His humble beginnings in Chicago had inspired him to write stories about love, family and faraway kingdoms where anything was possible. His first sketches of Doc Sherwood’s horse where he got paid had enhanced his talent and paved the way for his realization that he could draw and that it was in those drawings that he would be known for all over the world. In fact, he claimed to have gotten the inspiration for the world renowned Walt Disney Castle from a classmate’s house. Indeed, his drawings and his playful imagination ahs brought him to places that were very different from where he grew up and his exciting stories moved a lot of people that anything is possible if you believed.

Walt Disney and his brother Roy Disney worked day time jobs to buy the things that they need. Since Walt got a job as an animator, his boss allowed him to bring the company camera home to further his experiments to produce better animated pictures. He took jobs that taught him different techniques not only in drawing beautiful pictures but making these pictures come to life in animation and alter on in film.

Walt Disney had had a simple life but because of his creativity and his love for innovation, he saw through all the simplicity and paved the way for bigger things to happen. In fact, the accomplishments of Walt Disney have inspired a lot of people in the industry of film to produce more stories that moved people. Today, people enjoy watching movies that are not only well-crafted using the latest technology for film and music but movies that speak about the wonders of life. It is through these films that modern-day fairy tale stories come to life.

It was a year after his death in December 1966 that his brother Roy instigated the construction of Walt Disney Resort in Florida. Today, millions of people all over the world still wish they could visit the place where magic becomes real.

About the author: David C. is the webmaster of Famous Quotes Index, a website containing close to 30,000 famous quotes and inspiring biographies from renowned authors.

Enjoy this great Infographic from our friends at Infographiclabs

Harris is going to star in the Smurfs movie. This Smurfs movie is reportedly going to be a mix of both live action and animation. This means Harris is not just going to be voicing one of the Smurfs. He is reported to be playing the lead live action character.

Filming for the movie will commence this coming April, which will coincide with the end of the filming for Harris’ hit CBS sitcom “How I Met Your Mother.” The movie is expected to be released on July 29, 2011. Raja Gosnell will be directing the movie.

That’s all we can say about “Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel.” The first movie was cute, given that it was for kids. And in a way, as annoying as that already was, it had kind of train-wreck charm about it. You had to watch it, and the hollywood numbers did show that it was successful at the box office.

But they should have quit while they were ahead.

The sequel starts after the chipmunks’ manager/guardian, Dave Seville (Jason Lee), gets into some weird accident and ends up in the hospital — where he stays for the whole movie. His assistant Toby (Zachary Levi) takes over. Or tries to. He’s just not ready to handle the rigors of raising Alvin, Simon and Theodore as they go through high school. (Most parents aren’t.)

To complicate things are the all-female singing chipmunk trio, the Chipettes. So it’s the battle of the rock rats — oh, excuse us, rock bands.

So what don’t we like about this movie? Bad acting, lame plot, no lovable character to root for (the Chipmunks have lost their novelty by now). Plus, considering the possibilities of having two chipmunk groups who can dance and sing, the movie fails at delivering catchy songs or interesting choreography. We’ve seen better sequences on Barney videos.

Of course, the kids will want to see this, and parents will dutifully take them. The movie producers are lucky that their prime audience (namely five-year-olds) are ridiculously easy to please. But to the adults who are condemned to take them, we send our condolences. Well, at least it’s fun to Munk Yourself.

But this is no dainty princess: Tiana has dreams of her own — she’s not waiting for anyone to sweep her off her feet. Girls will like the spunky heroine, and possibly the songs. Because, oh, there are many songs. Disney went overboard with the soundtrack, which kind of slows down the story, though the variety is applaudable. Influences run from gospel to Broadway, though it’s not of the same caliber (in terms of catchiness) as Little Mermaid or Aladdin. The plot pacing is also a bit off: too much happens, too soon. Pity, because the characters are interesting. It’s cool how Disney has modernized the traditional princess, in response to a new generation of young girls who need more than a handsome prince to find a “happily ever after.”

Dr. Facilier is a cool villain and the voodoo world taps from the rich New Orleans culture. We only wish there were more of the Evil Doc. Unlike other Disney bad guys like Jafar or Mufasa, who hold their own against the hero, he doesn’t quite get the adequate air time.

