Kids' Movies & TV

In the latest VeggieTales DVD, 'Twas the Night Before Easter, the Veggies serve up an opportunity to give back in conjunction with the charity World Vision.  The organization World Vision allows families to sponsor a child with a monthly donation. The money helps bring that child life-saving essentials as well as education. And, the sponsoring family receives updates on the child and can even correspond with and get to know the child, which makes the service that more meaningful and personal. What a great opportunity for kids to learn not only about service, but also about another culture and way of life in a different part of the world.

I often wonder what it would be like if we all gave our children the opportunity to learn about the human suffering that goes on around the world, and in our own backyards, and taught them that we all, each and every one of us, have a responsibility to use the resources we are blessed with to alleviate the suffering of others and help lift those who are in need of lifting. How would our world be different if we taught our kids that it's not okay to just watch it all on TV and think, "Oh, how sad for them," but that we actually have to get up and do something? No matter what religion we are, or whether we watch VeggieTales or not, the job to make the world a better place rests upon all of our shoulders.

So, how does your family provide service in your community and around the world? In our family, we haven't been very consistent about serving. We try to come up with a family service project around Christmastime each year, but other than that, we just take part in random opportunities here and there -- like when a disaster happens somewhere around the world. However, my kindergartener has the most service-oriented heart I've ever known, and she inspires me to want to do better.

Just the other day when we went for a family walk, she ran into the house before we left to grab a bag for gathering trash around the neighborhood. She befriends the kids at school who are in need of a friend, no matter their gender, race, religion or past mistakes they might have made. She says that she wants to grow up to be a builder, so that she can build homes for the homeless. She doesn't wait around to organize a service project, she sees opportunities to serve all around her. Isn't it amazing how children can set such an example for us adults?

But, trying to figure out how to allocate family resources to service is tricky. How much of the family budget should be devoted to charities or serving others? And, there are just so many worthy causes, so how you do you decide which one to help? I would love to start a new tradition in my family this Easter season --  maybe a quarterly family service meeting to go over how much of our time and resources we can contribute and what causes to contribute to. This is something I really want to instill in my kids, because watching my daughter has caused me to ask myself, how can I know about the suffering that goes on around me, and around the world, and not do more?

We all have a circle of influence; it may be small, but we have it just the same. I am determined to do more with mine, so please share any tips and insights you have using the "comments" link below...

(Photo © Big Idea Entertainment)

African Cats hits theaters tomorrow, Earth Day (April 22). The True Life Adventure follows the story of Mara, an endearing lion cub who strives to grow up with her mother's strength, spirit and wisdom; Sita, a fearless cheetah and single mother of five mischievous newborns; and Fang, a proud leader of the pride who must defend his family from a once banished lion.

As with the two previous Disneynature films (Earth and Oceans), Disneynature  will donate to a related environmental organization in honor of each ticket purchased for opening week. This year, Disneynature is partnering with the African Wildlife Foundation. The cooperative campaign is titled "See African Cats, Save the Savanna." Strong advance sales for African Cats movie tickets have already translated to the conservation of more than 9,500 acres of land within Kenya's Amboseli Wildlife Corridor, so I can't wait to see how many acres will be saved by the end of the campaign.

The great thing is, in addition to the money, these campaigns bring awareness. As we go throughout our busy lives, we're not always thinking of all the worthy causes we could be donating to or working on. But hey, if there happens to be a great, educational movie that we can all go see as a family, and if our ticket purchase happens to contribute the an amazing cause, well then that makes it pretty easy to get involved. Kids can even follow the progress and see what a difference we can make when we all work together. Also, you can donate directly to the cause or find out more about the project on Causes.com.

Also, if you plan on taking your kids to the movie, check out the online educational guides offered on the African Cats website. The materials are just phenomenal, and they are great for parents, teachers and homeschoolers to help kids have fun learning more about habits and habitats of African cats.

(Photo © Disney. All rights reserved.)

