In Theaters This Weekend

YAY! We have two movies opening today that are rated G! It's a miracle! Our two G movies this week are documentaries that a definitely family movie fare.

Chimpanzee
Rated G
Narrated by Tim Allen
Running time: 78 minutes

This Disney documentary follows life of Oscar, an orphaned chimpanzee. So far, Chimpanzee is receiving mixed reviews, but it looks like something I would enjoy, so I plan to see and review this one.

To the Arctic
Rated G
Narrated by Meryl Streep
Running time: 40 minutes

A journey into the lives of a mother polar bear and her two seven-month-old cubs as they navigate the changing Arctic wilderness they call home. (IMDb)

Darling Companion
Rated PG
Starring Diane Keaton, Kevin Kline, and Dianne Wiest

I love this cast and director (Lawrence Kasdan), but the description on IMDb makes me wonder: "The story of a woman who loves her dog more than her husband. And then her husband loses the dog."

Hmm. Really? Also, it is not receiving favorable early reviews on IMDb. According to Moviefone, Darling Companion is currently under limited release, so moviegoers may have trouble finding it in their local theaters.


Want to see if any of these movies are playing at your local theater? CLICK HERE for Movietickets.com.

Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol

Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of action and violence
Starring Tom Cruise, Jeremy Renner, Simon Pegg, and Paula Patton
Running time: 133 minutes

DISLAIMER: I am a hard-core Mission: Impossible fan. I loved the original TV show and have attended opening night of all four movies. In my mind, there isn't a bad flick in the bunch. Oops! I spoiled the review. Well, a bit maybe. Let's start over . . .

Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol released in theaters on December 18th, 2011 and just made its way to DVD on Tuesday, which is why I chose to write the review at this time. In this fourth installment of the MI series, Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) and his team (Jeremy Renner, Simon Pegg, and Paula Patton) are faced with the responsibility of saving the world from global nuclear war. It's the ultimate mission that is made more "impossible" since they have been disavowed and lack support of their agency or government. Will they succeed? Hey, it's a movie, and we know logically, that the MI team won't let the world be destroyed, but I will say that director, Brad Bird did a stunning job of keeping the audience biting their fingernails to the very bitter end. From the bombing of the Kremlin to the breath-taking, vertigo-inducing scenes atop the world's tallest building in Dubai, to the last-second stop-the-missile-from-exploding as it flies over the San Francisco Bay, Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol is action-packed, suspenseful, and funny (thanks to the talented Simon Pegg).

The PG-13 rating is very appropriate, and quite honestly, I would even be willing to say that some families may feel comfortable taking children a year or two under the age of 13. The rating is for "sequences of intense action and violence," but I didn't think that the action or violence were too intense. There is a fight scene between two females, but personally, I enjoyed seeing two strong women duke it out in an action movie! Who says women can't fight? There are a couple of curse words, and in one scene, we get to see team member, Jane Carter (Paula Patton) in a bustier, but the moment is brief and the action at that point is more important that what she is or isn't wearing.

Most people are saying that this is the best Mission: Impossible movie yet, and I will readily agree. If you are an action-movie loving family with tweens and/or teens looking for real entertainment, give this one a try. And if you get the DVD with the extra features, be sure to watch them! To see how they filmed the sequences on the Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world, is . . . well, just watch and see what you think!

Reviewed by Karen Cantwell



Want to rent this movie on DVD? CLICK HERE for Netflix.

Did you see Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol? If so, leave a comment and tell us what you thought. We love to hear from Flixy Mom readers!

Megamind - Soon-to-be Your New Favorite Animated Movie!

Rated PG for action and some language
Starring Will Ferrell, Brad Pitt, Tina Fey, David Cross, Jonah Hill
Running time: 95 minutes

I say that Megamind will be your new favorite movie because it’s just that good. I believe it’s as good as The Incredibles, Toy Story and a few other fabulously famous animated films. The script is incredibly clever, the cast is phenomenal even the soundtrack rocks! That being said I’m an adult (obviously) and I wonder if my child or other people’s children feel the same way? I’m beginning to believe after participating in Flixy Mom that my new preferred movie genre is animated children’s movies because I’m enjoying myself quite thoroughly.

