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BaftaBaby 
"Always entranced by cinema."
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 Posted - 09/17/2012 : 14:47:29
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No deep analysis you'll be relieved to hear! Some truly wonderful filmic techniques go a long way to pushing this cgi tale into the well worth watching category. Voice acting all v. fine; script could have used more of a wit injection to help prop up the plot. And it could easily have at least 15 minutes chopped.
But, I gotta admit it's hard to totally suspend disbelief in what becomes quite a Christian tale ... especially when headlines are still highlighting the torture and death of children in certain communities claiming to justify their actions because the kids are deemed to be witches.
Very sad.
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randall
"I like to watch."
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Posted - 01/15/2013 : 21:39:10
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I loved it. First of all, the script is brave enough to acknowledge that some kids love monsters and still hate bullies [even though both oppressive categories wind up redeemed by the end], but it's still nuthin but a slapstick fest, possibly a mite scary for the most impressionable, very youngest ones.
What takes it over the top is the animation, a CGI/stop-motion hybrid that gives you the best of Ray Harryhausen and John Lasseter. And the critters look like they were designed by Tim Burton, all elongated faces, etc. [This studio also did Henry Selick's CORALINE, so they've gone to school on Burton images.] That same sense of funny spreads through the whole design, whether it's a little witch-centric town or a doltish male ingenue [voiced by Casey Affleck] with IMPOSSIBLE upper-body development. It's a trifle, yes, but with so much zazz that you just have to give it up. Beautiful. |
Edited by - randall on 01/15/2013 21:44:13 |
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GHcool 
"Forever a curious character."
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Posted - 01/17/2013 : 02:32:53
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I'm so glad the two of you liked this movie as much as I did. The only thing I disagree with is BaftaBabe's suggestion to chop 15 minutes.
As far as how "frightening" this movie is, I'll admit, it is a pretty hard PG and might even justify a PG13 rating. My little sister is 9 and she saw it and put on a brave face. I don't think anything gave her nightmares. A few weeks later, I took her to see Hotel Transylvania, which is another Halloween-themed animated feature. She liked that movie a lot more while I liked ParaNorman a lot more.
ParaNorman and, to a lesser extent, The Nightmare Before Christmas are movies that adults are more afraid of than their kids. That's because both films deal with adult themes and subtexts that pass over the kids. They are psychologically complex and somewhat allegorical. Few non-animated films are as thematically dense as ParaNorman. And few are as funny or designed as beautifully. This is a remarkable achievement. |
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randall
"I like to watch."
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Posted - 01/17/2013 : 11:48:30
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I also don't think it's bloated at, what, an hour and a half?
EDIT: But I must stand behind my warning that it may occasionally be a bit too scary for very little, or impressionable, ones. As ever, parents and older relatives should be the judges. Your little preciousssss is unique, and only you know what s/he can endure without bad dreams. [And, as many future psychoanalysts and memoir editors will undoubtedly attest, sometimes you don't!] |
Edited by - randall on 01/18/2013 22:00:57 |
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ParaNorman