Rio soared to the top of the box office over the weekend with the biggest 2011 debut so far! The film is so full of facts and great cultural references, I decided to make up a little question game for my kids so they wouldn't miss the good stuff. You can download a PDF version of my Rio Movie Scavenger Hunt here. The questions are meant to be read before watching the movie, because they may be a little challenging if kids don't have a heads up of what to look for. Also, here are some interesting facts about the movie:

• Those adorable marmoset monkeys in the movie are trained in the Brazilian martial art of caporeira
• Animators created 50,000 human "extras" for the Carnaval stadium scene
• Anne Hathaway makes her big screen singing debut in this movie
• In order to get the animation just right, filmmakers visited Rio to study the area, and even the Bronx Zoo to study the birds
• Blue Sky Studios came up with innovative new ways to render feathers (with the Ruffle Deformer) and skin to look more realistic

If you've seen Rio, let us know what you thought in the "comments" section below. Or, write your own review of Rio here.

(Photo © Blue Sky Studios/Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation. All rights reserved.)

Nickelodeon's new comedy-adventure series, Supah Ninjas, premieres tonight, Saturday, April 16, at 8:30 p.m. (ET/PT). The new 26 episode, half-hour action series follows three high school friends - Mike (Ryan Potter) , Amanda  (Gracie Dzienny) and Owen (Carlos Knight) - who are drafted into a secret world of crime fighting when Mike discovers he is descended from a long line of ninjas. He connects with the spirit of his recently deceased grandfather (George Takei), who appears to Mike and his friends as an interactive hologram offering wisdom and training. Supah Ninjas is comic book in tone and cinematic in style.

This new series breaks the current mold.  We've got martial arts going on instead of the usual performing arts and ensuing fame and fortune that many kids' shows are glamorizing today. I'm certainly not saying that I don't like performing arts, but I am a little sick of the fame trend, so this show helps to mix things up a little.

The question, of course, is will kids like it? The "kids save the day" formula has definitely proven to be a winner, and the secret martial arts crime fighting makes for an exciting premise, so Supah Ninjas has that going for it. The characters seem fun, proficiently fighting crime and spewing sarcasm at the same time, and there is even already a love connection brewing right from the premiere episode. The episode is unfortunately predictable, though. Even though predictability is in line with the comic book tone, there needs to be at least a little intrigue to keep kids' attention. And, though there is a lot of sarcastic crime fighting humor, the writers need to kick the LOL factor up a notch.

All that being said, I've only seen one episode, so I'm holding off on a full review until a few more episodes air and we can really see what it has to offer. I'm not sure a cinematic style can really work well in a half-hour series. But, I'm willing to give Supah Ninjas a fighting chance, as long as the crime-fighting kids don't blow their cover and suddenly become famous with their own ninja show within a show or something like that. In the meantime, if you catch the show with your kids, let us know what you think using the "comments" link below.

(Photo credit: David M Moir/Nickelodeon)

The vibrant, funny and beautiful Leslie Mann lends her voice to the bookish, bird-loving homebody Linda from Minnesota in the animated film Rio. While it seems that Leslie and her character may not have a whole lot in common, Leslie's voice gives a certain charm to Linda, and her expressiveness accentuates Linda's underlying passion and her love for her best friend, Blu. We had a chance to sit down with Leslie during a roundtable interview at the Rio premiere in Los Angeles, and she told us a little about making Rio, a movie which she says appealed to her, because it's a movie that her two daughters can see.

She read her lines with director Carlos Saldanha, and she relates, "Each session would be for about four hours, and we would read the same lines numerous times. And then, toward the end, we would read against the picture after everything was animated.  And that was the really fun part.  So, it's funny because in the beginning, I'm thinking--I'm going to work, I'll try to look nice, and then after the first few sessions, I was showing up in sweats and Ugg boots. It was definitely an easy, fun job."

Well, she left those stylish but comfy Ugg boots at home for the sunny premiere in L.A. Leslie showed up looking stunning in her breezy Dolce & Gabbana dress. With her obvious eye for fashion, what does she think about the skimpy, sparkling and feathered carnival costume her character Linda sports in the movie? "Yeah, she looks good!" says Leslie.

While she didn't get to act with the other actors in the movie, Leslie did have a concept picture of Linda to help her get into her character. Now, Linda is from Minnesota, and Leslie laughed as she told us about her attempt to lock down that unique Minnesota accent: "Yes, well I tried at least! I researched a little bit in the beginning about the Minnesota accent, however, I'm terrible with accents. I "tried" to do it right in the beginning. And the team said, um, no don't do that, just do your regular accent."

