Have you ever wondered how Santa delivers millions of presents in a single night? The 3D animation film Arthur Christmas (Aardman production for Sony Pictures Animation) reveals exactly how things work in Santa’s mysterious Arctic Headquarters.
Have you ever wondered what the life of a young journalist is like? Of course, you could probably hear my story, but my career as a journalist is far less dangerous, mysterious, and exciting than that of Tintin, a boy reporter with spiky orange hair in the movie “The Adventures of Tintin” directed by Steven Spielberg.
I immensely enjoyed Hugo, which is now one of my favorite films of the year. The dramatic visuals showing Hugo’s narrow escapes and life in isolation really made me feel empathy for him.
I found quite a few flaws in this film, although they are mostly on the scientific side. First of all, male elephant seals do not stay with and care for their young. Also, puffins, which live in the Arctic, cannot fly the great distance to Antarctica (which is about 22,000 miles away). Puffins are not built for flying long distances and are better adapted for swimming.
Most people know and love Puss in Boots, the charismatic feline companion of Shrek, but who knows his mysterious past? Puss in Boots, a new animation from DreamWorks reveals the thrilling adventures the swashbuckling orange tabby went on before he met the ogre. The film is a clever mash-up of many well-known nursery rhymes and fairy tales such as Jack and the Beanstalk, Mother Goose, and Humpty Dumpty.
Of all Comic-Con panels and events, my #1 favorite was the “Phineas and Ferb” panel, it was “Perrific!”! I attended a similar panel at Comic-Con in 2010 for the first time, and asked questions during the Q&A. This year, I got invited to a special one-on-one press interview with the creators and voice talents of my favorite TV show! On the panel, there were the two creators of the show, Dan Povenmire and Jeff “Swampy” Marsh; as well as voice talents Vincent Martella (Phineas), Ashley Tisdale (Candace), Dee Bradley Baker (Perry the Platypus).
Cars 2 is a hilarious and action-packed film, better than the first Cars. I think the plot is interesting too. I especially liked the spying scenes and the fancy car technology. I think that the moral is great too: Friends stick together no matter what. My favorite character is Finn McMissle, the cool spy car. I give it 4 out of 5 starfish.
How was it like to meet “virtual” collaborators on the award-winning animation short “Guard Dog Global Jam” for the first time at the film’s Los Angeles premiere? Exciting and “Perrific!” On May 20, 2011, seven animators from the film came to the New Media Film Festival to watch the film open the festival to an enthusiastic crowd who cheered and laughed during the screening. The animators are: Ansar Sattar, Alta Berri, Grey Wears, Jessica Bayliss, Larry Loc, Linda Lee, and Perry Chen.
Have you ever wondered why Po, the main character in the original Kung Fu Panda, and prophesied Dragon Warrior and protector of China had a father that was a goose? Well, in this hilarious action-packed sequel to Kung Fu Panda, you will definitely find out! Po discovers his origins in the new film while on a mission to save kung fu.
5th-grade award-winning film critic, animator, entertainment personality Perry Chen is the youngest of 75 animators who created “Guard Dog Global Jam,” which will have its Los Angeles Premiere at the New Media Film Festival on May 20, 2011 in Hollywood. Perry Chen will attend the red carpet premiere and audience Q&A on May 20 as the film opens the festival. “Guard Dog Global Jam” is based on Bill Plympton’s Oscar-nominated “Guard Dog.” It won “Best Experimental Film” at the ASIFA-EAST Animation Festival in May 2011.
What a relief after four months of mediocre animations to finally have a great animated film! “Rio” is a superb film with rich characters, dazzling visuals, lively music, great humor, and an interesting story with many twists and turns in the plot. The film is created by the same team that made The Ice Age, and opened nationwide on April 15, 2011, rated G.