The animation won’t win any awards for special effects: it’s classic 90′s Disney, and marks the studio’s nostalgic return to 2D animation — and the foolproof formula of a lovable heroine + a catchy song.

I felt like writing about “Bicentennial Man” though not because of the sci-fi element but because, having seen it again lately, I remembered just how much of a tearjerker the movie was, and still is. If you haven’t seen “Bicentennial Man” yet don’t expect to be surprised by an unexpected twist in the plot or a sci-fi film full of imagination that is truly out there but do expect to be do expect to be immersed in a story of a robot reaching for his destiny, which is to be recognized for his humanity.“Bicentennial Man” is a remarkable film not for its novelty but because it is a great example of good old storytelling. It is one truly compelling film.

Other similar films that I enjoyed are “AI” and “I Robot”. For me AI was as good as tearjerker as “Bicentennial Man”. I think I almost died from a clogged nose right at the end when he “slept” with his mom. “I Robot” was also enjoyable with more action scenes and hence a bigger hit but for me it’s storytelling just wasn’t at par with the other two “humanized robot” stories.

I know there would be people out there who’ll be less than enthusiastic about the news. But who cares? For girly girls like me who swooned and cried repeatedly during the countless time we saw the film back when we were in high school there’s no doubt that we’ll be awaiting the 3D remake of “Titanic”. For those involved in the film who’ll be making a titanic of a paycheck again once the blockbuster comes out, we can also be sure that they’ll probably be even more excited about the return of “Titanic”. The only one I can really think of who will benefit from the film that might not be too thrilled about its return would be Leo di Caprio simply because he is sooo over the crazy attention, especially from the paparazzi, from being a huge star. Of course he’s grown up a lot and should be able to handle the paparazzi thing now so maybe he isn’t to averse to the idea of “Titanic” coming back to make him the center of attention once more.

As for the actual 3D experience I am yet uncertain as to how that will pan out. Pretty sure that the once the boat starts sinking 3D aspect will make it more exciting but for the first part I don’t see how it’ll make much of a difference. Maybe cinemas should turn on fans (as in electric fans) during the famous “I’m flying” scene with Jack and Rose. Now THAT would be immersive.

It’s Alice in Wonderland and the trailer is here! The trailer captures the “Alice in Wonderland” we all read as a youngster so perfectly that it leave me with the very same feelings I felt then – awe with a tinge of fear. Ok so I felt more than just a tinge of fear when I was little (Read my post Alice in Wonderland’s Wondrous Pictures) but the good thing about the trailer is that at least it inspires more wonderment than fear. No need for me to keep on going because you can watch the video below.

If you haven’t seen “Alice in Wonderland’s” trailer yet I wonder what your waiting for?

Excited? Then better start preparing for that all important date because we’ve got plenty of waiting time. Alice in Wonderland won’t be out till March next year.

Anyway, back to the “Harry Potter and the Half-blood Prince.” What I liked about the movie (let’s not discuss the story anymore because we all know it’s good) is that it delivered. The CG was spectacular, a lot better than in the last movie “Order of the Phoenix” where we were introduced to Hagrid’s giant half-brother, Grawp. Grawp was adorable but like the centaurs was obviously CG. In contrast I don’t remember any part of the “Half-Blood Prince” looking unrealistic. Watching the film makes you think that everything is being shot as is.

The actors/actresses did not disappoint as well. The cast has obviously grown not just in age but in maturity in their acting skills. Those that stood out to me were Tom Felton (Draco Malfoy), who was able to embody his very conflicted role, Rupert Grint (Ron Weasly), though I must be biased because Ron is my favorite character, and Frank Dillane (older Tom Riddle), who just sent shivers down my spine…he was so creepy! Daniel Radcliffe (Harry Potter) did a good job as ever showing as Harry growing to be more than a boy. Others who did not stand only because in relation to their own achievements as actors (they always do an excellent job) are Helena Bonham Carter (Bellatrix), Alan Rickman (Snape) and Michael Gambon (Dumbledore). Cutest character in this movie is the same one in the last movie – Luna Lovegood (played by Evanna Lynch). She’s so cute I can’t help but wish Harry would just hook up with her instead of Ginny.

