The 2013 Summer Movie Preview – Part 2

Ok, everyone, here we go! The second half of the Summer slate for 2013! There’s plenty of big movies in store, and of course, a handful of DOAs.

Click through to check out the second half of this Summer!

Now Showing on Cable: “Hop”

Making it’s debut last weekend on HBO was last year’s animated feature, “Hop”, featuring the voice work of Russell Brand, Hugh Laurie and Hank Azaria and starring James Marsden, Kaley Cuoco, Elizabeth Perkins, Gary Cole, and David Hasselhoff.

It’s a live action/animated blend Easter themed children’s movie, brought to you by Illumination Entertainment, the same folks who did “Despicable Me”. It’s the story of a bunny who doesnt wish to inherit the title and responsibilities of Easter Bunny from his father, so he runs away to the world of humans.

Hi sojourn into the land of people triggers a chain of events that may just lead to the first human serving as Easter Bunny.

Now Showing on Cable: “The Smurfs”

Making its debut this weekend on Starz was last year’s CGI/Live action kid’s movie, “The Smurfs”.

Based on the 1980s cartoon (which in turn was based on a Belgian comic strip), “The Smurfs” takes a small handful of the creatures and has them magically teleported to our world. As they struggle to find a way to get back to their village, they’re pursued by the fiendish magician Gargamel and his cat Azreal, and struggle to find their way in this strange new, decidedly un-Smurfly environment.  

The question becomes, is “The Smurfs” Smurftastic? Or un-Smurfing-necessary?

Happy Feet Two

I’ve been trying to think of a way to put this into words… I mean, that IS the trick of this whole thing after all.

“Happy Feet Two” is very pretty to look at, it has the requisite amount of “messages”. There are funny scenes and characters, and a decent enough storyline for an animated film. All the parts SHOULD be adding up to a better movie when I do the movie formula math in my head, but they don’t.

Maybe that’s the problem. Maybe its too calculated, too formulaic, over-produced.

Whatever it is, it doesn’t connect with me, and as a result it winds up feeling superficial.