Evocateur: The Morton Downey Jr. Movie (2013)

SUMMER, 1988. I’m 19, working at a crappy factory job. And since I’m underage, my nightlife is practically nil.

But then, while channel surfing one night, I come across a talk show. Well, it’s technically a talk show; it has an audience, guests, and a host. But the audience is near riotous, the guests look shell-shocked, and the host – with a loosened tie, wide eyes, and ever-present cigarette – is shouting self-righteous rhetoric at them when he’s not telling them to shut up. Or, in his oft-repeated catchphrase, to “Zip it!”

I had never seen anything like it in my life. And I was hooked for the rest of the summer.

Before there was Maury Povich, Jerry Springer, or even Glenn Beck, there was Morton Downey, Jr. For two years in the late 1980s, The Morton Downey Jr. Show drew in viewers looking for a fight. And with every episode, they got one, if not several. Downey was provocative, incendiary, controversial, confrontational, and often downright rude – and his audience loved it, frequently jumping to their feet in roars of applause.

Through archive footage, animated segments, and interviews with former colleagues, guests, and audience members, Evocateur tells how Downey skyrocketed to fame (some say infamy) and crashed just as fast. Directors Seth Kramer, Daniel A. Miller, and Jeremy Newberger, all recovering Downey fans, do a good job balancing footage of Downey’s show with interviews and home videos. The middle meanders a bit and struggles to keep things compelling when not talking about Downey’s show, but things pick up with the discussion of frequent guest Reverend Al Sharpton – who, like Downey, knew the value of controversy and schemed with the host to keep things fiery and memorable.

While claiming to be a voice for the common man, Downey was actually a child of Hollywood (his dad was a famous Irish tenor, his mom an actress/dancer) and he was a family friend of the Kennedys. And like many pop culture personalities who put on an act, the misogyny of Downey’s TV persona bled over into his personal life (colleagues talk of physical confrontations with female guests and his own wife), and he soon became an egotist spiraling out of control: affairs, bouts of rage, rock star extravagance, climbing debt, and perhaps worst of all, believing his own hype.

Evocateur ends with the two events of Downey’s professional and personal demise: his infamous hoax when he (incorrectly) spray-painted a swastika on his face and claimed he was attacked by skinheads, and his death from lung cancer at 67. (The footage of a gaunt, hoarse, and humbled Downey in the final stages of his life is especially hard to watch.)

Evocateur effectively states the case that, for better or worse, Morton Downey, Jr. was the prototype of today’s television – the precursor to the fight-centric circus of raucous talk shows and reality TV. He deliberately provoked his guests. He knew the power of manipulation. He discussed topics on an emotional level, not an intellectual one. He attacked his guests with a ferocity never before seen on a talk show – creating an awkward, dangerous atmosphere that, nearly 25 years later, still permeates the television landscape today.

Rating:

Is it suitable for your kids?

Evocateur is rated R for “language and some nudity.”
Language: Frequent use of four-letter words.
Violence: There are verbal and physical confrontations in clips from Downey’s show.
Nudity: A couple of Downey’s guests get topless.
Smoking: Nearly every frame of Downey has him smoking. He dies from lung cancer.

Will your FilmMother want to watch it?

I highly doubt she’ll like Morton Downey Jr. or his behavior on his talk show, but Evocateur is a compelling documentary no matter what you think of its topic. This could be one worth sharing with her…provided the kids are asleep or out of the house.

"Betsy Ross: Real American or Talentless Tramp?

That's next on The Morton Downey Jr. Show!!!"

Evocateur: The Morton Downey Jr. Movie
* Directors: Seth Kramer, Daniel A. Miller, Jeremy Newberger
* Screenwriter: Daniel A. Miller
* Stars: Morton Downey Jr., Herman Cain, Pat Buchanan, Chris Elliott, Gloria Allred, Sally Jesse Raphael, Alan Dershowitz, Curtis Sliwa, Richard Bey
* MPAA Rating: R



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GLOW: The Story of the Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling (2012)

I BECAME A FAN OF PRO WRESTLING in late 1984, in the months leading up to the World Wrestling Federation (WWF)’s first WrestleMania. It all started for me with Greg “The Hammer” Valentine defeating Tito Santana for the Intercontinental Championship and tearing Tito’s ACL with the dreaded figure-four leglock. (Don’t worry, fans: Santana regained the title the following summer in a steel cage match.)