There’ll be dinosaurs – Quite obvious from the title. This is scientifically erroneous since dinosaurs were no longer around during the real ice age so start explaining that it’s only in the cartoons that those mammals coexisted with those dinosaurs.

Better animation that the first two Ice Age movies – Again this should be pretty obvious since a 3D film would have better animation. So at least the 3D aspect will surely provide entertainment value.

The laughter meter - It might not be that funny but according to Roger Moore of Orlando Sentinel some of the jokes worked mostly thanks to Scratte (voice of Karen Disher). According to Ella Taylor of the Houston Press though, “there’s no breathing life into a formula that ought to have bowed out gracefully while the going was good.” Ouch! So don’t expect too much but try to keep it positive so you can still enjoy the movie.

“Transformers Revenge of the Fallen” was a fact-paced action-filled movie with such loud booms that my seat vibrated time and again. It was definitely entertaining and did deliver on the promise that it will provide plenty of action and lots of visual effects. My problem with the movie though was that I actually found the action scenes a bit too much. There were way too many action scenes that the storyline, though an interesting one, seemed like an excuse just to make a blockbuster action movie at times. Not only were there too many action scenes but the action scenes though they really looked great, were often too confusing. Half the time I couldn’t distinguish whether the Decepticons or the Autobots were getting blasted.

I did like the concept because it was great to learn more about the Primes and the history of the Transformers. The problem was that I would have liked the movie to be a bit more cerebral giving us more insight to the history and not coming up with lame symbols that looked senseless when Sam (Shia LeBouf) explained why Einstein’s theory was all wrong.

As for the actors the ones that did entertain were mostly the CG twins and the Decepticon that fell in love with Mikaela (Megan Fox). I liked Sam and Mikaela’s characters in the first Transformers movie but this time their characters seemed a bit lacking in substance this time. Megan Fox managed to be as sexy as ever but this time around it just fell flat, like they were just shooting scenes to show how sexy she was, it wasn’t funny, cool, nor significant, like in the first movie when her sexiness underlined the reason why Sam had the hots for her. Sam’s character also managed to seem a little shallow with his wanting to be normal problems. The Sam before meeting the Transformers is permitted to be shallow but who would still be totally wrapped up in oneself after such experiences? The characters I did like this time around were Agent Simmons (John Turturro), Leo (Ramon Rodriguez), and of course Sam’s mom (Julie White), who provided the laughs in the movie.

With all my criticism about the movie would I say that it wasn’t worth watching on the big screen? Definitely, not. It just didn’t deliver for me but it was still entertaining. If you plan on watching it at least watch it on the big screen to be able to enjoy the visual and sound effects, because it is the kind of movie where you can do without watching it at all if not for that. Watch it because of the CGI. Watch it because the first movie just compels you to watch this one. But don’t expect to be blown away by this film.

What’s new with this movie is that it will be in 3D. Knowing Pixar we can prepare for one hell of a 3D experience. Story-wise the writers didn’t do a cop out and made sure they came up with a very interesting albeit somewhat upsetting storyline. Like the little kids who first watched the movie 14 years ago Andy has grown up and is going off to college. This leaves Woody, Buzz and the rest of the toys no space in his life. Fortunately or unfortunately, we don’t know yet which until we see the movie or Disney releases another trailer that will actually reveal something about the story, Andy decides to leave the toys in a daycare center where other kids can get to play with them. From that we can only imagine all the kind of kids the toys can encounter and all the adventures the toys can have.

If you have any kids or enjoyed the movie a decade ago this is one movie to watch out for. The movie is set to be released on June 2010 so there’s plenty of time to wait. In the meantime you can watch the latest Toy Story 3 teaser trailer though you won’t get much there because it doesn’t show anything about the story. Something we’re used to when it comes to Pixar trailers. Enjoy!

Despite his misgivings Terrence Howards assures Marvel that he won’t leak any details of the upcoming movie even though he is indeed in a position to give a massive spoiler since he has read the script. Furthermore he harbors no ill-will towards his replacement and even roots for Don Cheadle, wanting Cheadle to do a better job with the character than him since, according to him, he has lots of love for Cheadle who helped Howard get his gig in “Crash”.

