Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald Review

Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald (Rated PG-13) Synopsis:
Warner Bros. Pictures’ Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald is the second of five all new adventures in J.K. Rowling’s Wizarding World™.

At the end of the first film, the powerful Dark wizard Gellert Grindelwald (Johnny Depp) was captured by MACUSA (Magical Congress of the United States of America), with the help of Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne). But, making good on his threat, Grindelwald escaped custody and has set about gathering followers, most unsuspecting of his true agenda: to raise pure-blood wizards up to rule over all non-magical beings.

In an effort to thwart Grindelwald’s plans, Albus Dumbledore (Jude Law) enlists his former student Newt Scamander, who agrees to help, unaware of the dangers that lie ahead. Lines are drawn as love and loyalty are tested, even among the truest friends and family, in an increasingly divided Wizarding World.

Review:
The movie starts out with the escape of Grindelwald during his extradition back to Britain from his American cell. The powerful Grindelwald wants to rule over the no-maj population with his fellow wizards. To help him in this quest, he seeks out the young and gifted Credence, who has relocated to Paris in hopes of finding his real family. Magizoologist Newt Scamander reluctantly agrees to help stop Grindelwald by finding Credence first.

I felt the movie fell short in keeping the audience engaged.  Although my son did identify a few humorous parts in the movie, I felt somewhat disinterested in the main characters, and was wanting to see more of the secondary characters, Jacob and Queenie, who were very entertaining in the previous installment.

The actions scenes were visually stunning and the cinematography was good, however, the first installment simply had so much more to offer.  

Hard core Harry Potter fans may enjoy the movie, but if you are unfamiliar with the series at all, you may find the movie very difficult to understand or even enjoy.

Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald is now in theaters.  Get tickets here.

Mahalo to the sponsor for the screening tickets.

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Smallfoot Review

Smallfoot (Rated PG)
An animated adventure for all ages, with original music and an all-star cast, Smallfoot turns a myth upside down when a bright young yeti finds something he thought didn’t exist—a human.

News of this “smallfoot” throws the simple yeti community into an uproar over what else might be out there in the big world beyond their snowy village, in an all new story about friendship, courage and the joy of discovery.

Smallfoot stars Channing Tatum (The LEGO® Batman Movie, the Jump Street films) as the yeti, Migo, and James Corden (Trolls, The Emoji Movie) as the Smallfoot, Percy. Also starring are Zendaya (Spider-Man: Homecoming), Common (Selma), LeBron James (upcoming Space Jam 2), Danny DeVito (The Lorax, Oscar nominee for Erin Brockovich), Gina Rodriguez (Jane the Virgin), Yara Shahidi (TV’s Black-ish), Ely Henry (TV’s Justice League Action), and Jimmy Tatro (22 Jump Street).

Smallfoot is directed by Karey Kirkpatrick, Annie Award-winning director of Over the Hedge and Annie nominee for the screenplays for Chicken Run and James and the Giant Peach. The screenplay is by Kirkpatrick and Clare Sera, screen story by John Requa & Glenn Ficarra and Kirkpatrick, based on the book Yeti Tracks, by Sergio Pablos.

The film is produced by Bonne Radford (Curious George), Glenn Ficarra (Storks, This is Us,) and John Requa (Storks, This is Us). Serving as executive producers are Nicholas Stoller, Phil Lord, Christopher Miller, Jared Stern, Karey Kirkpatrick, Sergio Pablos, Courtenay Valenti, and Allison Abbate. The creative team includes editor Peter Ettinger, and composer Heitor Pereira. Animation is by Sony Pictures Imageworks.

Hawaii Dad Blog Review:

Smallfoot starts off by introducing us to a group of yetis who live atop a mountain above the clouds. Their leader, the Stonekeeper, orders them to follow the rules of the stones.  The yetis perform seemingly meaningless daily tasks, and are discouraged from asking any questions.  

One day, Migo, a young yeti rule-follower, crosses paths with a "Smallfoot," a pilot whose plane crashed near their village. When Migo tries to tell the other yetis what he saw, he is exiled from the village.

Migo joins up with a few others who have formed a secret group of yeti conspiracy theorists. They believe Migo and help him go below the clouds (where the stones have told them not to go) to find the Smallfoot and bring him back to prove he was telling the truth.

Smallfoot was quite funny. I especially liked the ode to the old Looney Toons cartoons.  My son liked the small yeti, Fleem, who had many of the funniest lines.

Aside from the laughs, Smallfoot also delivered a worthy message - don't be afraid to get to know others who are different from you, which is good advice in this day and age.

I thought the voice actors all did a great job, and I really enjoyed how the characters would break into song throughout the movie. I felt that it really added to the entertainment factor, and it also helped move the story along. 

Smallfoot is a great movie for families with young kids.

Mahalo to the sponsor for the screening tickets.

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Teen Titans GO! to the Movies Review

Teen Titans GO! to the Movies (Rated PG) Synopsis:
When the Teen Titans go to the big screen, they go big! Teen Titans GO! to the Movies finds our egocentric, wildly satirical Super Heroes in their first feature film extravaganza—a fresh, gleefully clever, kid-appropriately crass and tongue-in-cheek play on the superhero genre, complete with musical numbers.

It seems to the Teens that all the major superheroes out there are starring in their own movies—everyone but the Teen Titans, that is! But de facto leader Robin is determined to remedy the situation, and be seen as a star instead of a sidekick. If only they could get the hottest Hollywood film director to notice them. With a few madcap ideas and a song in their heart, the Teen Titans head to Tinsel Town, certain to pull off their dream. But when the group is radically misdirected by a seriously Super-Villain and his maniacal plan to take over the Earth, things really go awry. The team finds their friendship and their fighting spirit failing, putting the very fate of the Teen Titans themselves on the line!

