” “Glee”) steals the show right under the Brazil nut-cracking beaks of our old friends the macaws Blu (Jesse Eisenberg) and Jewel (Anne Hathaway) as Gabi, a tiny little tree frog whose sweet nature is challenged by (1) the fact that she is poisonous and (2) the subject of her utter but perhaps misplaced devotion is the cockatoo villain of the original “Rio,” Nigel (Jermaine Clement). Although at times over-plotted and slow to get going, this sequel is bright and entertaining, with musical numbers that rock the rainforest.
Blu, Jewel, and their three macaw chicks are living happily in the bird sanctuary set up for them by their human friends Linda (Leslie Mann) and Tulio (Rodrigo Santoro). Blu, raised in Linda’s home, enjoys making pancakes for breakfast but Jewel, raised in the wild, wants to show their children the beauty of the world she came from. Think “Green Acres,” with Blu as Eva Gabor. When Tulio and Linda find evidence that there are macaws living in the rainforest, Jewel persuades Blu that they should go for a visit. Blu loads up his fanny pack with bug spray, water purifier, bandaids and GPS and they go off to the Amazon, taking along some of their feathered friends.
This time, the problem is not smugglers but three separate threats that are far more dire. Illegal loggers are destroying the rainforest. Nigel, with Gabi’s help, wants revenge following his injuries in the climax of the last film, which left him unable to fly and working as a Shakespearean actor. But he is determined to get revenge and Gabi will do anything to help him.. And when Jewel finds that the newly discovered macaws are her father (Andy Garcia) and the community she thought had been destroyed, she wants to turn the brief visit into a permanent stay. Blu misses the comforts of home and feels a lot of competition from Jewel’s old friend Roberto (Bruno Mars), who has all of the confidence and ease at fitting in that Blu envies. There’s also a turf war between the red and blue macaws as the food sources shrink.
It takes a while to get going and once it does too much seems to happen at once. But it is bright and colorful and sweet and funny. And that little frog is a hoot and a half.
Parents should know that this film has some potty humor, comic, cartoon-style violence and mild peril, a bad guy swallowed by a snake, a spider, a poisonous frog, a skeleton, and environmental issues.
Family discussion: What can we do to protect the plants and animals of the rainforest? What does Gabi like about Nigel? Why do Blu and Jewel each think the other is “weird” about humans? Why is Eduardo tough on Blu?
I’m thrilled to have one of my all-time favorite Disney classics to give away: The Jungle Book. The last film personally supervised by Walt Disney himself, this one has brilliant voice talent (Phil Harris, Louis Prima, Sebastian Cabot) and some of Disney’s best-loved songs: “The Bear Necessities,” “I Wanna Be Like You.”
To enter, send me an email at moviemom@moviemom.com with Jungle in the subject line and tell me your favorite jungle animal. Don’t forget your address! Many people were disqualified from the the last contest because they did not include the mailing address. I promise, I never share it or use it for anything but sending out prizes. (U.S. addresses only). I’ll pick winners at random on April 13. Good luck!
The Muppets live up to the title in this adorable follow-up that is even truer to the essence of Muppetry than the Jason Segal predecessor because it puts the Muppets themselves at the heart of the story, not the humans. And that’s very good news. No one is better than the Muppets at creating a giddy mixture of sharp wit, delirious silliness, pop culture references (here they range from Ingmar Bergman’s scythe-bearing Death chess match to a “Producers”-inspired prison gang kick-line) and random guest stars (Lady Gaga! Tony Bennett! Together!), and a self-deprecating but irrepressibly sunny sensibility. There is always grand spectacle, romance, and heart, even a brief but telling lesson in manners. Plus, there’s another tuneful and hilarious collection of songs from Oscar-winner Bret McKenzie. The result is pure joy.
It starts about one minute after the last movie ends. The human couple is clearly on the road to happily ever after, but what about the Muppets? Time for a sequel! “While they wait for Tom Hanks to Make ‘Toy Story 4,'” they sing, even though “everybody knows that the sequel’s never quite as good.” They also blithely explain that we can expect “a family-style adventure during which we should bond and learn heartwarming lessons like sharing and taking your turn and the Number 3.”
The Muppets hire Dominic Badguy (“pronounced Bad-GEE”) (Ricky Gervais) as their new tour manager and go to Europe to perform. He actually is a bad GUY, however, and the tour is just a cover for an elaborate series of heists, conveniently located next door to the venues selected by Dominic. Meanwhile, Constantine, the most dangerous frog in the world, escapes from the Siberian gulag where he has been in prison. And he looks almost exactly like Kermit, except for a distinctive beauty mark on his cheek. Constantine slaps a fake birthmark onto Kermit’s cheek, covers his own with green make-up, and soon Kermit is captured (vainly trying to explain that he’s an “Amphibian-American”) and sent to the gulag.
And Constantine is running the Muppet Show. Even though he speaks with a thick accent and has a completely different personality, none of the Muppets notices the switch, especially when he tells them they can do whatever they want. Miss Piggy does not realize that her beloved frog has been replaced.
Meanwhile, the hard core prisoners in the gulag (including Ray Liotta and a mystery guest star in solitary) figure out immediately that Kermit is not Constantine because he says “thank you.” Even Nadya (Tina Fey), who runs the prison, knows it is not Constantine. But her fondest dream is a first-class gulag musical show. She won’t let Kermit leave because she needs him to direct it. And she knows every possible trick the prisoners might try to sneak out. She explains, “I have a Netflix account with the search words ‘prison escape.'” Also, she likes him. So, soon Kermit is overseeing a prison kick-line to a song from “A Chorus Line” (the guy in solitary has a great set of pipes). And Constantine is getting ready for the biggest heist of all: the British royal family’s crown jewels, though — wait for it — “It’s not easy being mean.”
On the path of the master thieves are a pair of non-master detectives, Jean Pierre Napoleon from Interpol (Ty Burell, through no fault of his own the movie’s only weak point) and Sam the Eagle from the FBI. Their competition over the size of their badges is rather fun, but then their appearances descend into repeated and increasingly flat jokes about Napoleon’s tiny car and constant breaks for meals and vacations. But then we have the classic shots of newspapers to bring us up to date: “Slow News Week; Muppets Dominate Headlines” and we’re back in Muppet heaven.
Note: Be sure to get to the theater in time. There’s an adorable “Monsters University” short before the feature starts.
Parents should know that there is some bad behavior, a very brief scary skeleton and mild peril. Scenes in the gulag play dire prison conditions and treatment for comedy.
Family discussion: How could Nadya, Fozzie, and Walter tell the difference between Kermit and Constantine? Why didn’t anyone else figure out what was going on? Why did Constantine let the Muppets do whatever they wanted?
If you like this, try: The Muppet Show and their feature films
and their feature films