Dumbo

Posted on September 19, 2011 at 8:00 am

Lowest Recommended Age:	Kindergarten - 3rd Grade
MPAA Rating:	G
Profanity:	None
Alcohol/ Drugs:	Characters get drunk
Violence/ Scariness:	Sad and scary scenes, mother caged and separated from her child
Diversity Issues:	A theme of the movie, some racial material insensitive by today's standards
Date Released to Theaters:	1941
Date Released to DVD:	September 19, 2011
Amazon.com ASIN:	B003H9M1QM

A gorgeous new 70th anniversary “Dumbo” Blu-Ray DVD pack is the Pick of the Week.

The stork delivers babies to the circus animals, including Mrs. Jumbo’s baby, an elephant with enormous ears. The other elephants laugh at him and call him Dumbo, but Mrs. Jumbo loves him very much. When Dumbo is mistreated, she is furious and raises such a fuss that she is locked up. Dumbo is made part of the clown act, which embarasses him very much. He is a big hit and, celebrating his good fortune, accidentally drinks champagne and becomes tipsy. The next morning, he wakes up in a tree, with no idea how he got there. It turns out that he flew! His big ears are aerodynamic. He becomes the star of the circus, with his proud mother beside him.

The themes in this movie include tolerance of differences and the importance of believing in yourself. It also provides a good opportunity to encourage empathy by asking kids how they would feel if everyone laughed at them the way the animals laugh at Dumbo, and how important it is to Dumbo to have a friend like Timothy.

Parents should note that while respecting individual differences is a theme of the movie, the crows who sing “When I See an Elephant Fly” would be considered racist by today’s standards. One of them is named “Jim Crow” and they speak with “Amos ‘n Andy”-style accents, but clearly they are not intended to be insulting. Families who see this movie should talk about that depiction, as well as these questions: Why does Timothy tell Dumbo he needs the feather to fly? How does he learn that he does not need it? Why do the other elephants laugh at Dumbo’s ears? How does that make him feel?

Families who enjoy this movie will also enjoy some stories with related themes. The circus train, Casey, Jr., puffs “I think I can” as it goes up the hill, just like “The Little Engine That Could.” Compare this story to “How the Elephant Got Its Trunk,” by Rudyard Kipling (read by Jack Nicholson in the wonderful Rabbit Ears production), in which another elephant finds his larger-than expected feature first ridiculed and then envied by the other elephants. Kids may also enjoy comparing this to “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer,” “The Ugly Duckling,” and other stories about differences that make characters special.

The Lion King 3D

Posted on September 15, 2011 at 11:16 pm

Lowest Recommended Age:	Kindergarten - 3rd Grade
MPAA Rating:	G
Profanity:	None
Alcohol/ Drugs:	None
Violence/ Scariness:	Disturbing death of a parent and family betrayal, scary stampede and mean hyenas, characters in peril
Diversity Issues:	Diverse animal characters
Date Released to Theaters:	1994
Amazon.com ASIN:	B001AQR3JY

One of Disney’s most popular animated features (and the inspiration for one of Broadway’s biggest blockbuster) has been re-issued in 3D. “The Lion King” is sort of a cross between “Richard III” and “Hamlet,” the story of Simba (voice of Jonathan Taylor Thomas as a child, Matthew Broderick as an adult), the cub of Mufasa (James Earl Jones), the king of the jungle. Simba “just can’t wait to be king.” But his evil Uncle Scar (Jeremy Irons), bitterly jealous of Mufasa, wants to be king, so he arranges for Mufasa to be killed in a stampede and to have Simba think he is responsible.

Simba runs away, and finds friends in Pumbaa the warthog (Ernie Sabella) and Timon the meerkat (Nathan Lane), who advise him that the best philosophy is “hakuna matata” (no worries). Simba grows up thinking he has escaped from his past, but his childhood friend, Nala finds him, and tells him that under Scar’s leadership, the tribe has suffered badly. She persuades him to return to take on his responsibilities as King of the Pridelands. He learns that it was Scar who caused Mufasa’s death, and he vanquishes Scar to become King.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nCKCSBpfL0M

Not just a movie, but a marketing phenomenon, this blockbuster was the highest grossing film of 1994. Amazingly, it made even more money in merchandise than it did at the box office, a fact for which audiences have been paying ever since, as each subsequent Disney animated movie seems to be designed primarily as a commercial for teeshirts, lunch boxes and action figures. The score, and the song “Circle of Life,” with authentic African rhythms and instruments, won Oscars for Elton John and Tim Rice.