It starts out with a bang as Megamind’s (Will Ferrell) planet gets sucked into a blackhole but not before his parents send him out in a small spaceship( just like Superman’s Mommy and Daddy once did). He lands in a prison yard to be cared for and raised by the convicts and taught the criminal side of life. He also creates wonderfully clever inventions and ultimately turns into: Incredibly Handsome and Criminal Genius and Master of all Villainy. A twin spaceship that was also sent out from the doomed planet lands in the lap of a wealthy family, and thus the battle between Megamind and his nemesis, Metro Man (Brad Pitt) begins.

Metro Man with his superhero strength frequently wins the fight against his rival while also winning the hearts of the people of Metro City (which Megamind mistakenly pronounces Metrocity like “atrocity”). One day Megamind finally succeeds in defeating Metro Man using nosy reporter, Roxanne Ritchi (Tiny Fey) as bait. She has been used as bait so often she jokes that she has a frequent kidnapping card.

Megamind basks in his victory with Minion (David Cross), who is a fish that has robot body, until he realizes that he’s a villain with no hero. He decides to create a new hero by fashioning Metro Man’s super powers from his dandruff DNA and accidently injects them into Hal, Roxanne’s weirdo slacker cameraman.

Megamind disguises himself as a Marlon Brando-lookalike-mentor (love that nod to Superman’s Dad, Jor-el in the Christopher Reeve flick) to teach Hal to be a hero so that he will have someone to battle once again. But Hal is not good which is a perquisite for most superheroes, and goes rogue and becomes Tighten who wants only one thing…Roxanne.

Roxanne, however, is falling for Bernard who is actually Megamind in disguise. He has invented a ray gun that dehydrates humans into small cubes so that he can then replicate himself into that person. Megamind/Bernard is falling for Roxanne in return, and when Minion tells him, “the bad guy doesn’t get the girl,” Megamind responds, “maybe I don’t want to be the bad guy anymore.” And, that’s the major turning point for him especially when he loses Minion as a friend.

Roxanne and Megamind team up to stop Tighten from ruining Metro City and ultimately he becomes the hero to prove himself to Roxanne. I love that Megamind goes on the greatest hero’s journey of all and turns from evil overload into white knight.

I’m not sure my five-year-old was as enthusiastic about this movie as I was. She did watch it with me twice so I can say that she liked it that much. I think older children will appreciate the humor and the action better than smaller children. As for the rating, for the life of me I cannot think what the questionable language in this film could be?

It’s a great story about a super hero and a super villain with a dream cast. (Will Ferrell is a god!) Go and check it out from the library or your nearest box now.



Want to rent Megamind today? CLICK HERE for Netflix.

Did you see Megamind? Leave a comment with your own mini-review! We love to hear from Flixy Mom readers!

Mirror Mirror

Starring: Julia Roberts, Lily Collins, Armie Hammer and Nathan Lane
Rated PG for some action and some slightly grownup humor
Running Time: 106 minutes,

Mirror, mirror on the wall, who’s the fairest of them all? Well, this is definitely the fairest version of Snow White and the Seven Dwarves that I’ve seen.

This is very much not a retelling of the traditional story (as told by Disney not Grimm). We get a queen, Snow White’s banishment and hiding with the Seven Dwarves and a Prince. That’s about it. The story diverges and morphs into a tale of girl power. WOO HOO!

As the mom of a 10 year old girl, I am happy to see such movies being made. Disney princesses are lovely, but fairly useless if you want a strong, real role model for your daughter. This movie not only tweeks the notion of the pretty princess in need of rescue but let’s you know they’re doing it with a tongue-in-cheek comment from the prince who sees Snow as an equal. Not a damsel in distress, but at different times an opponent and partner.

This movie is gorgeous. The settings, the clothes, the people are all gorgeous and it’s got several morals wrapped up into the tale. All are mainly different takes on the one of the oldest tropes: Looks can be deceiving.