But, like I said earlier, accent or no, Leslie did a fabulous job as Linda, and her fans will be delighted to know that she has another animated flick on the horizon. Leslie is involved with the upcoming film Paranorman, by the same creative minds behind the movie Coraline. I know, right? That makes it even more interesting. Unfortunately, that movie is not set for release until, tentatively, 2013. But no matter, because for now we can enjoy taking a little trip to Rio with a scientific blue macaw named Blu and the quirky bird nut who loves him.

(Photos © 20th Century Fox/Blue Sky Studios/ Blue carpet photo credit: WENN)

The Incredibles Blu-ray/DVD combo pack is available in stores and online this week (on April 12). An exciting superhero tale that has unmatched depth, insight and heart within the animated superhero genre -- not to mention amazing animation that was well ahead of its time and still looks amazing -- The Incredibles was meant for HD. Pixar fans have been waiting for this release, and they will not be disappointed. The conversion to HD is flawless and the movie looks fantastic, but who would expect less from Pixar?

Incredibles fans can also look forward to new, Blu-ray exclusive bonus features, and the classic DVD features are also included. Of course, the famous shorts "Boundin'" and "Jack-Jack Attack" are now in HD as well. Boundin' is our family's favorite Pixar short, and the Jack-Jack short is so unique in that it actually fills in more storyline for the actual movie.

Disney is also releasing Cars in a Blu-ray/DVD combo pack tomorrow. The title doesn't contain any new bonus features, but is the first time the movie has been available in a combo pack. The release comes in anticipation of the new movie Cars 2 that will hit theaters in June.

(Photo © Disney/Pixar)

We watched the movie Felicity a while ago, and I talked with my kids about how Felicity's choices didn't lead her to any harm in the movie, but in real life, she could have gotten seriously hurt. So, a few days ago when the movie came up and my six-year-old said, "I love the movie Felicity, but she disobeys her parents and breaks the law," why did I cringe inside?

I don't know, I think part of it is that there were a lot of good things to take from the movie as well, and I hoped I hadn't ruined the whole thing for her. But even more, a sudden thought hit me that maybe I was raising kids who would be too scared to take a risk, or too focused on the rules to break them when necessary. I mean, it doesn't happen often, but there are times when doing the right thing involves breaking the rules, or at least, going against authority.

So, later when I had a quiet moment, I contemplated this issue for a while. I realized that there are a lot of ways I have also tried to teach my kids to question authority and do what is right no matter what. I began to relax a little and come back to reality. Still, I'm glad that moment happened because it made me really think about the way I parent and uncover some things that I want to do differently. Huh. All that from watching an 83 minute movie with the kids.

Needless to say, I love the American Girl movies. For many reasons. But the one thing that always bugged me about many of them -- that the heroines are always going behind parents' backs and putting themselves in dangerous situations -- well, maybe that's not such a bad thing. Not that I want my kid to put herself in a dangerous situation for any reason, but the story gave us a chance to talk about the issues and discuss what Felicity could have done, the ways in which times are different now than in the colonial age, and once again, the difference between movies and real life.

Related American Girl Titles:

• Kit Kittredge
• Samantha

(Photo © Warner Home Video)

Wow! Talk about a combo pack. Disney has packaged the original Tron movie (Blu-ray) with the 3D version of the new Tron Legacy, Tron Legacy 2D on Blu-ray, and the Tron Legacy DVD. Tron fans are seriously going to celebrate this 5-disc set all packed into one Blu-ray case. In addition to all the movie versions, of course there are a ton of bonus features that highlight the making of the movies and reveal how the story evolved. New material includes "The Next Day: Flynn Lives Revealed," which tells the story of the underground "Flynn Lives" movement and how it evolves as new events come to light.

And that's not all... Tron fans will find that the little "Magic Code" located in the Blu-ray packaging on the Disney Rewards card unlocks Disney Second Screen (a feature also included with the Bambi Diamond Edition Blu-ray), which opens up a whole other interactive Tron world that allows viewers, either in sync with the movie or on their own, to explore all kinds of fun facts about the making of the movie, photos, production clips, storyboards, and more. Disney Second Screen is accessed using your iPad, Mac or PC. You could seriously geek out over Tron for days with this combo collection.