While the WWF (now WWE) had its share of cartoonish two-dimensional characters during the ‘80s, it was nothing compared to the first all-women wrestling organization, the Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling (GLOW).

From 1986 until its abrupt end in 1990, GLOW’s roster was comprised entirely of “gimmick” wrestlers sporting clichéd ringwear and names like Ninotchka, Hollywood, Babe the Farmer’s Daughter, Matilda the Hun, Tina Ferrari, Dementia, Mt. Fiji, Jailbait, Lightning, Godiva, The Heavy Metal Sisters, and Big Bad Mama. With its weekly TV show from the Riviera Hotel in Las Vegas, which featured matches as well as skits with punchlines on the level of Laugh-In or Hee Haw, GLOW made the WWF look like Masterpiece Theatre.

The documentary GLOW: The Story of the Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling takes a look back at this campy yet groundbreaking organization through interviews with the women who lived it. There are no third-party “experts” or wrestling historians telling the GLOW story; the women speak for themselves, discussing how they each got started, the essence of their characters, and the rigors of training and performing.

The women also talk about dealing with the mental and verbal abuse doled out by mercurial GLOW director/promoter Matt Cimber, who had a Hollywood background (his ex was Jayne Mansfield) and a close friendship with Riviera owner Meshulam Riklis, whose then-wife was actress Pia Zadora (Santa Claus Conquers the Martians). Interestingly, the two male driving forces behind GLOW – Cimber and creator/host Mike McClaine – declined to be interviewed for the film.

What’s also interesting about GLOW: Not a single wrestler badmouths her experience. There’s not an iota of resentment from any of them. These women saw themselves as a very unified group (the term “sisterhood” is used more than once) and they’re enthusiastic to discuss their time with GLOW, whether the memories are good or bad. In fact, any hardship at the hands of their bosses – including Cimber’s frequent jabs at their weight – gets laughed off by those who are retelling it.

Similarly, if you’re looking for an exploitative exposé on ‘80s excess, you won’t find it here. There are no scandals, no tales of debauchery, no drug arrests, no steroid use, no complaints of any of the wrestlers being a “bad worker.” And no one is still trudging around the ring like some decrepit relic a la The Wrestler’s Randy the Ram. (The only sad story is that of Mt. Fiji, who’s interviewed from a hospital bed as she has spent several years in a nursing home.) The film culminates in an emotional GLOW reunion, the only one that’s ever taken place since the organization folded more than 20 years ago.

What ever happened to the women of GLOW is probably not a burning question on people’s minds in 2013. But for fans of ‘80s wrestling like me, it was enjoyable to watch these ladies reminisce fondly about their time in the ring. They were a band of largely inexperienced sisters who created a weekly, successful all-female program in a male-dominated industry. And that, in its purest sense, is something truly gorgeous.

Rating:

Is it suitable for your kids?

Violence: Wrestling matches featuring the GLOW women “attacking” each other. Gruesome footage is shown of Lightning breaking her arm during a match.
Sex/Nudity: Archive footage is shown of a GLOW wrestler wearing nothing but a towel. Hollywood holds her issue of Playboy, though she covers up the photos of her spread.
Language: A few four-letter words and derogatory terms for women.

Will your FilmMother want to watch it?

Beneath the glitter and spandex, there are messages about women’s empowerment, unity, and perseverance. Any of these could be a reason for your FilmMother to watch this entertaining documentary with you. (Point of reference: My wife entered the room halfway through GLOW, working on other things. By the end, it had her full attention.)

 

Whoa, whoa, whoa...I take it back, Itakeitback, ITAKEITBAAAACK!!!