Will Arnett (The LEGO® Batman Movie) and Kristen Bell (Frozen) lend their voices to the first-ever big-screen version of DC Entertainment and Cartoon Network’s animated TV show, which also stars Greg Cipes (TV’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles) as Beast Boy, Scott Menville (TV’s Spider-Man) as Robin, Khary Payton (The Walking Dead) as Cyborg, Tara Strong (the My Little Pony franchise) as Raven, and Hynden Walch (TV’s Adventure Time with Finn & Jake) as Starfire, reprising their roles from the series.

Hawaii Dad Blog Review:
Teen Titans GO! to the Movies centers round the group's longing to be in a superhero movie like their fellow DC superheroes.  True to form, Robin becomes obsessed with breaking out of his sidekick role and breaking into the spotlight, even if it's at the expense of Cyborg, Starfire, Beast Boy, and Raven. He reaches out to the hot Hollywood director, Jade Wilson (Kristen Bell), to get her to give him his own movie. He also tries to develop an archenemy relationship with the villain, Slade (Will Arnett), in hopes that their rivalry will cause others to see him as a serious superhero.

Teen Titans GO! to the Movies had a good dose of the typical smart humor that I’ve always enjoyed on the TV series. The cheesy songs that fans are familiar with from the TV show are present in the movie as well. I thought it was cool how many stars, such as Nicholas Cage, Halsey, Patton Oswalt, and Jimmy Kimmel lent their voice to the movie. There’s also one very unexpected cameo that was a joy to see.

Teen Titans GO! to the Movies was a great movie.  Any Teen Titans GO! will find it enjoyable.  My son is a Teen Titans GO! fan himself, and he thoroughly enjoyed it.

GO! to the Movies and catch the Teen Titans on the big screen!

Mahalo to the sponsor for the screening tickets.

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Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation - Now in Theaters!

Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation (Rated PG) is now in theaters!

Synopsis:
In Sony Pictures Animation’s Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation, join our favorite monster family as they embark on a vacation on a luxury monster cruise ship so Drac can take a summer vacation from providing everyone else’s vacation at the hotel. It’s smooth sailing for Drac’s Pack as the monsters indulge in all of the shipboard fun the cruise has to offer, from monster volleyball to exotic excursions, and catching up on their moon tans. But the dream vacation turns into a nightmare when Mavis realizes Drac has fallen for the mysterious captain of the ship, Ericka, who hides a dangerous secret that could destroy all of monsterkind.

Review:
In Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation,  Mavis plans a surprise cruise for the whole clan with the goal of providing a relaxing, family bonding getaway for her father, Drac.  Unbeknownst to Mavis, Dracula has been feeling lonely recently and has been longing to find love.

The cruise kicks off in the Bermuda Triangle where Drac gets his first glimpse of the human cruise ship captain, Ericka, and it's love-at-first-sight. Unfortunately for Drac, Ericka’s last name is Van Helsing, and she’s been raised by her great-grandfather to hate monsters, especially him, so she hatches a plan to destroy all the monsters on her ship.

Will Ericka succeed with her plan? Or will she instead realize that monsters are just like people and reciprocate Drac’s feelings?

Being that this is an animated movie geared toward kids, the plot is quite predictable.  

Although my sons laughed throughout the movie, overall I felt Summer vacation fell flat in terms of the liveliness and jokes compared with the first two installments of Hotel Transylvania.  

I did, however, enjoy a few scenes (those who grew up in the 80s will probably enjoy the same ones).

Although I was expecting more from Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation, the animation was great, and little ones will enjoy it!

Mahalo to the sponsor for the screening tickets. 

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Rampage Review - Now in Theaters

Rampage (PG-13) is now in theaters!

Synopsis:
Global icon Dwayne Johnson headlines the action-adventure Rampage, directed by Brad Peyton.

Johnson stars as primatologist Davis Okoye, a man who keeps people at a distance but shares an unshakable bond with George, the extraordinarily intelligent, incredibly rare albino silverback gorilla who has been in his care since he rescued the young orphan from poachers. But a rogue genetic experiment gone awry mutates this gentle ape into a raging creature of enormous size.

To make matters worse, it’s soon discovered there are other similarly altered animals. As these newly created alpha predators tear across North America, destroying everything in their path, Okoye teams with discredited geneticist Kate Caldwell (Naomie Harris) to secure an antidote, fighting his way through an ever-changing battlefield, not only to halt a global catastrophe but to save the fearsome creature that was once his friend.

Hawaii Dad Blog Review:
Johnson stars as Primatologist Davis Okoye, who gets along better with the primates he studies than with his human co-workers. He especially bonds with an albino gorilla named George, with whom he is able to communicate through sign language. A rogue genetic experiment in space goes terribly wrong, resulting in George mutating into an enormous and out of control monster. In other parts of the country, other animals also get mutated and they all head toward the responsible company's headquarters in Chicago, wreaking havoc as they go. Davis and the company's former genetic engineer, Dr. Kate Caldwell (Naomie Harris), race to find an antidote to save both George and the city of Chicago from the giant animal rampage, as well as the military's attempts to stop them.

Rampage is based on an old eighties video game of the same name. I was disappointed that the charismatic Johnson didn’t seem to have his usual magic. The special effects were a bit too cheesy, but kids may find them impressive.  

Speaking of kids, there is quite a bit of swearing, but overall the violence is rather mild and not too extreme.  I was expecting a bit more from the movie, but my son enjoyed it, and it was a fun diversion for a couple of hours.  

Get your tickets to Rampage here.

Mahalo to the sponsor for tickets.

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