Granny Ranny's Coming Attractions

PBS Kids celebrates Valentine’s Day with a new episode of Wordworld, a special hour of Clifford The Big REd Dog and themed episodes from PBS KIDS and PBS KIDS GO! favorites on Friday, February 13th (check local listings).  Online, pbsparents.org offers holiday crafts, e-cards and “heartwarming” recipes for kids and caregivers, as well as features on poetry and expressing feelings.  A new Valentine’s Day themed video playlist will also be available on the PBS Kids Go! video player at pbskidsgo.org/video.

PBS Kids (for preschool audiences)

Worldworld
“My Fuzzy Valentine” – Bug wants to sign a valentine for his favorite WordFriend, but he doesn’t know how to write his name. With lots of encouragement from Frog, he learns that with a little practice he can write his name and give his valentine.
“Love, Bug”- When Sheep decides she wants to make a special Valentine song for her pal Bear, she has trouble finding just the right rhyme to finish her song. With the help of Fly, she discovers the perfect rhyme and makes Bear a Valentine song with real heart.

Clifford The Big Red Dog’s “Love At First Bark” Valentine’s Day Special
“Valentine Schmalentine” – Clifford and Daffodil make Valentine’s Day gifts for Emily Elizabeth, and get competitive over who can make the best one. In the end, they realize Emily will love whatever they make, because she cares for them more than any present.
“Sweethearts Dance” – Emily Elizabeth’s excitement about the Valentine’s Day dance turns to anxiety when she realizes she and her Dad must dance in front of a crowd. Then Dad shares a little secret that helps Emily overcome her fears.
“T-bone, Dog About Town” – A cute poodle named Mimi vacations on Birdwell Island and T-bone develops a crush on her. He tries to impress her by pretending to be a different kind of dog, but soon learns it’s always best to be yourself.
“Mimi’s Back In Town” – T-bone is excited to hear that Mimi the poodle is coming back. T-bone really likes her but he gets embarrassed when Cleo starts teasing him. Cleo eventually realizes that teasing can make people uncomfortable.

PBS Kids Go! (for early-elementary audiences)

Arthur
“Flea to Be You and Me” – Pal is itching like crazy and the culprit is Pepe, an Italian circus flea. To save himself from being “squeeshed,” Pepe enthralls Kate, Pal, and Amigo with the story of his heartbreaking separation from brother Sale – followed by an incredible journey across four continents! Kiss and Tell – Emily returns from her summer in Paris with the amazing news that she’s been kissed – by a boy! Just like in a fairy tale! Now D.W. wants a kiss so that she can be a princess too. But where can she find her Prince Charming?

Cyberchase
“Hugs & Witches” – It’s Valentine’s Day, and Hacker captures Doctor Marbles and Lady Ada Lovelace, placing them inside a time machine invented by the mathematically-minded Lovelace. The kids and Digit must decipher a series of poems left behind by Lady L, and free them from the time machine before it time travels to the nether world of cyberspace – never to return! Will the kids get there in time, or will Valentine’s Day bring nothing but broken hearts?

Maya & Miguel
“Cupid”- Miguel hates Valentine’s Day. He considers it a greeting card holiday. Maya loves Valentine’s Day. She considers it an opportunity to tell your loved ones how much you care about them. As Maya prepares herself for the best Valentine’s Day ever, Miguel is horrified to learn that he has been chosen as the official Cupid of the school this year, and must deliver valentines throughout the school, attired in cupid wings. He begs and pleads with anyone and everyone to take over his job, to no avail. He straps on the wings and begins halfheartedly delivering the valentines to thrilled students throughout the school. At the end of the day, he tosses the whole getup in the trash, eager to be done with this accursed holiday. Maya, meanwhile, thinks Miguel is lucky to be able to deliver so much happiness and joy, and gets the idea to start a free valentine delivery service for the rest of the neighborhood. Unfortunately, her helper Paco manages to stuff the wrong valentines into the wrong envelopes, and all the valentines are delivered to the wrong people, with insulting results. Soon a mob confronts Maya. Miguel, seeing the mob, digs his cupid wings out of the trash and hops into action to save his sister. In the end, the once angry neighbors are thrilled with the job Miguel does of spreading Valentine’s Day cheer… and Miguel’s heart grows a few sizes towards the holiday he once hated.

From the creators of Beverly Hills Chihuahua comes an all new film Beverly Hills Chihuahua 2! starring George Lopez as the voice of Papi.

The story begins after Papi and his lovely Chihuahua bride Chloe start a family of adorable little puppies. The puppies get into all sorts of playful trouble, but when Papi’s human gets into a sticky situation with the bank, no one hesitates to help. The gang of dogs enter a dog show to raise money to save the family’s house. What will happen next? You’ll just have to wait and see!

This movie is so cute! They did a great job of bringing back the lovable characters from the first film, while incorporating some super cute new characters. My favorite character would have to be Papi Junior, the adorable little male puppy. He always gets into messy situations but is also a fearless leader to his sisters!

The visual aspects are great! I love the bright colors and crisp images that fill the entire movie with life. The special effects are good as well. The dogs really look like they are talking! My favorite scene is when the banker goes to the family’s house to evict them, and the dogs pull so many pranks on him. It is hilarious!

I suggest this film for ages 10 and younger; although I think this film is very cute, it is a little young for my taste. If you like adorable puppies, fun loving adventures and a heart warming story about family and friends, this movie is perfect for you. Despite my age, I give this film a thumbs up!