GLOW: The Story of the Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling
* Director: Brett Whitcomb
* Screenwriter: Bradford Thomason
* Stars: Lori Palmer (Ninotchka), Jeanne Basone (Hollywood), Ursula Hayden (Babe the Farmer’s Daughter), Dee Booher (Matilda the Hun), Lisa Moretti (Tina Ferrari), Emily Dole (Mt. Fiji), Trish Casella (Jailbait), Cheryl Rusa (Lightning), Dawn Rice (Godiva), Helena Le Count (Daisy), Donna Willinsky (Spike), Sharon Willinsky (Chainsaw), Lynn Braxton (Big Bad Mama), Matt Cimber
* MPAA Rating: N/A

Citadel (2012)

HERE’S A QUESTION for all the dads out there: Could you protect your child from evil if you were afraid of everything?

That’s the dilemma posed by the Irish horror import Citadel, where we meet Tommy (Aneurin Barnard), a young father afflicted with chronic agoraphobia after his pregnant wife is brutally attacked by a gang of hooded youths (children, to be exact). When the same gang starts terrorizing Tommy again, intent on kidnapping his baby daughter, he seeks help from a doubting yet sympathetic nurse (Wunmi Mosaku) and a vigilante priest (James Cosmo) to overcome his fear and destroy the gang for good.

Drawing from his own experience with agoraphobia following a violent mugging, Citadel’s first-time feature writer/director Ciaran Foy paints Tommy’s world as a bleak, grimy landscape of blues and greys (much like how Tommy views his life and his future). Foy does an effective job at balancing scares with cares, putting Tommy in the hands of Mosaku’s nurse just long enough to provide the viewer with a false sense of relief before throwing Tommy back into danger at the hands of the gang. (Also great: Foy’s use of Tommy’s old apartment number (111) and the recurring theme of threes.)

Looking and acting like Elijah Wood’s strung-out big brother, Barnard does a great job capturing the struggle of a new parent stricken with a crippling fear and topped with a coating of paranoia. Cosmo’s embattled priest, while quite the screen presence, is a somewhat uneven mishmash of profane wisdom, jarring frankness, and tough love. Also, his exposition explaining the origin of the feral children is muddled and dodges the obvious question: If this gang of children has been around for decades, wouldn’t there now be a few adults in the group?

Winner of the Midnighters Audience Award at the 2012 South by Southwest (SXSW) Film Festival, Citadel is nearly everything a horror film should be – “nearly” because of the third act, a showdown in the abandoned apartment tower where Tommy and his wife lived when she was attacked. This finale plays like a haunted-house action sequence and betrays the creepy, atmospheric tone Foy set in the first hour. The film also ends somewhat abruptly: one side wins, and almost immediately the credits roll.

As good as Citadel is, a word of warning to anyone who’s an expectant father, a single dad, or a parent of an infant: Before you know it, you’ll soon be wondering if you would have what it takes if faced with the same terrors as Tommy.

Rating:

Is it suitable for your kids?

Absolutely not. In the opening scene, Tommy’s wife is viciously attacked by the gang; Tommy’s emotional breakdowns are harrowing to watch (though he’s oddly emotionless when taking his wife off life support); the hooded children are truly scary: they attack and kill several people, complete with graphic noises and bloodshed, either in shadows or off screen; Tommy’s baby daughter is put in peril in several scenes; one of the hooded children’s throats is slit, complete with spraying blood; there are many profanities.

Will your FilmMother want to watch it?

With a pregnant mother beaten to death in the opening scene, a gang of mutated killer children, and the ongoing threat of a baby girl being stolen by the gang, I can’t see too many mothers who would be willing to sit through Citadel.

"Candy-Gram."

Citadel
* Director: Ciaran Foy
* Screenwriter: Ciaran Foy
* Stars: Aneurin Barnard, Wunmi Mosaku, James Cosmo, Jake Wilson, Amy Shiels
* MPAA Rating: R


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Wreck-It Ralph (2012)

WHAT IF YOU WORKED at the same job for 30 years, with no change in your routine or position, and no acknowledgement from your co-workers – ever? Would you look to break free and find a better life?

That’s the premise of Wreck-It Ralph, Disney’s 52nd animated feature film. Tired of smashing buildings for 30 years as the bad guy in the arcade game Fix-It Felix, Jr., Ralph (John C. Reilly) leaves and explores other games in his arcade, in search of being a hero. After stealing the medal from the first-person shoot-‘em-up Hero’s Duty, Ralph frantically escapes and lands in the racing game Sugar Rush, with Felix (Jack McBrayer) and Hero’s Duty’s Sergeant Calhoun (Jane Lynch) in hot pursuit.