We enjoyed it and the other moviegoers seemed to as well. The theater was an interesting mix. There was an older couple with no children to young teen girls with their moms to groups of very young children with several moms. We were only one of two families with both the mom and the dad.

The PG rating might be too low. There are several instances in which the handsome prince is divested of his shirt and some romantic innuendo. The innuendo is played carefully so that children my daughter’s age and younger aren’t aware of it but it was a little squirmy for me with stuff akin to daytime soaps playing sitting in front of eight 5 year olds.

At the very end of the movie is a scene with a forest beast that had been mentioned previously in the movie. It seemed like it should be a scary scene but I heard a lot of giggling so clearly the children were not worried about the fate of the characters.

The shirtless scenes, while I found them unnecessary, are less revealing than what a child will see at the pool or the beach. The women are all fully covered even in nightclothes or “undergarments” such as when the queen is being corseted.

At one hour and forty-five minutes it isn’t too long and there was not much of coming and going so clearly it held the interest of even the smaller children.

This is definitely a family friendly film that I recommend and really does provide an excellent heroine who thinks of others, is brave, is kind and follows her heart not just to her Prince but to a purpose.

Reviewed by Aimee Hix

Want to see show times for Mirror Mirror? CLICK HERE for MovieTickets.com

The Hunger Games - May the odds be ever in your favor.

Rated PG-13 for intense violent thematic material and disturbing images - all involving teens

Runtime: 142 min

Starring:  Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson and Liam Hemsworth



I remember first seeing The Hunger Games series floating around the book reviewing blogs and most of the reviews were great.  But, the cover and back blurb didn't really catch my attention, so I put them off.

That is until Christmas of 2010 rolled around.  I thought my eleven-year-old daughter might enjoy the books, so I ordered them up for a Christmas gift.

Curiosity got the better of me and I thought I'd just skim the first book to make sure it was appropriate for an eleven-year-old.  I had all three books read within a few days.  I've been wanting to read the series again, but time just hasn't permitted.

I thought it only fair to the readers of this review that I come clean about thoroughly enjoying the books and actually counting the days until the movie release.  This, I believe, colors my opinion.

The main story is about a future where the U.S. has fallen on very hard times and the states no longer exist.  Instead of states we now have a Capitol and twelve districts.  Katniss Everdeen, our heroine, hails from district twelve.


The Capitol, as a way to keep the districts under control, hosts The Hunger Games every year. The Hunger Games are a brutal, fight to the death competition in which 24 tributes strive to be the last one alive. As if the games weren't horrendous enough, the competitors are chosen from the district's children between the ages of twelve and eighteen.

When Primrose, Katniss's twelve-year-old sister, is chosen, Katniss does the only thing she can do to protect her.  She volunteers as district twelve's female tribute.

 After watching several movies based on books over the years I have decided the only way to enjoy a movie made from a book is to watch the movie as if the book did not exist.

I will admit, I wasn't able to do that with this movie because I didn't need to.  However, I may have taken something entirely different away with me from the movie had I not read the books first.

Of course there is a lot left out and a few changes that were made, but I didn't feel that any of that hurt the overall story.  I knew what had happened behind the scenes (because I'd read the books) but I think the movie could be just as enjoyable if you hadn't read the books.

The rating, PG-13, is quite appropriate as there is quite a lot of violence.  The story, after all, is about teenagers being forced to compete to the death. I brought my eleven-year-old daughter to this one and would allow her to watch it again, and again.

This is one I would definitely recommend for older family members. 

Despicable Me

Rated PG for rude humor and mild action
Starring Steve Carell, Jason Segal, and Russel Brand
Running time: 95 minutes

I originally saw Despicable Me in theaters with my three kids (ages 17, 15, and 12 at the time) when it was released. All three kids and I LOVED it. Since then, I have easily been entertained by this funny and sweet movie another ten to fifteen times. I'm not exaggerating.

