 |
|
||||
|
 |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Upcoming Release Calendar
38
12 Rounds Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed movies.
67
$9.99 Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed movies.
|
Curious George
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
|
||||||||||||
MPAA RATING: G for General Audiences
Starring Will Ferrell, Drew Barrymore, David Cross, Eugene Levy, Dick Van Dyke, Ed O'Ross, Joan Plowright, Shane Baumel, Hailey Noelle Johnson, and Nadia Lewis
Universal Pictures and Imagine Entertainment bring Curious George, the original "monkey see, monkey do" chimp, to the screen in an all-new animated adventures based upon the beloved tales that have been enchanting readers for more than 60 years. (Universal Pictures)
| GENRE(S): | Adventure | Animation | Comedy | Family/Kids |
| WRITTEN BY: |
Ken Kaufman
H.A. Rey (main characters) |
| DIRECTED BY: | Matthew O'Callaghan |
| RELEASE DATE: |
DVD: September 26, 2006 Theatrical: February 10, 2006 |
| RUNNING TIME: | 86 minutes, Color |
| ORIGIN: | USA |
All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...
The average user rating for this movie is 8.0 (out of 10) based on 30 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.
Luis G. gave it a9:
A fan of the books and with a younger brother I tend to watch pleanty of kid-films and I have to say this is the first time I felt safe at the movies with my 7 year old brother... no inuendo, no inside jokes just pure simple story like they used to make them ... the film is delightful, caring and what i havnt seen in years .... I will a copy of my own and then one for my lil brothers ... salutes... perhaps the only drawback is the length I would of liked to see more ...
Matt C. gave it a10:
I watched this movie with my little sister and thought is was great, and I'm 19 years old! It made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.
Mark B. gave it a7:
Frank Welker is one of the all-time great names in recent animation history: virtually everyone, adult and child, who loves TV and movie cartoons has enjoyed his work, and yet almost no one knows who he is! He's a prodigiously talented and versatile voice artist who has worked for most of the big animation firms; he took over some of Mel Blanc's most famous vocal characterizations after Blanc's death, but Welker's specialty is animal noises--moos, meows, chirps, barks, roars and other miscellaneous gutteral utterances from creatures who aren't as articulate or fluent in the English language as Bugs Bunny is. True to form, he voices the title character in Curious George, the film version of H. A. Rey's beloved children's books centering on an inquisitive little monkey, and yet you have to wait until more than halfway through the closing credits to see his name appear even once, even though he plays the LEAD ROLE! Not that I'm complaining too much about the actual celebrity voices involved here: Will Ferrell is admirably restrained as George's best friend, pet human and father figure, The Man With The Yellow Hat; Drew Barrymore is thoroughly enchanting as Yellow's would-be romantic interest (or as close as you get to one in a G-rated cartoon); and Dick Van Dyke, David Cross and Joan Plowright contribute nicely modulated supporting bits. Ron Howard's Imagine Entertainment seemed to take forever to get this produced, perhaps in part because the Rey estate saw just what an offensive distortion Howard and his company made out of Dr. Seuss's How the Grinch Stole Christmas, and (I'd like to think) they decided to make sure that Opie and the suits remained faithful to the innocence of the George books. The wait was worth it: in an era when such lumps of prefabricated pop-culture junk as Madagascar and Hoodwinked are accepted by far too many as quality family entertainment, this is a real breath of fresh air--a kids' movie that really is designed, written and pitched for them, with just a few sly references to A League of Their Own and the like to get a smile out of Mom and Dad. Not that adults should be bored by it at all (in fact, this could be a great date movie!); the stylishly puffy, billowing 2D layouts and backgrounds are a lot of fun to look at and seem completely effortless even though we know how much hard work went into them. The movie is effectively fast-paced without ever being manic, and--appropriately for wee ones and even some of us jaded Big Ones--so goodhearted that it even allows its nominal comic villain a partially happy ending. The only two real complaints I have about Curious George are the completely inappropriate product placements (even if they're for fruits rather than potato chips or candy bars, and little George has to eat SOMETHING)...and the fact that Frank Welker really, really needs to hire himself a good lawyer, if not a more aggressive agent.
Gregory K. gave it a10:
My 3 yo son and I have seen Curious George seven times, plus we bought the soundtrack. We both love it. I couldn't imagine a better movie for a father/son outing, given the obvious metaphor of George and the Man in Yellow. And what a pleasure that the animated animals don't speak or do hip-hop.
Josh H. gave it a9:
I liked it, my three year old liked it...she kept her toddler butt planted in the theater seat the entire time at the risk of not being able to see the end. Cute, kid friendly but with humor intended for an adult mind as well....a very satisfying night out with the family.
David F. gave it an8:
Nice movie for kids. I took my 4 year old daughter to this film as her first visit to a real cineplex and it was an almost perfect little film for her age. Not great for older kids though.
Jen O. gave it a9:
Excellent movie with songs that you can't help but hum along with.
 |
Return to top of page |  |