Of course, we haven't gotten around to buying that 3D TV yet (still waiting for the new technology dust to settle), so I couldn't review the 3D version of the movie. However, I must say that we enjoyed watching the original Tron and then Tron Legacy on Blu-ray. My little girls and I, not surprisingly, are probably never going to be huge Tron fans who will watch the movie over and over. But, I did enjoy the unique storyline of the movie, and the sequel made a lot more sense after watching the original. The storyline is original, the Tron world is a new and exciting adventure, and the high action will appeal to tweens and teens.

The Tron world reminds me of a more grown up, vintage version of the world presented in the 2008 film Speed Racer.  Although Speed Racer was more geared directly to kids, it had a lot of content elements that I didn't really appreciate as a mom. However, Tron definitely presents a more adult world with adults as the main characters. I would generally recommend the movie for kids about age 10 and up.

• Find out more about Disney Second Screen on the Disney website
• Compare Prices on the Tron/Tron Legacy Combo Pack
• Get a coupon to save $5 on the Tron 4-disc or 5-disc combo pack (limited time only)

(Photo © Disney. All rights reserved.)

The Easter-themed family comedy Hop opens in theaters today! Kids will certainly be wowed by the fantastical Easter factory with cascading falls of colorful jelly beans and cute confection assembly lines. The movie is also full of endearing animated  chicks and bunnies that are not only cute, but also have great comedic timing. Here are some links to more info on the movie:

• Hop Movie Review
• Hop Photo Gallery (click on the photos to get a larger image, character descriptions, and fun quotes from the actors, producer and director
• Hop Movie Trailer and Fun Facts
• Russell Brand and James Marsden Musings on the Existence of the Easter Bunny

Another important thing I want to point out: Save your Easter candy! Thanks to Universal, I was able to fly to L.A. and attend the press junket for Hop. I was inspired by their Easter fantasy land, and while I won't be able to hire any of those adorable costumed characters, I am seriously going to buy extra Easter candy and put it away for a super fun Hop party when the Blu-ray comes out.

I figure, the kids only really get to chow down on candy a couple times a year, so why not create a fun family movie night and celebrate Easter in July, or August, or whenever they decide to release the movie on DVD and Blu-ray... It just wouldn't be as fun without a few jelly beans and Cadbury eggs for movie treats. So don't forget to buy a few extra bags of Eastery goodness and save them for later. If we buy it, say, the day after Easter, the candy will last just fine until mid-late summer, right?

(Movie poster courtesy Universal Pictures. Backlot photos courtesy of Chris and Kristen Photography, http://www.ckrisphotography.com. /Disclosure: Universal provided travel and expenses for me to attend the screening of Hop and the press junket. For more information, please see our Ethics Policy.)

I have to admit, when I first heard about the new Baby Einstein Discovery Kits, I was unmoved. "Great," I thought, "they added a little book or some cards and a CD to the DVD, big deal." When I actually had the chance to review Neptune's Oceans (a Level 2 Discovery Kit), though, I felt that the little cards and CD really did create a more enriching experience.

True, it's nothing groundbreaking, but the cards are really well done, and each one contains a list of facts about the pictured animals or scenes that are from the DVD.  The cards allow parents and caregivers to extend the viewing experience and create some interactive play time through showing the pictures and talking about them. Children who are old enough not to eat the cards can play with them and begin learning the names of the animals and other fun facts. Also, the CD is really nice to have for some soothing music in the car or at bed time.

The Discovery Kits are divided into three different levels that allow for different types of interaction and learning. The idea is that the kits can "grow with your baby." For the first time in a long time, I don't have an actual baby in the house, but my three-year-old loved the DVD and the cards. She thoroughly enjoyed looking at the pictures and talking about each one. I was even inspired to take her to the pet store so she could look at some real fish swimming around.

READ MORE about Baby Einstein Discovery Kits

In light of the AAP recommendation that children under two should not watch any TV, I spoke with Dr. Karen Hill-Scott, a nationally recognized expert in childcare and development and consultant for The Baby Einstein Company. Read my interview with Dr. Hill-Scott to find out what she has to say about the issues surrounding babies and toddlers and TV viewing. Also, since I get asked the question a lot, I finally sat down and wrote my own personal views on babies and TV time.

Share your comments, beliefs, experiences on babies and TV or the new Discovery Kits using the "comments" link below...

(Photo courtesy The Baby Einstein Company)