A quick recap of the story: Gru (Steve Carell) is an evil villain who is feeling like his career might be on the downswing when someone begins stealing major world monuments and man-made wonders. Determined not to be outdone, he and his cohort, Dr. Nefario (Russell Brand) decide they will steal the moon. The problem is, to steal the moon, he needs a shrink ray - the only one of which known to exist, is in the hands of the new villain on the block, Vector (Jason Segal), who has an impenetrable fortress. But Gru is no dummy. He has a plan: adopt three cookie-selling orphans who have a delivery to make at Vector's compound and essentially walk right in with the aid of this innocent girls and his evil cookie robots. The plan works like a dream, but what he doesn't count on is growing to love the three orphan girls. That's right - Gru is a bad guy with a big ol' soft, squishy heart. Will the melting of his tough exterior spoil his ability to steal the moon? You gotta watch and see.

Despicable Me is a winner of a family movie for many reasons, but the biggest is Steve Carell, who plays Gru with what you think might be a Russian accent, and with that magical Steve Carell touch. You never really hate Gru - how can you? He drives a funny car and has strange little minions with names like Dave, Jerry, and Bob. And while you know this story will be predictable, that Gru will succumb to goodness and will exchange his role of evil villain for that of lovable father, it doesn't matter. The script, animation, and voice-over acting are so exceptional, that you're connected from the opening sequence to the very last scene.

The rating is PG for rude humor and mild action. I believe the rude humor cited must be the word "fart," which occurs in a particularly humorous scene when Gru tells this hard-at-hearing Dr. Nefario that he asked for a "dart gun" not a "fart gun." Of course, most kids love the word "fart" so if you're not bothered by it yourself, I think that's the extent of your rude humor. And the "mild action" is nothing disturbing, even to very young children.

Fun, fun, fun, and more fun, is how I would describe Despicable Me, so if you haven't seen it yet, get that DVD, rent it from Netflix, or see if you can find it on cable, because you and your kids won't be disappointed. Especially since they are coming out with a sequel July of 2013.

Reviewed by Karen Cantwell



Find Despicable Me on Netflix

Captain America

Rated PG for intense sequences of sci-fi violence and action
Starring Chris Evans, Hugo Weaving, and Samuel L. Jackson
Running time: 124 minutes

My son, who is 5 yrs old, and I really enjoy superheroes. Superhero cartoons, superhero action figures, superhero online games, so when a new superhero movie comes out we're both really excited to see it. Of course that's tricky when you have a child so young. Some of the superhero films that come out with are great for kids, others are just too violent, too dark and even though I love them I know my son would never be able to handle them. Just like any movie really, but when superheroes are marketed both to children and adults it's hard to know which ones could possibly be seen by a child.

A whole group of new superhero films had their debuts in 2011, and I've let my son see the ones I thought he could handle, now that we've gone through nearly every film I thought would be kid friendly I started to go back and reevaluate the ones I'd said “no” to, just in case... in case maybe I was wrong. I just watched Captain America again the other day, and now I remember why I had passed on the idea of allowing my 5 yr old to view it. It's mainly due to the amount of violence in the film.

The movie is about Captain America's origin and takes place in a flashback to the 1940s era. Without giving up the entire plot, he's a test subject who gains super powers, a war hero in WWII and takes on his arch enemy the Red Skull. The cast of supporting actors include Hugo Weaving and Tommy Lee Jones, and they are both great in their roles. I imagined this story to be exciting for a child because Captain America seems pretty squeaky clean- an all-American hero, who saves the lives of soldiers and civilians. I imagined even having the opportunity to explain a little bit about WWII to my son... but then the amount of violence basically killed those plans.

Violence in the movie- fist fights, Red Skull murders a old man in cold blood, a murder of a Dr., woman shoots driver in head, a man commits suicide, a disintegration ray used to kill multiple people, Red Skull rips off his face/mask to reveal the skull underneath, and finally a man is chopped to bits when he falls through a propeller blade.

There are also points of time that is spent on strategic war talk which I think would have really bored my son , and some moderate swearing.

For myself I found it to be a pretty enjoyable film that will tie into the May 4 release of the Avengers movie, but not a movie for a 5 yr old.


Reviewed by Dawn McCullough-White