Movie in 3D

Family friendly 3D film

Walt Disney classic “Beauty and the Beast” (1991) returns to the big screen following a series of Disney Digital 3D releases, based on old remakes of successful family friendly films, the original “Beauty and the Beast” is still the only animated film ever nominated for a Best Picture Award in the Oscard nominations.

This movie has been converted to 3D using the same methods “The Lion King” was last year, with “Finding Nemo 3D” coming next. The film features an exclusive 3D sequel to “Tangled” (2010), named “Tangled Ever After“, a very hilarious short animated film to entice people doubtful of paying for something they have already seen in 2D, juxtaposing both films you can clearly notice the huge technical advances in animation.

This movie is a classic, with six Academy Award nominations and winning a well deserved Oscar to the best song,  3D adds shine to what already was a great film, fans of “Cinderella” and “SnowWhite” shouldn’t miss “Beauty and the Beast“.

Beauty and the Beast 3D at the cinema

“Beauty and the Beast” 3D is full of of elegant animations and choreographed songs that will charm adults and kids alike, the 3D post conversion nicely pops out of the screen the characters without throwing out the objects in the background, the 3D effects greatly enhance the landscape and the castle with most of the film giving the impression of a huge pop-up book. Disney’s conversion of the “Beauty and the Beast” into 3D has been brilliant, ghosting is nearly unnoticeable if at all. Children will possibly love the history and marvel at the special effects, these kind of films benefit geatly from the cinema experience, with a bigger more colourful, funnier and magical screen, I believe it is money well spent.

Synopsis: An beautiful young village girl enters a castle where his father is being held prisoner by a Beast and offers herself in exchange for her dad’s freedom, during her captivity she befriends an enchanted tea pot and clock, ultimately discovering that under the skin of a horrible monster there is the hidden soul of a prince and she begins to draw him out of his isolation.

Director: Gary Trousdale, Kirk Wise
Writter: Linda Woolverton
Music:  Alan Menken, Howard Ashman
Duration: 1hr 24min
Rated: PG

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Tintin 3D film review

Tintin was a legendary popular comic book character in Europe through the seventies and eighties made by Belgian artist Georges Remi, aka Hergé, several live action Tintin films were produced in the sixties and a hugely popular animated TV series, The Adventures of Tintin come to the big screen from the hand of Steven Spielberg (director) and Peter Jackson (producer), this is the first Steven Spielberg animated film, made with GGI using motion facial capturing performances from real actors like Jamie Bell, starring Tintin, Andy Serkis as Captain Haddock and Simon Pegg and Nick Frost as Thomson and Thompson. The CGI method allows for the characters to look cartoonish type near photo quality, an effect impossible to accomplish with make up alone, the downside is that the facial acting skills can not be fully appreciated.

The film is full of the kind jokes that any Tintin comic reader is used too, funny and witty, sometimes subtle, The Secret of the Unicorn contains eye popping fast paced action with scenes that would be prohibitively expensive to film for real and suspense until the end, the few gun battles have raised some criticism as this is meant to be a family friendly film, but nothing too harsh is showed that should be of concern. The 3D effects are stunning, fully immersing the viewer into the film, high action 3D without fear of a head ache, gorgeous graphics, textures and landscapes of exotic locations, kids and parents will enjoy Tintin’s fun night out and if Tintin is successful at the box office, there are two proposed sequels.

The Adventures of Tintin release date: Western Europe 27th October, Middle East 03th November, Latin America January 2012 and North America (USA&Canada) 21st December.

Synopsis: A young Belgian reporter called Tintin discovers the location of a sunken ship lost at sea centuries ago, he, his dog Snowy and the ancestor of the captain’s sunken ship, Captain Haddock, race to find the treasure before the malevolent Red Rackham advances them to it.

The Adventures of Tintin 3D film

Director: Steven Spielberg
Genre: Action & Adventure, Animation, Kids & Family
Written By: Hergé, Steven Moffat, Edgar Wright, Joe Cornish
Runtime: 1 hour 40 minutes

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Cars 2 3D review

A Pixar Animation Studios film distributed by Walt Disney, Cars 2 (2011) is the sequel to the successful Cars (2006) film involving much of the original cast, (out of respect for Paul Newman, who died in 2008, the Doc Hudson character does not appear in the film) this animated film is full of comedy action with lots of automotive puns, it appears geared towards young kids, Nascar fans might still like to watch it, and parents will not feel specially entertained, unlike the first part, Cars 2 fails to create complicity in between the characters and the audience, the story and script seem to have been put together in a week.