As for his payback? He plans on doing nothing (aside from obviously complaining) because as he said, “I believe in karma. When someone does something wrong, you don’t have to get them back. Everything right will return the favor for you.”

So what I’m really torn about now is whether to even bring the kids to see the 3D version or just see it myself so I can come up with a reasonable review? In these tight days I sure wouldn’t want spend extra bucks on something the kids wouldn’t even appreciate much and I hate seeing movies repeatedly unless they’re great. So I guess that leaves me with a wait and see attitude. If the next doors neighbors kids come home talking about the 3D experience we’ll go but if they don’t even care about the effects I’ll just wait for the DVD release.

Already, a number of top-tier stars are involved in the movie. Such stars as Nicolas Cage, Donald Sutherland, Nathan Lane, Bill Nighy, Eugene Levy and Freddie Highmore are going to be voice talents for the movie.

Astro Boy is the creation of Ozamu Tezuka, the acknowledged god of anime.

The project is a retelling of the Pinocchio fairy tale, but this time with a darker theme.

The project, to be produced by JHC, will have Del Toro executive produce. The directors for the film are Gris Grimley and Adam Parrish King.

Universal originally backed out of being involved in the first installment that Spielberg will direct, which led Paramount to back the movie with a $135 million backend for the two gross participants.

The movie is expected to be completed in time for a 2010 bow.

For those of you who don’t remember Robotech, it was a 1980s anime from Tatsunoko Productions. The series is actually three Japanese series combined,which was a way for Harmony Gold USA to show episodes on a daily basis.

Dr. Seuss has held off on having his works put to film. It took years and years of courting from Hollywood until his widow finally relented and gave us the first Dr. Seuss movie – How The Grinch Stole Christmas.

It’s been years since that first movie and we’ve actually only seen a couple of adaptations. There’s the Grinch (which was slightly okay), and The Cat in The Hat (which was not okay). The third Seuss adaptation, and the first Seuss related material since 2003’s Cat… sees Jim Carrey returning again to what could probably be the best Seuss movie to date.

Horton Hears a Who is a funny and endearing film that successfully translates the whimsy, comedy and good naturedness of Dr. Seuss beloved works.

Carrey plays Horton, a fun-loving elephant who accidentally discovers a miniscule world that resides in a dandelion populated by Whos. The Mayor of Who-ville is played by Steve Carrell.

I think what makes this movie work compared to the other Seuss movies is the fact that this is the first one that went the animation route. It is ironic that computer generated characters were more successful in life to the book. The way the book was translated into film was a big success, the illustrations served as a great jump off point for the characters and you see that the distinctive Seuss style was not abandoned entirely. In fact, it was more enhanced without veering too far away from the established looks that children have grown accustomed.

Jim Carrey decided to bring a more understated performance to the movie this time around. In fact, it was so staid that I kind of miss the chaotic energy that he usually brings to his comedies. Steve Carrell, on the other hand, seems to have been bitten by the Carrey bug. He is over the top here and just plain whacko. He obviously had a lot of fun voicing the mayor. In fact, he serves as the real focus for this movie. And Who-ville was the perfect backdrop in which he could play with his character and show how much of a talented comedian he is.

Carol Burnett was a great foil as the main villain this movie. She brought just the right amount of menace without being over the top and too scary. She intrinsically knew that kids are going to watch this movie. Slightly more disturbing was Vlad, the creepy vulture voiced by Will Arnett. He was a scary sight but his delivery and his moments on screen were pure comedy. It was actually quite surprising that Vlad was even declared by my son as his most favorite character in the movie. As a parent, the monkeys were far more creepy for me. There was just something strange and a little bit scary with how they looked while giving that creepy smile.

Horton Hears a Who is a great tale about tolerance and the movie showed that even with Hollywood’s penchant to look at movies as products, here is one movie that never lost sight of its goal of being a good children’s movie.