Parents should know that the death of Mufasa is genuinely scary and young and sensitive children may be frightened of the stampede, the hyenas, and the family betrayal. More troubling is the arrogance of the “Circle of Life” explanation, which is mighty reassuring as long as you are the one on top of the food chain. And worse than that is the whole “hakuna matata” idea, which is genuinely irresponsible. Make sure that kids realize that even Simba finds out that he cannot run away from his problems.

Family discussion: How was being king different from what Simba thought? What does your family do to welcome new babies?

If you like this, try: the stage production, with its extraordinary puppets, “The Lion King 1 1/2,” a much better-than-average sequel, and other Disney animated classics like “Aladdin” and “The Little Mermaid.”

Glee Live! 3D

Posted on August 11, 2011 at 6:09 pm

Gather up, Gleeks, “Raise Your Glass” and get ready for “Fireworks!” The musical TV series about a high school show choir, now poised to move from hit to cult, continues its juggernaut from television, CDs and iTunes downloads, live performances, a Karaoke video game, board game, Slushie cups, an iPad app, and Cheerios Cheerleader Costumes (with baby bump) into theaters with a concert movie, 3D of course. It is expertly designed to make the fans happy with a can’t miss set-list of greatest hits, sung and danced as though the New Directions had been given another shot at Nationals. This is fabulously entertaining. There is nothing new here but it is a love letter for the fans, especially the fans who fast-forward through the talking parts of the show to get to the music.

On the Fox television series, now getting ready for its third season, New Directions is the name of Lima Ohio’s William McKinley High School show choir (the new version of the old glee clubs, but no less dorky). In the opening episodes, Will Schuester (Matthew Morrison) persuades the principal to let him re-start the glee club, his favorite activity when he was a student there. Soon he as a combination of school misfits and outcasts including Lea Michele as mini-diva Rachel, Amber Riley as the almost-equally-diva-ish Mercedes, Chris Colfer as the only out gay student in the school, Kevin McHale as Artie, who is in a wheelchair, and Jenna Ushkowitz as the shy Tina. Through a series of plot complications, they were joined by some of the school’s most popular kids from the football team and Cheerios cheerleader squad, quarterback Finn (Cory Monteith) and his mohawked bad boy friend Puck (Mark Salling) and pregnant head cheerleader Quinn (Dianna Agron), ethereally air-headed Brittney (Heather Morris), and the tart-tongued tart Santana (Naya Rivera).

The storyline has included one teen pregnancy, one faked adult pregnancy, a reconnection with a birth mother, health crises, a wedding, and a very sad death, major guest stars (Gwyneth Paltrow, Neil Patrick Harris, Kristin Chenoweth, Eve, Carol Burnett, and Idina Menzel) and tributes (Madonna, Britney Spears, Lady Gaga, the Rocky Horror Show). There have been shifting rivalries and volatile romances at the teen and adult level, a blazer-clad prep school show choir called the Warblers with a teenage dreamboat leader named Blaine (Darren Criss). The major battle is between Will and the coach of the Cheerios, Sue Sylvester (played by Christopher Guest favorite Jane Lynch). Second only to its electrifying musical numbers is “Glee’s” passionate commitment to inclusion. In addition to its gay and straight, differently-abled, and multi-racial characters and cast members, it has had two major characters with Down syndrome.

Producer Ryan Murphy brings the same commitment to diversity to the song line-up on the show, and like the series this concert includes up-to-the-minute pop numbers from Pink, Lady Gaga, and Katy Perry, classic R&B (“Ain’t No Way,” “River Deep, Mountain High”) and classic rock (“Fat Bottomed Girls,” “Somebody to Love”), a little hip-hop, some Bowie, Michael Jackson, and Beatles, a Broadway show tune, a surprise guest appearance, and a remake of a legendary duet when Barbra Streisand guest-starred on Judy Garland’s variety show and they did a mash-up of “Get Happy” and “Happy Days are Here Again.” Performed by Michele (in a middy just like Streisand’s) and Coulter it is piercingly sweet.