This CGI animated film seems to have been created just to pull money out of the success of Cars part 1 without placing too much effort into it, Cars 2 does not live up to the expectations it is definitely worse than the first part and one of the worst Pixar films, the 3D version of Cars 2 does not improve it excessively, besides some firewall explosions and awesome rendering of skylines and cities there isn’t much that justifies paying extra to watch this film in 3D, it sure enhances the experience but it does not produce enough WoW factors that make it a must see in 3D film, to top it up the film has a slight anti-oil and pro environment message which is not even appropriate for a car racing story and hypocritical from a company, Disney, who to be the best of my knowledge does not use recycled materials to produce Cars 2 merchandising.

It has been released too a Cars 2 soundtrack, with songs written and composed by Michael Giacchino, and a video game with the same name published by Disney Interactive Studios, the PlayStation 3 game of Cars 2 is compatible with 3D gameplay, the soundtrack is available in CD and digital download.

Synopsis: Star race Lightning McQueen and sidekick Mater leave small town Radiator Springs to compete in the World Grand Prix race leading them to travel around the world, they both get embroiled in an international espionage plot and find themselves torn in between winning the race and assisting in a top secret mission.

Director: John Lasseter & Brad Lewis
Scriptwriters: Ben Queen, John Lasseter, Brad Lewis, and Dan Fogelman
Voices: Owen Wilson (McQueen), Michael Caine (Finn McMissile), Lloyd Scherr (Fillmore)
Runtime: 113 minutes
MPAA Rating: G (General)

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Animated family friendly 3D film

This computer generated martial arts action comedy film is the sequel to DreamWorks 2008 film Kung Fu Panda, full of emotional characterization surpassing the first film, the animation is next to perfect, the scenery, buildings, cities and interiors are all very detailed and colourful. The scripting, like the first part is funny and witty, and the action brings excitement, Kung Fu Panda 2 is even better than the first part, the story is as touching and the 3D animated effects bonds you with the characters even more, a brilliant sequel that kids and adults will equally love, I could not think of a better film for an all family cinema night.

Kung Fu Panda 2 inception had 3D in mind from day one and it paid off, it is worth to pay the extra money to see the sense the depth in the cities of ancient China in 3D, the green forests and the objects leaping out from the screen in the choreographed dynamic fight sequences, this film had $150 million budget, already recovered at the box office, and growing.

Kung Fu Panda 2 voices: Jack Black (Po), Angelina Jolie (Tigress), Jackie Chan (Monkey), Dustin Hoffman (Master Sifu), Lucy Liu (Viper), Jean Claude Damme (Master Croc)

Synopsis: Now known as the Dragon Warrior Po and protector of the Valley of Peace alongside his friends, the Panda comes across a dangerous villain threatening to use a secret weapon to conquer China, the encounter with this villain provokes Po some flashbacks as an infant panda cub, in order to defeat the new enemy, Po must recall all of his past and unlock the secrets of his mysterious origins.

Director: Jennifer Yuh Nelson
Writters: Jonathan Aibel and Glenn Berger
Runtime: 95 minutes
Rating: PG

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Pirates of the Caribbean 3D film

Pirates of the Caribbean 4 is shot in 3D, it is not a converted movie, the film is being released in Disney Digital 3-D, IMAX 3D and the traditional 2D. This is the first Pirates of the Caribbean film where fictional characters are based on real life historical figures, the pirate Blackbeard, George II of Great Britain, Henry Pelham and Ferdinand VI of Spain they have all existed for real.

An action packed adventure 3D film under the direction of Rob Marshall, the return of Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow, Disney announced that Depp has been paid $55.5 million to return, Penélope Cruz as “Captain Jack’s equal”, Geoffrey Rush as Captain Hector Barbossa, Astrid Berges-Frisbey as a mermaid, Stephen Graham as “Scram” and Sam Claflin as “Philip, a youthful missionary”.

Pirates of the Caribbean On Stranger Tides was shot simultaneously in Hawaii, the United Kingdom, Puerto Rico, on the island of Palomino, and Los Angeles, California, the soundtrack was composed by Eric Whitacre with Hans Zimmer (second and third film soundtrack composer) and Whitacre’s wife, Hila Plitmann.

Fans of the Pirates of the Caribbean saga will love this film, there isn’t anything new that would push people to watch it otherwise, I found this film as good as the last three ones, with nothing exceptionally better or worse, more adventures, more fantasy, more humorous, beautifully shot scenes and spectacular fun for the whole family.

Synopsis: Captain Jack Sparrow  unexpectedly meets an old female friend, she unconventionally convinces him to get aboard of the legendary Blackbeard pirate ship to start a quest in search of the mythical Fountain of Youth, they will later discover that captain Hector Barbossa is after said fountain too on behalf of the King of England.

