Infinite MonkeysI feel bad for not mentioning it earlier, but in case you've got the urge to take your kid(s) to the movies this weekend, here's my recommendation: Teacher's Pet. My wife and I enjoyed it as much as if not a bit more than our boys (8 and 4). It's only got one part that lags, but that's inevitable. It's got tons of cultural references (and even a few classical ones -- mainly art) that come at you quickly, and the fun songs are terribly clever. My wife and I were on opposite sides of our two sons, but we kept finding the lyrics so funny that we had to catch one another's eye and grin.
Not sold? Okay, but consider this: Wallace Shawn and Paul Reubens in the same movie. Jerry Stiller too. (I know, most folks either love or hate Nathan Lane. I'm one of the odd ones who can take him or leave him. Frankly, I find that his best work is in voice-over parts like this one. In animation, over-the-top is par for the course, so he works.) I'd enjoyed the few episodes of the tv show that I'd seen over at Nana's where there's satellite tv. I was surpised to find out that the cat is voiced by David Ogden Stiers in both the show and the movie. The movie's villian is voiced by Kelsey Grammer.
I hear that the movie isn't doing so well at the box office. Pffft. Nevermind the returns. It's a fine piece of animated fun. Sure, it's a bit post-modern in its humor, and the art design is offbeat, but the animation is done old-school. Sure, I love Pixar. But you owe it to your kids to let 'em have a chance to see a hand-animated feature in a theater before they are no more.
Posted by Brad at January 23, 2004 04:19 PM | TrackBack