Tween Movie Reviews
The Reviews are in! Read Franc’s write-ups of the latest tween appropriate flicks from Event Cinemas including: Lightyear; Minions: Rise of Gru, and; Jurassic World – Dominion…
ILLUMINATION’S MINIONS: THE RISE OF GRU
“I loved this film! All the feel good factor with those little yellow cuties, combined with Gru’s back story, lots of laughs and some evil villains for good measure!”
SYNOPSIS from the biggest animated franchise in history and global cultural phenomenon, comes the untold story of one 12-year-old’s dream to become the world’s greatest supervillain, in Minions: The Rise of Gru.
In the heart of the 1970s, amid a flurry of feathered hair and flared jeans, Gru (Oscar nominee Steve Carell) is growing up in the suburbs. A fanboy of a supervillain supergroup known as the Vicious 6, Gru hatches a plan to become evil enough to join them. Luckily, he gets some mayhem-making backup from his loyal followers, the Minions. Together, Kevin, Stuart, Bob, and Otto—a new Minion sporting braces and a desperate need to please—deploy their skills as they and Gru build their first lair, experiment with their first weapons and pull off their first missions.
When the Vicious 6 oust their leader, legendary fighter Wild Knuckles (Oscar winner Alan Arkin), Gru interviews to become their newest member. It doesn’t go well (to say the least), and only gets worse after Gru outsmarts them and suddenly finds himself the mortal enemy of the apex of evil. On the run, Gru will turn to an unlikely source for guidance, Wild Knuckles himself, and discover that even bad guys need a little help from their friends.
Teeming with Illumination’s signature subversive humour, pop-culture sophistication, full-hearted emotion, bold music sensibility, and over-the-top action, Minions: The Rise of Gru features a thrilling new cast of stars, including, as members of the Vicious 6, Taraji P. Henson as cool and confident leader Belle Bottom, Jean-Claude Van Damme as Jean Clawed, Lucy Lawless as Nunchuck, Dolph Lundgren as Svengeance and Danny Trejo as Stronghold. The film also features Russell Brand as Dr. Nefario, an aspiring mad scientist, Michelle Yeoh as Master Chow, an acupuncturist with mad Kung Fu skills, and Oscar winner Julie Andrews as Gru’s maddeningly self-absorbed mom.
#Minions
DISNEY PIXAR’S LIGHTYEAR
With the first Toy Story released in 1995, this franchise is well and truly loved by multiple generations. However while the original ‘Toy Story’ movies are great fun for all the family with a G-rating, the latest spinoff, Lightyear, is a far more grownup tale, best for older tweens and those who grew up loving the original Toy Story movies. While Lightyear has some funny parts, it is a fairly dark tale with sad moments, scary moments and a quite deep storyline (existential crisis anyone?)…
SYNOPSIS A sci-fi action adventure and the definitive origin story of Buzz Lightyear, the hero who inspired the toy, Lightyear follows the legendary Space Ranger after he’s marooned on a hostile planet 4.2 million light-years from Earth alongside his commander and their crew. As Buzz tries to find a way back home through space and time, he’s joined by a group of ambitious recruits and his charming robot companion cat, Sox. Complicating matters and threatening the mission is the arrival of Zurg, an imposing presence with an army of ruthless robots and a mysterious agenda.
The film features the voices of Chris Evans as accomplished Space Ranger Buzz Lightyear, Uzo Aduba as his commander and best friend Alisha Hawthorne and Peter Sohn as Sox. Keke Palmer, Taika Waititi and Dale Soules lend their voices to the Junior Zap Patrol’s Izzy Hawthorne, Mo Morrison and Darby Steel, respectively, and James Brolin can be heard as the enigmatic Zurg.
“It’s so good to see Buzz Lightyear back on our screens for another whirlwind adventure! This film had me on the edge of my seat the entire time!”
JURASSIC WORLD DOMINION
“I was petrified! I couldn’t even breathe! It was so so good!” and so begins Franc’s review of Jurassic World Dominion. Rated M it is certainly not for younger tweens with plenty of (very) large dinosaur activity, but for those that can handle a lot of big screen action, this one is a winner…
SYNOPSIS Experience the epic conclusion to the Jurassic era as two generations unite for the first time. Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard are joined by Oscar®-winner Laura Dern, Jeff Goldblum and Sam Neill in Jurassic World Dominion, a bold, timely and breathtaking new adventure that spans the globe.
From Jurassic World architect and director Colin Trevorrow, Dominion takes place four years after Isla Nublar has been destroyed. Dinosaurs now live—and hunt—alongside humans all over the world. This fragile balance will reshape the future and determine, once and for all, whether human beings are to remain the apex predators on a planet they now share with history’s most fearsome creatures.
“I was so excited to see this movie and wowsers it didn’t disappoint! Lots of action packed adventure as you can expect - an excellent sequel that had all the story parts you want in a Jurassic Park film!”