Credit: Raven Devanney, age 13, KIDS FIRST! Film Critic

In “Beverly Hills 2,” Chloe and Papi, the dogs, get married. I know, weird, but that’s Beverly Hills for you. And Sam and Rachel, their humans, are sort of juggling the idea of getting married.

Sam takes Chloe, Papi and all the other Chihuahuas to his parent’s house in the barrio. Meanwhile, it turns out that Sam’s parents aren’t having it very well off. They’re in debt over $40,000 to the bank, and they are going to lose their home. Now, this is a big problem and everybody is concerned, even the dogs, and, well, … the dogs come to the rescue.

This movie is good for people ages five and up. I think the reason people younger than five might not find this entertaining is that they just wouldn’t understand the plot line. I don’t think that most four-year-olds understand what debt is. However, anyone can enjoy this. My Dad and I watched this together and we were just laughing and laughing, particularly about a comment about a poodle looking like a Q-Tip.

All in all I would give this eight out of ten stars. All ages could enjoy this, including little kids, who would enjoy the music and the bright colors.
Review by Sam Connan, Age 12, KIDS FIRST! Film Critic

Beverly Hills Chihuahua 2 is an irresistible Disney comedy with tons of adventure that is perfect for the entire family! It is directed by Alex Zamm and written by Dannah Feinglass, Danielle Schneider, and Jeffrey Bushell.

Beverly Hills Chihuahua 2 is about two newlywed Chihuahuas named Papi and Chloe who start a family. Chloe gives birth to 5 impetuous and reckless puppies, but the pups soon get their act together when they find out their human owners have trouble paying off the mortgages for their house. The dogs decide to enter the Beverly Hills dog show in hope for the $50,000 prize to help their owners keep the house, but unfortunately, the dogs do not win. However, a bank robbery occurs and the pups decide to stop the crime. Their mischievousness leads them to capturing the robbers and saving the day, but will this good deed be enough to stop the bank from foreclosing their human owners’ house?

The voice over of the movie is excellent. The dogs’ voices fit their personalities well and the voice over contains a lot of emotion. For example, Delgado (voiced over by Miguel Ferrer) who is a sleuthhound, had a husky voice which matched well with his appearance as well as his role in the movie. Papi’s voice also adjusted well to things that were going on in the movie. For example, when he told his pups nightly bedtime stories, his voice would become low in pitch and he would sound mysterious.

The movie is also very comical. I found myself giggling in almost every scene! This movie overall is exhilarating and it contains heartwarming messages such as “true love is worth any risk,” “love fearlessly, and help others share their hearts as well,” “family is about who you love, not just who you are born to,” “we are stronger together than we are alone,” and “stick by your loved ones, even in hard times.” The message “stick by your loved ones, even in hard times,” is perhaps the most significant message in the movie because Papi’s entire family as well as his owners’ family tried their best to prevent the bank from foreclosing their home. 

I would recommend this movie to ages 6 and up.  Beverly Hills Chihuahua 2 is a splendid family film, but if director Alex Zamm created more suspense while the dogs were enjoying their escapades, the movie would have created a bigger impact on the audience and hence, become more captivating. Nevertheless, all in all, this film is perfect for anyone who wants to watch a humorous entertaining adventure about talking dogs! 

Review by Gabriella Chu, KIDS FIRST! Film Critic (age 14)

This movie takes place in Beverly Hills where dogs are treated like humans. The movie is about two Chihuahuas, Chloe and Papi. They get married and have 5 puppies. Chloe and Papi find out that Sam’s (Papi’s owner) parents are about to lose their house, because Sam’s father hurt his back and cannot work, so they can’t afford to pay the mortgage.

Chloe and Papi decide to enter a dog show to try and help get the money to save the house. Unfortunately they don’t win! Their puppies accidentally get kidnapped by 3 bank robbers, and with the help of Delgado and his sons, they help the police track down the 3 robbers they have been searching for, for 3 months. Sam who is Papi’s owner gets the reward money. Is it enough to save the house! You have to go see the movie for yourself to find out. 

My favorite parts are when Papi realizes that it’s not easy being a father and says. ” This dad business is harder than I thought, I should have read the manual.”  This sounds like something a human dad would say. Also when the people from the bank come to inspect the house, and the dogs attack them. I thought they were smart and funny. My favorite dog/characters are Chloe and Papi because of their love for each other, the puppies because they help reunite Delgado and his sons by telling them why he left them and Pedro because of his silly smile. The costumes were great especially Chloe in her wedding dress and Papi in his tuxedo. I thought the special effects were great. The dogs looked like they were really talking. My favorite song in the movie was This Is My Paradise. I rate this movie 5 out of 5 stars, and I recommend it to kids 5 and up.

Review by Ny’Asia Bell, age 7, KIDS FIRST! Film Critic

I love this movie. It is really great. My favorite part of the movie is when Papi and Chloe get married. I like that part the best because it looks like it is going to be a wedding for two people and then you see it’s really for the dogs. It is pretty funny. 

My favorite characters in the film are Papi, Chloe, and their kids. I like them because they all see the true importance of family and sticking together. One part that shows this is when all the dogs enter a dog show to try to save the family’s house. Another instance is when they help with a bank robbery.  They prove to be true Chihuahua warriors. 

I really liked the music in the movie too. My favorite song in the movie is called “This is my Paradise” sung by Bridgit Mendler. Every time it is on I sing along. I also enjoy watching her on a Disney show called “Good Luck Charlie.”

I would recommend this movie for ages five and up. There are not a lot scary parts in the movie and it is really great. It made me laugh a lot. I recommend that you go out and see this movie as soon as it comes out on DVD.

Review by Anthony Aranda, age 8, KIDS FIRST! Film Critic