Review: Cars 2

Cars 2 is fun, funny, fast paced, and an exciting spy movie that improves upon the original Cars and has fun with the genre its playing in; while turning in some quality set pieces that a lot of action movies wish they had.

Check out my review of the Toy Story Toons short in front of Cars 2; Hawaiian Vacation.

The original Cars has grown on me every time I’ve seen it and while it’s still my least favorite Pixar film I still think it is quite a good little movie.  One thing I realized recently about Cars, don’t know why it took so long, is that it is almost without a plot.  Sure there is the race but it is just a character piece more or less and that realization even furthered my enjoyment of the original film.  And it wasn’t till we got to Radiator Springs in Cars 2 that I realized how much I liked and missed these characters and their stories.  I honestly think I would have enjoyed Cars 2 had it just been another nice and easy character piece in Radiator Springs and this sequel made me retroactively appreciate Cars even more for its great character work.

People that were affected, consciously or not, by Cars lack of plot will have no issues here as Cars 2 is full of it.  [Read more...]

Review: Tangled

Disney’s Tangled is the studio’s best computer animated effort yet and continues to show that John Lasseter’s control over the Mouse House animation team is a brilliant move in the right direction.  Having said that, there is still room for improvement in Tangled but as it stands it is still a very entertaining and attractive family offering.

A retelling of the Rapunzel fairy tale, the story follows the tale’s title character whom is unknowingly being held captive in a secluded tower by a centuries old witch(?) who exploits the magic powers of Rapunzel’s hair.  Rapunzel’s hair was enchanted with the ability to heal/give ever lasting youth to its touch after summoning its power with a song and the witch, Gothel, will do anything to keep the hair within her grasps.  Painting a terrifying and treacherous picture of the world outside the tower Gothel’s grip on Rapunzel is beginning to wane as she gets older and longs for life outside her secluded hideaway.  Enter Flynn Ryder, a thief on the run after stealing Rapunzel’s waiting crown if she ever returns to her royal family she was stolen from as a baby.  Ryder stumbles upon Rapunzel’s hideaway and he is forced by her to take her to see the annual lights that appear on her birthday every year in the night sky.  The two set out on their journey and an unexpected relationship forms between the two.

[Read more...]

Save on Toy Story 1 & Toy Story 2 Blu-Ray/Combo Packs with $5 Coupons and $10 Off Deal at Target

Like this week’s Princess and the Frog deal Disney is again, as they always do, offering coupons on their newest Blu-ray entry, this time the Toy Story Films!

Head here to print off your coupons which saves $5 dollars on each title for a total of $10 of savings on the two titles. But that is not all, at Target the titles are selling for $19.99 each, plus if you buy both you save another $10 so you get both Toy Story’s on Blu for $20 Dollars! That is a deal.

Also, if you have any of the old Toy Story DVD’s you might want to hold on to those and not trade them in, especially the Ultimate Toy Box Collection, as there are still a few extras not ported over to these Blu-Ray’s.

Again, head here to get your coupon, and make sure you print our your right territory as the Canada ones will not work in the US and vice versa.

Happy Saving!

Review: The Princess and the Frog

The Princess and the Frog isn’t a return to the brilliant early 90’s heyday of Disney Animation, but it is for sure a huge step in the right direction.
Twisting the classic tale of The Frog Princess on its head this version of the classic fairytale has the “princess” turn into a frog when she kisses the green prince and the two embark on a journey through the New Orleans bayou in hopes of returning to their human form.  The tale is full of voodoo magic, jazz anthems, and talking creatures from the swamps pop up and populate the story that does a nice job of paving its own path while evoking enough of those classic films to create a familiarity with them that this desperately hopes it will be considered with.
The story side of things can be a tad bit repetitive and drags a bit once we hit the swaps.  The film does manage to squeeze some quality jokes into picture though with Prince Naveen and Louis the alligator providing most of the film’s laughs.  The film also does a very good job at creating a beautiful period era New Orleans and the city is bustling with music and character. [Read more...]