Gamers from Generation X and younger will drool over the abundance of game titles and characters that pop up in the first act of Wreck-It Ralph, especially during the 30-year time lapse of Ralph’s arcade (titles go buzzing by) and the early scenes of Game Central Station, where characters from arcade games old and new cross paths on their way home from work.

What’s largely missing from the second act of Wreck-It Ralph is what Pixar seems to have sucked from Disney’s films over the last two decades: character development. For quite a while, the film is largely plot-driven, as we sit back and watch Ralph jump around the various video game worlds and meet all walks of digitized life, including Vanellope (Sarah Silverman), a glitchy little girl from Sugar Rush who has dreams of being a racing champion. As two kindred misfits, she and Ralph make a deal to help each other get what they want, and the action continues…

…until the third act, which begins with Ralph doing something that seems devastatingly cruel to Vanellope, yet makes us leap to where we should be in terms of caring for the characters. We hope Ralph will learn the truth about Sugar Rush’s mysterious past and help Vanellope achieve her dreams before the finale, which culminates in a one-two punch of a fantastic car race (including a huge reveal of the film’s true villain) coupled with the impending destruction of Sugar Rush from a horde of giant cyber-bugs Ralph accidentally brought in from Hero’s Duty.

Looking back on all the buzz that preceded Wreck-It Ralph’s release, there was no way for it to live up to the hype. But it still delivers in terms of pure entertainment. Some name-calling and poop jokes aside, it’s hopefully another solid step in Disney’s emergence from Pixar’s shadow and back to the quality animated storytelling they hinted at with Bolt a few years back.

Rating:

What did FilmBoy and Jack-Jack think?

FilmBoy loved Wreck-It Ralph – he and I couldn’t stop talking about it as we left the theater. His affection for video games and their characters surely played a part. Jack-Jack thought the film was “weird,” but couldn’t elaborate. The plot details and continuous action may have been a lot for him to process as a 6-year-old.

Is it suitable for your kids?

Wreck-It Ralph is rated PG for “some rude humor and mild action violence.”
Violence/Scariness: Heavily armed soldiers shoot at giant cyber-bugs, some of which grow machine gun arms and shoot (no one is hurt). A character comically pulls a zombie's heart out of his chest, then puts it back. In another comic scene, Calhoun punches Felix several times, giving him black eyes, broken teeth, and bruises (they heal immediately when he touches his face with his magic hammer). In a brief flashback, a character is eaten by an alien bug. Calhoun and Ralph occasionally punch others and destroy their surroundings. Vanellope drives her car into a wall and comically spits out a tooth (no blood). Mean girls tear apart Vanellope’s car, which Ralph helps rebuild but then destroys himself because he’s told that racing it could kill her (she sobs and calls him names). The film’s villain makes a final appearance in a mutated form that could be scary to young children. A little girl transforms into a princess and tells other girls they will be executed for being mean; she then says it was a joke. There’s talk about characters dying permanently outside of their own video games; a few scenes show characters in life-threatening situations.
Language: There’s frequent use of insults and name-calling, including “I hate you," "shut your chew hole," "pussy willows," "doody," "numbskull," “moron,” “idiot,” “dumb,” “stupid,” “diaper-baby,” “stinky brain,” and my personal favorite, “Miss Fartfeathers.” Rude humor includes mentions of “puke,” “butt load,” and a running joke about Hero’s Duty (as in “doody.”).
Alcohol: A character pours himself a martini. A scene takes place in a game called Tapper, in which characters drink root beer from beer mugs. Characters are also briefly seen drinking at a dance party.
Adult situations: Two characters exchange a passionate kiss in two different scenes.

Will your FilmMother want to watch it?

Even if she’s not a serious gamer, she’ll love Wreck-It Ralph: endearing characters on a fantastic adventure, with several tender moments served up along the way. (Also, Disney, if you’re reading this: My wife said she would love to play the game Sugar Rush for real. Get on that, please.)

