Rise of the Guardians

Synopsis: (hijacked from IMDB)

When an evil spirit known as Pitch lays down the gauntlet to take over the world, the immortal Guardians must join forces for the first time to protect the hopes, beliefs and imagination of children all over the world.

Why did I watch this movie again?

Uh, look at the cast of voices.  I’d follow Jude Law into a hot pink Barbie house if he promised to talk whenever I told him to.  And Hugh Jackman.  But besides the impressive cast of voices, the story looked intriguing, and I hoped it would be both a funny movie and a great story.

5 out of 5

Characters

The characters in this movie made the story.  Santa Clause felt like a Russian mobster, the Easter Bunny used boomerangs, the Tooth Fairy is a little too infatuated with teeth and Sandman was awesome.

The story revolves around Jack Frost and his desire to be accepted, recognized and believed in.  Considering this is a kid’s show, I thought the development of Jack worked wonderfully.  Deeper than I’d imagined, but not too deep to bore you to tears.

I’m still loving the Yeti as well.  So funny.  The writers utilized every single character they introduced.

5 out of 5

Did I care what happened?

I totally got sucked in.  Again, it was the characters and their rolls that pulled me into the story.  Who is Jack Frost and why did the moon save him?  Does Santa really have tattoos?  Is the Easter Bunny afraid to fly?  Will the kids finally see Jack Frost?  Will Pitch (bad guy) overcome the Sandman and turn dreams to nightmares?  I wanted to know all of these things.

4 out of 5

Plot Holes

My inner editor did not raise any alarms for this movie. I loved how the Tooth Fairy and the teeth played into the story, and I felt like everything tied in at the end.  The kid who first sees Jack even gets his friends involved for the final battle.  The story felt tight.

4 out of 5

How many times did I yawn?

Not once.  Paced fast enough to keep kids entertained and slow enough to not be confusing

4 out of 5

Cool Factor

A movie like this is all about the visuals, and Dream Works did a great job with the animation.  I didn't love some of the style, but didn't find it distracting from the story.

Sandman’s cool factor is about 100.  Love that guy.

The writers were very creative about the powers each guardian had and how to best use a visual medium to show them.

4 out of 5

The End

Bah, the end made me tear up. I liked it.

4 out of 5

Overall Enjoyment

Walked out of this movie thinking that it is one of the best I’ve seen this year.  I just watched Arthur Christmas a few weeks ago, and loved it.  Both it and Rise of the Guardians are going to be new holiday classics for me.  I recommended this movie to a few people, and no one has been disappointed.

5 out of 5

Score=35

That's a Black Belt!