Rating: A-

via Coming Soon

When I heard they were making an animated Highlander feature film, I was relatively unimpressed. Highlander has had a very…”rocky” film and television history, to be polite, so I was expecting some more uninspired tripe along the lines of the ill-conceived and short-lived Highlander: the Animated Series. What I got was something completely unexpected: an animated film ripe with memorable characters, engaging storylines, mind-blowing fight scenes and drop-dead gorgeous animation. “Highlander: the Search for Vengeance” should be on every animation fan’s shelf, regardless of whether they give a damn about the Highlander franchise or not.

Colin MacLeod (Alistair Abell) is a Highlander: an immortal swordsman doomed to walk the Earth until all of his kind have slain one another. Centuries ago, MacLeod saw his beloved wife, Moya, crucified by a Roman General and fellow Highlander, Marcus Octavius. And so began a centuries-long rivalry that has lasted into the distant future. In a post-apocalyptic world, Colin has found Marcus ruling over a decimated Manhattan from his golden tower. Colin is joined by a group of rebels who need to stop Marcus from unleashing a virus that will murder thousands. However, their lives are immaterial to him, as Colin cares only for vengeance.

Yeah, I know, a Highlander in a post-apocalyptic future reeks of “Highlander II: the Quickening”, and the mere mention of that title might be enough to frighten off any decent Highlander fan in the audience. Well, let me just say, “Highlander: the Search for Vengeance” is everything “Highlander II” should have been. You know, good.

As far as continuity goes, I’m not the biggest Highlander buff in the world, so I’m not exactly sure how or even if it works into the established Highlander timeline, and I really don’t care. Whether you know everything about Highlander or nothing about Highlander, it doesn’t matter. This movie is a stand-alone tale which nicely recaps the Highlander mythos and holds up by itself, isolated from the rest of the franchise. It is very friendly to new-comers or just casual fans like myself, but is chalk-full of enough references and…just…Highlandery stuff to appease even the staunchest fanboy.

I think the most important place to start is the animation. When I bought the DVD I was entirely expecting something nice but cheap-looking, like the “Ultimate Avengers” animated films. Straight-to-video animation is usually good but never impressive. Well, let me say something so important I’m writing it in bold text: this movie should have been released in theaters. The animation is provided by Madhouse Studios, the same people who have given us “Ninja Scroll”, “Vampire Hinter D: Bloodlust”, “Perfect Blue” and HBO’s Spawn the Animated Series. On top of that, the animation was directed by the celebrated and endlessly talented Yoshiaki Kawajiri, the director of “Ninja Scroll”, “Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust” and “Wicked City”. So if you’ve seen just one of the films mentioned, you should know to expect some heart-pounding fight sequences and brilliantly innovative “camera” work. The animation in this film is so absolutely breath-taking it boggles the mind that it went straight to video. This movie has all the hard work and technical achievements of a big-budget theatrical animated film.

So if you haven’t guessed by now, “Highlander: the Search for Vengeance” is a collaboration between the United States and Japan. It was written by David Abramowitz, who might be best known to you Highlander fans as the guy who wrote Highlander: the Series and Highlander: the Raven. So needless to say, this guy knows his Highlander stuff. The story of Colin and Marcus as they battle through the ages is fantastic and epic. You loathe Marcus for his Hitler-esque desire to prune humanity into his vision of a master race, but you loathe Colin almost as much for being such a cold-hearted and single-minded zombie. There are other memorable characters in the film, as well. I wasn’t expecting to like Delilah, the prostitute rebel with a heart of gold, but Abramowitz actually works her character into something exceptional. Her sacrifice at the end of the film is especially moving. Then there’s possibly my favorite character, Amergan, the disembodied spirit of a Druid Priest who has haunted Colin across the centuries. He provides some of the comic relief and is personified expertly by Scott McNeil, one of the most prolific and popular voice actors in the industry. But he provides more than just well-timed wise-cracks, he’s actually out to try and coerce Colin from the dead end path of vengeance. I especially enjoyed his little revelation at the end which snaps Colin out of it.

“Highlander: the Search for Vengeance” is bound to be overlooked by the general public, what with Highlander not being the money-making machine it once was. Still, anyone who enjoys animated action films, and really, anybody who enjoys action films period should get a real kick out of this. Definitely one of the best releases of the year and it’s a real shame it wasn’t shown on the big screen.