This Disney new 3D animation release opening TODAY (March 11, 2011) is mediocre at best. The storyline about a young boy who went up to Mars to save his mom who was kidnapped by Martians is weak and not believable. The character Gribble (stranded boy who grew up to be an adult on Mars) is not credible or well developed. The visual is not that impressive either.
This film is BAD! Johnny Depp tried his best, but his character is simply not very well developed. Also, a lot like what Roger Ebert wrote on “The Green Hornet,” there is too much senseless violence that adds little to the plot.
Perry Chen shares his Oscar predictions, plus video interviews with nominated directors and the Oscar symposium.
Do you believe in magic? Do you remember how you felt when you saw a magic trick for the first time? Have you ever wondered what a magician’s life is really like? That is the story behind The Illusionist, a rapturously animated feature film by French animation director Sylvain Chomet about the languishing art of amusement, recently nominated for an Oscar.
Amazing Kids! (www.amazing-kids.org) and Perry’s Previews (www.perryspreviews.com) announced that entries are now being accepted for their first-ever “Amazing Kids!’ Perrific Oscar Picks!” Contest. Amazing Kids! and Perry’s Previews are challenging kids and teens worldwide, ages 6-17, to predict the Oscar® winner for Best Animated Feature of 2010 for the upcoming 83rd Academy Awards and make their voice heard.
Of the 15 animation features fighting for the three precious spots for best animation Oscar feature, I predict my own top animation picks which all received 4.5 starfish: Toy Story 3 (Pixar/Disney) , How to Train Your Dragon (DreamWorks), and Tangled (Disney) will be chosen tomorrow (Jan 25, 2011) when Oscar nominations are revealed.
I know a lot of my friends and fans have been waiting for my best list of 2010 films for a while. The year 2010 has been a “Perrific!” year for G/PG-rated films, especially animation and thought-provoking documentary. Mom (Zhu Shen) & I saw not only impressive major studio releases, but also amazing indie films at film festivals.
Continued from previous Narnia movies, Lucy and her brother Edmund, embark on an adventure in “The Chronicles of Narnia: Voyage of the Dawn Treader,” the third film in the series opening on December 10, 2010. The journey takes them on beyond Narnia itself. Lucy and Edmond seem like ordinary kids, but they are King and Queen in the imaginary land of Narnia. Today, however, they are going to visit their cranky young cousin Eustace, who doesn’t believe fairly tales and imaginary things until he sees them come alive.
Tangled is a spectacular film filled with rich and colorful characters, each with different personality. The movie is full of action, comedy, and romance. Even though the film uses one punch line after another, it is the kind of “appropriate humor” that is character and situation based, not potty humor. It is also easy to understand for younger kids and appreciated by adults as well.
Is love a bitch? Apparently so for British author J. R. Ackerley. He was always looking for an elusive companion to come to his life, yet this companion never materialized … until Tulip, a mischievous female German Shepherd came to his life and became inseparable. Together, they started many misadventures, including searching for the ideal vet and mate for Tulip, and other ordeals which turned out to be much harder than it seemed.
Which type of films do you like better, animation or live action? If you are an adult, you’ll probably say live action, but “Animation: The Illusion of Life” aims to change that! It has much of the same themes as live action films, except with more humor, clever storyline, imagination, and fantastic music to match.
Did you notice that in most stories, good defeats evil, and the good guy always gets the girl? Armed with his brilliant evil mind and his fishy minion, Megamind, an alien from the Glaopunk quadrant, attempts a different fate.
Have you ever fallen in love with someone you know you couldn’t have? Just ask Humphrey. In Lion Gate’s new 3-D animation “Alpha and Omega,” Humphrey is a lowly Omega wolf in his pack, and he falls in love with Kate, the stunning and skilled Alpha female of the pack...
Many people battle for world dominance, but what about villains? Gru is the anti-hero with a long, pointy nose and a grey and black scarf that he wears all seasons, in Universal’s first animation feature premiered at the Los Angeles Film Festival. I rate this movie 4 starfish, it’s “Perrific.”
