Granny Ranny's Coming Attractions

The best part of The Karate Kid, according to KIDS FIRST! jurors, Margie and Joseph Sarrao (9), was all the Kung Fu, especially when Dre Parker (Jaden Smith) fought with a broken leg.  Indeed, there is a lot of Kung Fu action in this movie, a fact that is sure to please kids of all ages.  It is, however, also a story of friendship, redemption, getting up when you are knocked down, learning to live in a foreign culture, and good sporstmanship.  Oh, yeah, it is also a story about bullying – a concept many American kids understand.
 

In Karate Kid, Dre befriends Meiying (Wanwan Han), a girl at his school, but unwittingly dishonors her family.  Viewers will think it’s funny to watch Sponge Bob in Chinese, but Dre is learning to navigate in a culture very different from ours – from eating different foods to watching “Sponge Bob” in Chinese, to the Chinese idea of honor.

Good sportsmanship and bullying are also central themes in this movie.  Dre makes an enemy of the school bully.   At one point, they beat Dre up 5 against 1!  They are definitely not good sports. They are willing to do anything to win, even cheat.  But Dre doesn’t handle this situation well, either.  He doesn’t tell any adults about the bullying.  Both his mom (Taraji P. Henson) and his school’s headmistress would help him if they knew.  This is a good lesson for real life.

As a “child of the 80’s,” when the first Karate Kid was made, I was hesitant to watch this remake.  But I really enjoyed it!  It is very well made. Will Smith definitely “pulled out all the stops.”  Jaden Smith is a very emotive young actor.  The plot is exciting.  The scenery is amazing!   And… there are lots of things for parents to discuss with their kids after the movie (or watch it just for fun!)

After 11 years, the wait is finally over for fans of Disney/Pixar’s Toy Story franchise with the release of Toy Story 3. 

Traveling just got easier with this travel kit from Scholastic – The Wheels on the Bus…and More Musical Stories Sing Along Travel Kit. In addition to two high-quality DVDs, the kit also comes with a CD of favorite songs and a 34-page activity booklet with crayons. Sing along to The Wheels on the Bus and There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly and learn about the importance of music in our world. Images in classic stories such as This Land is your Land, Frog Went A-Courtin’ and Giraffe’s Can’t Dance come to life through exquisite animation with gentle narration. Perfect for the preschool audience, these DVDs will get everyone singing along in the house or on the road. KIDS FIRST! Child Juror Comments: “This is good because it includes songs I was familiar with and new songs that I liked. The pictures look like a book. I like that. I think my friends would like it because they like to sing. My favorite part was in Bugs! Bugs! Bugs! when the roly poly curled up into a ball, and the spider tried to get in, but he couldn’t.” The DVDs encouraged children to ask questions such as the one child asked about what daddy long legs eat. They wanted to watch the DVDs again when they were over. DVDs and CD. 132 min.; Ages 2-5.

Invictus. He was imprisoned 27 years for his heroic fight against apartheid. So what does Nelson Mandela do after he is elected president of South Africa? He rejects revenge, forgives his oppressors and finds hope of national unity in an unlikely place: the rugby field. Clint Eastwood (the National Board of Review’s 2009 Best Director choice) powerfully directs an uplifting film about a team and a people inspired to greatness. In a performance that won him NBR’s Best Actor Award and an Oscar nomination, Morgan Freeman (Best Actor Oscar nominee) portrays Mandela, who asks the national rugby team captain (Best Supporting Actor Oscar nominee Matt Damon) and his underdog squad to do the impossible and win the World Cup. One team, one country. The universal language of sports has never spoken so thrillingly as in Eastwood’s “Invictus.” DVD. 133 min.; Recommended for ages 5-18.   

The Spy Next Door refers to Bob Ho (Jackie Chan), a square but safe next-door neighbor and boyfriend of Jillian, a single mom with three kids. She is glad to have an honest and dependable guy in her life. The kids are dead set against the relationship because he’s, well, just a big geek. When Mom needs to leave town suddenly, Bob offers to care for them, thinking it will give him a chance to make the kids like him. What no one knows is that Bob is actually an accomplished Chinese spy working with the CIA who has just worked his last job and has retired in the hopes of settling down with Jillian. The kids put Bob thru the wringer, but trouble really starts when the bad Russian guys come after Bob and the kids. Jillian breaks up with Bob when she realizes he has put her kids in danger. In the end, the kids come to his defense, the couple gets married and a new family is born. What will appeal to a youth audience the most are the action scenes. The good guy spy, with help from the kids, fight the evil Russian baddies. There are lots of martial arts scenes, but the action is almost cartoonish and we see no blood and guts. There is only scene where a bad guy gets a bloodied nose. The heart of the film is delivered by Jackie Chan when he tells his girlfriend’s teenage daughter that family is what you make, who you love and who loves you, not just the blood that runs in your veins. It’s good advice, and she grows to accept him as a potential step-father. It also helps her embrace her own family after feeling she didn’t belong. Watching Bob trying to care for three unruly kids is truly humorous. The emotional arc of the kids letting down their defenses and allow a new man into their lives is something many kids can relate to, whether it’s happened to them or they have seen friends experience similar things. The film is certainly derivative of other James Bond-for-kids type movies such as Spy Kids but doesn’t really add anything original or memorable. The true appeal of this film is Jackie Chan, who gracefully moves between his two identities – the super square pen salesman who lives next door, and the super cool and capable Chinese spy working with the CIA. Plus, he’s funny. That surprised us. KIDS FIRST! Child Juror Comments: I like all the sneaky spy stuff like his super sword belt and his choppy uppy ring. The story was cool – how the babysitter was a spy. My friends would love this because it has sneaky spy stuff. It looked great and everything was clear. The actors treated each other well. It was a bit predictable with the guy and lady getting married at the end, but that was good. I liked how it ended. My favorite part was the one fight scene where Jackie Chan used the bike. He did cool things with the bike. Recommended for ages 5-12.

Finn on the Fly is the story of a life-loving, Frisbee-playing dog, and his shy, 13-year-old owner, Peter. Their lives are changed forever when a lab experiment goes wrong and Finn is transformed into a human. Once on two legs, Finn teaches Ben to feel the wind in his fur, catch Frisbees like a dog and, ultimately, to find his own pack. Starring Ana Gasteyer (The Women, Saturday Night Live, What Women Want), Matthew Knight, Ryan Belleville, Brendon Firla and David Milchard and directed by Mark Jean (Homecoming), Finn on the Fly was the winner of “Best Independent Feature for Ages 8-12, KIDS FIRST! Best 2009.” If you can imagine how your dog would behave if he/she became a human, that’s exactly how this dog, turned human does. While he’s at it, he manages to save the day by helping Ben’s team win the Frisbee match. His reward? To be turned back into a dog. This is a cute, funny and well-produced indie film. KIDS FIRST! Child Juror Comments: Kids really got a kick out of the storyline. It’s so improbable, yet makes you laugh at the very idea of it. The boys particularly enjoyed it and talked about what their life would be like if their dog became a human. “Yup, my friends would definitely like this because it’s so funny.”