Planes

[metsmarathon]

from high above the world of cars, without the folks from pixar, comes disney's planes.

it was originally set to be a d2v flick, but they saw a moneymaking opportunity, and to the big screen it goes.

the movie is getting killed on rotten tomatoes, but i think that's mostly because its not a pixar flick. actually, i think the reason its getting slammed is because it feels like a pixar knockoff. and while it might be a valid criticism if some other studio, it does feature john lasseter on the credits.

the movie is a bit thin on plotting and the story is fairly basic, but it's a kids move that isn't overtly and aggressively dumb, and is almost entirely devoid of fart jokes. dusty crop hopper wants to be a racer, not a crop duster. predictability ensues. along the way he encounters a bunch of planes from all over the world. naturally, they represent overwrought stereotypical caricatures of those worldly origins - none moreso than el chupacabra, dusty's new friend. el chu is voiced by the taco bell chihuahua, an american of argentinian descent. i think this guy is responsible for most of the negative reviews, actually. he's played with a very heavy hand, though the lesson he teaches is to play is to play it smoothly. i'm not sure if the criticism is warranted or not, but surely the big-ears company should've seen it coming.

there was a wwii flashback in there that minimm didn't really understand at all, though i don't think he was too scared by it.

the climax wasn't terribly climactic, as there was really no sense of peril at all in the movie. but it moved along well enough.

the animation was a notch or two below what pixar would have turned out, but the target audience wouldn't really notice. also, we did see it in 3d, and that added nothing, and may also have detracted from minimm's experience. he didn't really want to wear the glasses too much, and really, there was nothing in the movie that warranted it, other than making some scenery seem better.

if you need to take a munchkin to a movie, take your munchkin to this movie. it's no toy story 3, but its also no air buddies 17.

relative to kiddie movies, i tend to give it a 6. relative to movies as a whole, i'd give it more of a low 5.

[Guest Mets � Willets Point]

Wow, the main character is a crop duster and there are no fart jokes. That must've taken some restraint.

[MFS62]

MMYF taking the grandson to see it today. I'll post her comments.

Later

[metsmarathon]

Mets � Willets Point wrote: Wow, the main character is a crop duster and there are no fart jokes. That must've taken some restraint.

seriously.

i'm rethinking my 6 rating. for a kids movie to not be aggressively stupid or fart jokey, and only be somewhat weakly plotted and character underdeveloped, and have wonderful visuals, is something to be celebrated. when this comes out on DVD, i won't mind owning it and allowing it into the rotation, and sitting down with minimm (and the �mm's) to watch it.

i'm upping it to 7.

[RealityChuck]

Mets � Willets Point wrote: Wow, the main character is a crop duster and there are no fart jokes. That must've taken some restraint.

I thought fart jokes were required by law in any Hollywood comedy.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

Okay, so a kiddie 7, then?

[metsmarathon]

yes, kiddie 7.

the kiddie movie bar is unfortunately rather low.

[MFS62]

MMYF said the hero's mentor was a Corsair. That was a Navy fighter plane that had approximately the same performance as the P-38 Lightning.
She gives it that score.

Later