In one of these hands, I’ve got Q*Bert.

Go ahead…guess.

I SAID GUESS!!!

Wreck-It Ralph
* Directors: Rich Moore
* Screenwriters: Phil Johnston, Jennifer Lee
* Stars: John C. Reilly, Jack McBrayer, Jane Lynch, Sarah Silverman
* MPAA Rating: PG


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Westworld (1973)

MENTION THE NAME “MICHAEL CRICHTON,” and most people think of the best-selling author of thrillers such as The Andromeda Strain, Congo, Disclosure, and Rising Sun.

But in the early 1970s – after witnessing the animatronic people at Disneyland’s “Pirates of the Caribbean” ride – Crichton wrote and directed his feature-film debut, Westworld.

In the near-future of Westworld, people can spend $1,000 a day to visit Delos, an adult-themed amusement park where guests live out their wildest fantasies. Comprised of three worlds (Medieval World, Roman World, and Westworld), Delos is inhabited by robots who look, act, sound, and even bleed just like the human guests. Like Disney World, Delos is supported by an elaborate underground control center, where a staff of technicians controls the robots and the scenarios, and provides repair to robots damaged in the action taking place.

It’s Westworld where our leading men are headed: manly man John (James Brolin) and nebbish Peter (Richard Benjamin). Once they arrive, the two have lots of fun with saloon whiskey, loose women, bar fights, and jailbreaks. They even engage in shootouts, often with a steely-eyed troublemaker dressed in black (Yul Brynner). Everything’s good-time, rootin’-tootin’ fun – until the robots start malfunctioning and killing the guests.

Throughout Westworld, Crichton teases at the potential breakdown of the Delos parks: the supervisor (Alan Oppenheimer) voices his concern, a malfunctioning robo-rattlesnake bites John, and a Medieval World wench (Anne Randall) refuses a guest’s seduction. These minor glitches soon develop into to deadly attacks on the guests, with a fatal swordfight in Medieval World, a violent riot in Roman World, and Brynner’s gunslinger coldly gunning down a Westworld guest.

While Brynner is in Westworld for less than half its running time, his robotic gunslinger steals the film. In an homage to his character from The Magnificent Seven (he even wears the same outfit), Brynner portrays the perfect blend of ice-cold killer and calculating humanoid, with a piercing stare made extra chilling by Brynner sporting light-reflecting contact lenses.


After shooting one of our leading men dead, Westworld’s gunslinger methodically pursues the survivor through all three Delos parks – thumbs hooked in his gun belt, eyes fixed on his target, and using thermal vision (shown in POV) more than a decade before Predator.

Yes, Westworld has its plot holes, it dips into camp on occasion, and a lot of the dialogue (especially between Brolin and Benjamin) is disposable. But it’s still a very entertaining film that’s essentially the blueprint for Crichton’s more ambitious themepark-run-amok story: his 1990 novel Jurassic Park.

Rating:

Is it suitable for your kids?

Westworld is rated PG, though if it was released today it may have been PG-13.
Violence/Scariness: Several people and robots are shot or stabbed, with blood pouring from the wounds; a robot is set on fire and fully engulfed in flames; John and Peter shoot a robotic rattlesnake; the Delos technicians suffocate after the park’s breakdown cuts off their air supply.
Sex/Nudity: John and Peter sleep with robot hookers at the saloon; one of the hookers is shown topless from the back.
Profanity/Language: Two occurrences of “God damn it.”

Will your FilmMother want to watch it?

Westworld feels like a film you’d enjoy by yourself, with friends, or possibly with your tween or teen son. Unless your FilmMother is a sci-fi fan, or a Crichton fan who wants to see his filmmaking debut, I’m guessing she’ll pass.

Boy, have we got a vacation for YOU!

 Westworld
* Director: Michael Crichton
* Screenwriter: Michael Crichton
* Stars: Richard Benjamin, James Brolin, Yul Brynner, Dick Van Patten, Alan Oppenheimer
* MPAA Rating: PG


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Sleeping Beauty (1959)

RECENTLY, JACK-JACK’S kindergarten class went on a field trip to see a children’s play.