The 3D camera is exceptionally well-suited to concert films, bringing us right on stage and giving us a sense of depth in the dance numbers (and such a realistic face-Slushie you’ll want to wipe it off). Cinematographer Glen MacPherson and dancer/choreographer-turned director Kevin Tancharoen use the camera as a part of the movement of the dances and the music of the songs, keeping it moving but respecting the integrity of the numbers. The now-standard back-stage glimpses work less well, partly because the cast does not seem to have a good sense of whether they are supposed to be themselves or stay in character and partly because they are far better performing choreographed numbers than ad libbing. Jane Lynch and some of the shots in the trailer do not appear in the movie — look for them in the DVD extras, which include some special features: Shazam prompts on the screen alerting vieweers to a Shazamable moment. Using their smartphones, fans can “tag” the movie when prompted to unlock exclusive content, including song lyrics in time with the music using the LyricPlay feature, exclusive behind the scenes footage not seen in theaters; exclusive photos of the cast; trivia and special offers.

It is nice to see the enthusiasm of the fans, some wearing huge foam L-for-loser fingers to embrace their Gleekiness. And there are three very affecting appearances by fans who reflect and benefit from the show’s emphasis on embracing difference. Be sure to stay all the way through the credits for an encore and an adorable fan video from a mini-Warbler.

But mostly this movie exists for the same reason that glee clubs exist — the music lifts the spirits and the dances thrill the soul.

(more…)

Related Tags:

3D Documentary Musical

Smile of the Week: Fred and Judy are A Couple of Swells

Posted on July 20, 2011 at 8:00 am

I love this silly number from Easter Parade!

Related Tags:

Musical Smile of the Week

Winnie the Pooh

Posted on July 14, 2011 at 6:36 pm

Disney’s latest film lovingly captures the magic of A.A. Milne’s Winnie-the-Pooh stories and poems, which have been enchanting children and their parents for 85 years. They were a sort of earlier “Toy Story,” with the adventures of Christopher Robin’s stuffed tiger, kangaroo, donkey, and most of all his bear of very little brain, sometimes known as Edward Bear but known to his friends as Pooh. Milne’s simple prose was a peek into the world of a child’s imagination, including play but also including fear and anxiety and reassurance and friendship. Children enjoyed the fanciful tales but what resonates so compellingly to audiences of all ages is the narrator’s voice, gentle, understanding, and with great affection and acceptance for all of its characters.

All of this is beautifully brought to life in this brief 68-minute film that is one of the rare movies genuinely suitable for the whole family. It combines two of the books’ best stories. Eeyore loses his tail. A misunderstanding has the friends worried that Christoper Robin has been kidnapped by a terrible monster called the Backson. In both, the friends work together

The reason that is reassuring on such a deep level is that each of the characters is an aspect of each of us and each of their struggles and mistakes feels very true to us. Eeyore is the pessimistic and insecure voice that represents our worries and Tigger is us at our most ebullient and confident. Piglet is anxious and fearful. Kanga is the loving parent who represents the superego. And Pooh is that most elemental of ids, wanting to do the right thing and be a good friend but always led by his tummy’s love for honey. Their minor struggles are endearing and their support for one another — like the song they sing when it appears one of them has found a tail for Eeyore and won the prize — is heartwarming.

There is some charming music from M. Ward and Zooey Deschanel and an adorable “who’s on first”-style wordplay mix-up. John Cleese provides the narration, Spongebob’s Tom Kinney is the voice of the Owl, and Jim Cummings takes over for both Sterling Holloway and Paul Winchell as Pooh and Tigger. It is a pleasure to spend time in the 100 acre woods with these old friends and share their adventures, a welcome reminder that while we must leave childhood, we can come back soon.

Armistead Maupin used this lovely passage for the title of one of his Tales of the City books.

“Piglet sidled up to Pooh from behind. “Pooh,” he whispered.

“Yes, Piglet?”

“Nothing,” said Piglet, taking Pooh’s paw, “I just wanted to be sure of you.”

Parents should know that this film includes some very mild peril (mostly imagined by the characters).

Family discussion: How did the animals help and support each other? When did you think something was scary only to find out it was just your imagination? Why does everything look like honey to Pooh?

If you like this, try: the books by A.A. Milne