I'd put all my eggs in this basket come awards season.
***** out of 5
97 minutes
Rated PG for thematic elements and some mildly scary
action
Paramount Pictures
Let’s get one thing straight,
Rise of the Guardians (based on William
Joyce’s book,
The Guardians of Childhood) is
not a sequel to
Legend
of the Guardians: The Owls Ga’Hoole. Yes, the title is a bit confusing, but
this movie has no owls ripping off
The Secret of NIMH, but does feature
some elves that show
Despicable Me’s minions a thing or two about what
funny really is. With the holiday season upon us, there was bound to be
something released featuring Santa Claus in one form or another. Last year we
got a new classic in
Arthur Christmas, and this year DreamWorks
Animation has decided to one up it by gathering together most of our childhood
mythological beings for
Rise of the Guardians.
Beginning with the icy birth of Jack Frost (voiced by Chris Pine), he
discovers his newfound powers. He also discovers that no one can see him
because no one believes in him yet. Three hundered years later – three days
till Easter – and we find Jack Frost still nipping at our noses, and that Pitch
Black – aka the Boogeyman (voiced by Jude Law) – has decided that it’s his turn
to rise. Yet, he isn’t the one who was chosen by the Man in the Moon. Much to
the chagrin of the Easter Bunny (voiced by Hugh Jackman) it’s Jack Frost. With
their sordid past behind them, they discover that along with North, aka Santa
(voiced by Alec Baldwin); Tooth, the tooth fairy (voiced by Isla Fisher); and
Sandy, the sandman; they must all join forces to take down Pitch before he
turns every child’s dreams into nightmares and the world’s children stop
believing in them and they lose all their powers.
Director Peter Ramsey has crafted not only one of the best family-friendly
holiday films in years, but one of the year’s best animated features. The last
half of this year has seen a steady incline with each release, from
ParaNorman
to
Frankenweenie to
Wreck-It Ralph, now
Rise of the Guardians
has swooped in to try and beat them all. The voice cast delivers some raucous
quips while the elves and Yeti’s are on standby to provide the film’s more
hilarious sight gags. Backed by some fantastically rendered animation and a fun
use of 3D, you just may once again believe in the likes of Santa Claus, the
Easter Bunny, the Tooth Fairy, the Sandman, and even Jack Frost.
Screenwriter David Lindsay-Abaire (Pulitzer Prize winner for his play
Rabbit
Hole and recently tapped to rewrite the
Poltergeist remake) has
managed to make everything we used to believe in as children a quasi-reality.
(As much as I despise the idea of anyone trying to remake
Poltergeist,
Lindsay-Abaire truly has my blessing as he’s been able to so successfully blend
family-friendly with the macabre.) Yes, parts of the film get a little dark,
but that probably has more to do with executive producer Guillermo del Toro’s
sensibilities, which are welcome in spades. All in all, with
Rise of the
Guardians, the year’s best animated feature has also risen and once you see
it, you’ll believe it.
Photos courtesy DreamWorks Animation
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