But when I heard the play was Sleeping Beauty, I grew concerned. I’ve documented my boys’ track record of anti-princess sentiment, so I was worried he may not care for the play. Turns out, he really liked it.

Hoping to capitalize on this, I showed Jack-Jack my pristine, barely used, 50th anniversary DVD of Sleeping Beauty I bought from our local library for $3 (that’s not a typo). He was fascinated, carrying it around the house for several days, staring at the box art.

Yet as the whole family sat down to watch Sleeping Beauty, I wondered if it could capture the attention and imagination of two young boys more than half a century after its release…

Sleeping Beauty follows 16-year-old Princess Aurora, who’s put in the care of three bumbling fairies to avoid the curse of being cast into a deep sleep by the evil witch Maleficent – a curse that can only be broken by true love’s first kiss.

Some of the plot developments in Sleeping Beauty are a bit odd by today’s standards…

• When Maleficent declares, during Aurora’s infancy, that she will curse the princess on her 16th birthday, the king and queen give her to the three fairies to raise until she turns 16 (though parents of teens may agree with this technique).
• On the eve of Aurora’s 16th birthday, the fairies send her out into the woods – unchaperoned – so they can plan her birthday party. (What could possibly go wrong?)
• Prince Phillip, who’s destined to wed Aurora in an arranged marriage, may want to check the statutes in his kingdom concerning his plans to wed a 15-year-old minor.

What’s interesting is that while Sleeping Beauty (aka Princess Aurora) gets top billing, it’s the three fairies who carry the film. In fact, Aurora is virtually a bit player in her own movie; she’s more of a plot device than a fully developed character.

Is this movie old? Yes, it is. But thanks to an amazing transfer full or rich, vibrant colors, it looks very new. And the animation is classic Disney in every way possible: fluid character movements surrounded by gorgeous set pieces and backdrops.

Aside from the antics of the fairies, the wickedness of Maleficent, and the climactic battle, Sleeping Beauty plays a bit quiet. However, the last ten minutes are truly exciting as Prince Philip faces off against Maleficent in the form of a fire-breathing dragon (her, not him).

With Sleeping Beauty, there’s not much more you could ask for from a classic Disney movie: a prince, a princess, cute and funny animals, comedic relief, an evil queen, and a fairytale ending.

So did it capture the attention and imagination of my boys? The answer is yes. Maybe not a resounding yes…let’s call it a confident, admirable yes.

Rating:

What did Dash and Jack-Jack think?

Sleeping Beauty was a tougher sell for Dash than Jack-Jack. He almost declined to watch it with us, but finally agreed. While he did sit through it without protest (and actually seemed to enjoy it), I doubt he’ll ask for a second viewing.
For his part, Jack-Jack did like Sleeping Beauty. But due to my hard sell of the dragon, he asked “Where’s the dragon?” or “Is the dragon coming soon?” several times.

Is it suitable for your kids?

Sleeping Beauty is rated G, and is largely appropriate for all ages. Some minor concerns for small children: Maleficent can be menacing at times; one of the king's servants gets tipsy on wine; Maleficent declares that she is summoning “all the powers of Hell;” a dragon is stabbed by a sword, with some blood coming from the wound.

Will your FilmMother want to watch it?

Hmm...does she like Disney? Does she like princesses? Do you know I’m asking these questions rhetorically?

SPOILER ALERT!!!

Sleeping Beauty
* Director: Clyde Geronimi
* Screenwriter: Erdman Penner
* Stars: Mary Costa, Bill Shirley, Eleanor Audley, Verna Felton, Barbara Luddy, Barbara Jo Allen, Taylor Holmes, Bill Thompson, Marvin Miller
* MPAA Rating: G


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The Great Bear (2011)

IN CASE IT NEEDS TO BE SAID, great animated films don’t always come from Pixar, Disney, DreamWorks, or Blue Sky Studios. Sometimes they don’t even come from America (i.e. Japan’s Studio Ghibli, home of legendary animator Hayao Miyazaki).