Technichal details:
Director: Rob Marshall
Writers: Ted Elliott, Terry Rossio
Starring: Johnny Depp, Penélope Cruz and Ian McShane
Music: Eric Whitacre, Hila Plitmann, Hans Zimmer
Rated: PG-13
Runtime: 137 minutes

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Rio (2011) 3D film

Synopsis: Rio is comical crazy animated 3D comedy that starts with a rare exotic blue macaw natural from Brasil named Blu taken to Minnesota where he grows up and is domesticated by a shy bookstore owner called Linda.

Years later an ornithologist will identify the macaw as the last male of his species and convince the owner, Linda, to fly with Blu to Rio de Janeiro in Brazil so that he can mate with a wild female macaw named Jewel and ensure the survival of his kind, that is where things will start to get complicated.

Review:Rio is a film from the makers of Ice Age, highly visual and colourful with rhythmic music and dancing, most of the film settings happen in Brazil, with a very typical Brazilian scenery, loose summer clothing, beaches, traditional Brazilian songs mixed up with contemporary tunes of artists like Jamie Foxx.

The vivid soundtrack greatly enhanced the story as it moves along, if you watch Rio in 3D you will also appreciate a constant barrage of birds flying towards the audience, the kids will probably love this, not sure about the adults, Rio story plot isn’t as clever as Ice Age but it is entertaining and the visual effects are better, a predictable animated film  with brilliant animated graphics and refreshing music, it is not a must a see movie but you will not regret having paid for the cinema ticket if you do.

Rio is released on 8th April in the UK and 15th April in the USA

Director: Carlos Saldanha
Producers: John C. Donkin, Bruce Anderson and Chris Wedge
Music: John Powell
Studio: Blue Sky Studio
Film Length: 1 Hour and 36 Minutes

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A classic love tale converted in a 3D kids film

The classic Shakespeare’s play Romeo and Juliet makes for a funny animated comedy suitable for the whole family. This time it is two garden gnomes, Gnomeo and Juliet falling madly in love and getting caught up in a neighbours feud in between blue gnomes (Gnomeo) and red gnomes (Juliet) disapproving of their relationship.

The romantic couple will try to find a happy end to their mutual infatuation and avoid tragedy in a fun filled adventure that includes plastic pink flamingos and lawnmower races. Gnomeo & Juliet includes a great voice casting  made up of mostly British actors like James McAvoy, Emily Blunt, Michael Caine, Maggie Smith, Stephen Merchant.

The soundtrack song of this film is played by Lady Gaga, Nelly Furtado and Elton John. Gnomeo & Juliet is a very funny film suitable for all ages, kids will love it more than anyone else given the childish nature of the characters, garden gnomes, but the riotous comedy gags will make everyone laugh.

Official website: http://www.gnomeoandjuliet.com/

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Two years after Coraline first appeared in high definition, Universal studios is now releasing this film teetering between fantasy and horror in 3D. ’Coraline 3D’ is a fantastic version that will make many fans and 3D enthusiasts happy with the picture quality.

Bonus features from its DVD release have been ported to the Blu-ray 3D, such as audio commentaries, the making of Coraline, voicing the character and deleted scenes.  the disc also includes BD live connection to Universal Studios Internet portal where you can view various trailers.

Synopsis: Coraline is about a young girl who walks through a secret door in her new home and discovers an alternate version of her life – a better version. But when this wondrously off-kilter, fantastical adventure turns dangerous and her “other” parents try to keep her forever, Coraline must count of her resourcefulness, determination, and bravery to get back home.

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Walt Disney has announced a Diamond Edition Blu-ray and DVD Combo Pack of Beauty and the beast, with state-of-the-art picture restoration and 7.1 Digital Surround Sound.This 3D disc will include thematically linked 3D menus, 3D previews of coming-attractions trailers and an introduction to the eye-popping world of Disney Blu-ray 3D.

Disney’s animated version of the classic tale, “Beauty and the Beast,” is enchanting and paves its way into our hearts as well as making motion picture history, it has a brilliant animation and song, as well as some terrific voice talents.

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Walt Disney Studios is converting The Lion King to 3D with a view to a 3D Blu-ray release in the fall of 2011 (coinciding with the advertised Diamond Edition Blu-ray).

The Lion King is an animated film that takes place in a jungle paradise on the African plain. With powerful visual sequences, and a clever and touching plot this film has stood the of time as one of the best animated movies ever produced. Adults and children alike will enjoy this film together while listening to its most famous soundtrack song, Elton John’s hit single “Can You Feel The Love Tonight”.

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