If The Great Bear is any indication, we might soon be looking at Denmark as a future hotbed of well-crafted animated storytelling. The film follows big brother Jonathan (Markus Rygaard) and little sister Sophie (Alberte Blichfeldt) as they visit their grand-dad (Elith Nulle Nykjær) at his home in the woods next to The Great Forest. Grand-Dad warns the kids never to enter The Great Forest because “it’s full of strange animals,” including The Great Bear – a gigantic brown bear (we’re talking stories high) with a forest of trees growing out of its back. When Sophie mistakenly enters The Great Forest and vanishes, Jonathan goes in after her, crossing paths with a lone hunter (Flemming Quist Møller) who’s determined to kill the bear after it demolished his village.

Comparisons of The Great Bear to Miyazaki’s classic My Neighbor Totoro are fair: Both feature a pair of bickering siblings who discover magical creatures in a neighboring forest. To that extent, The Great Bear is My Neighbor Totoro’s rougher, tougher older brother. There’s danger, gunplay, and more perilous action in Jonathan and Sophie’s adventures, which has them encountering such surreal creatures as a herd of miniature moose, comical blackbirds, and frogs that bring rain when you make them croak.

Then there’s The Great Bear himself, an ursine behemoth and a masterwork of CGI animation. Yet despite his gargantuan girth, Jonathan soon learns what Sophie’s known all along: The only thing monstrous about the bear is his size. He’s actually a gentle giant who only lashes out when provoked or threatened. Jonathan then stops trying to rescue Sophie from The Great Bear and starts helping her protect him from the determined hunter.

With The Great Bear, first-time feature film director Esben Toft Jacobsen mines the many strengths of CGI animation to create a rich, deep, captivating experience, just like Miyazaki did with Totoro’s gorgeous 2-D animation nearly 25 years ago. Jacobsen’s film features beautiful, fantastic scenery, plus a distinct European style of animation that may seem slightly different (and a bit less refined) than what American audiences are used to.

A hit at international film festivals, The Great Bear touches all the sweet spots that a children’s film should: friendship, loyalty, adventure, and love for all living things. Sadly, it has yet to find a U.S. distributor. If you or anyone you know can help distribute The Great Bear in America, contact the filmmakers and let them know. This film deserves an audience here in the States. [UPDATE 6/16/14: The Great Bear is now available in the U.S., including Amazon Instant and Walmart.]

Danish, with English dubbing.

Rating:

Is it suitable for your kids?

The Great Bear is not rated, but does have some violence/scariness: Jonathan tells Sophie scary stories about The Great Bear; he slaps her when she calls him “dumb;” he falls in a hole and gets a bloody wound on his wrist; he follows drops of blood to locate the bear after the hunter shoots him; and he pulls a bullet from a wound in the bear’s mouth. The size and growls of The Great Bear may be scary to very small children. The hunter gets scarier and more violent as the film progresses: He shoots into a cave, nearly hitting Jonathan; he shoots at the bear multiple times, hitting him once in the mouth and causing Sophie to plummet from the top of the bear’s head to the ground; he calls Sophie a “little brat,” takes her away from Jonathan, and locks her in a closet in his cabin; he crushes one of the blackbirds in his hand (we’re to believe it’s dead); he sets fire to the forest to flush out the bear; when Jonathan tries to stop him from shooting the bear, the hunter hits Jonathan in the face with the butt of his gun, knocking him to the ground; in the finale, he shoots the bear again, this time in the back. Also in the finale, someone is killed by a falling boulder; the screen cuts to black upon the impact. The only questionable language is Sophie calling Jonathan “dumb” and, when Jonathan says he smells something funny, she asks, “Did you fart?” 8 years and older is probably the appropriate age for viewing.

Will your FilmMother want to watch it?

If she’s a fan of animated films and magical storytelling, and can handle animals and children being put in peril along the way, she’ll surely enjoy The Great Bear.

Don’t even think of asking me if I want a pic-a-nic basket.

The Great Bear trailer:

The Great Bear
* Director: Esben Toft Jacobsen
* Screenwriters: Jannik Tai Mosholt, Esben Toft Jacobsen
* Stars: Markus Rygaard, Flemming Quist Møller, Alberte Blichfeldt, Elith Nulle Nykjær
* MPAA Rating: N/A