Grade: A-

I really wasn’t expecting much from this flick. I mean, firstly, I’m sick to death of CGI-animated comedy movies. What I wouldn’t give for a good old fashioned cel-animated feature film. Secondly, I’m sick to death of penguin films. “March of the Penguins”, “Happy Feet”…just give it a rest already. So naturally, my expectations were geared toward a tropical blend of loathing and disgust. And yet “Surf’s Up” managed to defy my expectations by actually being pretty good. Go figure.

Cody Maverick (Shia LaBeouf) is an Arctic penguin who made it his life’s goal to surf after meeting the greatest surfing penguin of all time, Big Z (Jeff Bridges). His family thinks he’s an irresponsible loser who’ll never amount to anything, but Cody keeps his hopes afloat until the day Reggie Belafonte’s (James Woods) talent search discovers him and invites him to join the Big Z Memorial surf contest held at exotic Pen Gu Island. Cody’s hopes are quickly sunk, however, when he meets the competition: the tactless and ruthless bruiser known as Tank (Diedrich Bader). Cody’s on the verge of surrender until he receives a boost of confidence from his new pals: his lady friend, Lani (Zooey Deschanel), his best buddy, Chicken Joe (Jon Heder), and the enigmatic hermit known as Geek.

I think what accelerated “Surf’s Up” past other derivative dreck such as “Shark Tale” and “Antz” is that it decided to take a quirky and original approach to the plot. The entire film is from the point of view of a documentary film crew. The cameras and crew follow Cody and the cast around throughout the course of the movie, interspersing interviews, flashback footage, instant replays and various camera gags wherever necessary. This faux-documentary approach really kept the film fresh and provided a lot of clever jokes to break up the monotony of the predictable story and shallow characters.

Yes, take away the documentary angle and you aren’t left with much to chew on. While James Woods is always a joy to listen to, his character of Reggie is just your typical greedy scoundrel who really provides little to the conflict, while the main villain, Tank, is just a two-dimensional bully stereotype. I did like the choice of actor for him, however, as Diedrich Bader has proven to be a terrific voice over artist in shows like “Buzz Lightyear of Star Command” and “the Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy”.

The good guys of the flick aren’t much more interesting than the villains. Chicken Joe’s stoner personality gets old rather fast, while Cody is your run-of-the-mill main character template (Wide-eyed and naïve – Loses self confidence – Realizes moral lesson of film – Saves the day at the end thanks to said moral lesson). While the characters aren’t much to write home about, their interactions with one another and character chemistry keep them from becoming boring. Watching Geek tutor Cody in the fine art of surfing and the misadventures there-in was a lot of fun.

Although the story is predictable and the lesson of “winning isn’t everything” is trite, this is a kid’s movie, after all, so you shouldn’t go in expecting an intellectually stimulating experience. Additionally, the writers seemed pretty self-aware that their ham-fisted lesson was a little gag-worthy and threw in a few jokes about it here and there.

As far as kid’s movies go, I found it much more clever and entertaining than the other CGI-animated flick in theaters as of right now, “Shrek the Third”. So if you’re down to a choice between the two, “Surf’s up” is your best bet. It’s a very fun kid’s flick with some nice animation, a decent cast of celebrities and a unique premise that keeps it from getting stale. Give it a chance, you might like it.

Grade: B

So, Pixar has Ratatouille coming out this summer, another project called WALL-E coming next summer, and today they have announced their 2009 project, a movie called “Up” about a 70 year old man who teams up with a wilderness ranger to fight “beasts and villains.”

Pete Docter, director of “Monsters, Inc.” helms this one with Pixar vet Bob Peterson. Peterson also penned the script.

Supposidly, Toy Story 3 is due out in 2010, with John Carter of Mars coming after that.

via AICN

There’s one word that best describes Japanese cartoons such as “Naruto”, and that word is “filler”. Lots and lots of filler. The type of television show that takes twenty episodes worth of plot and stretches in out to fit one hundred. Shows like “Dragonball Z”, “Inu Yasha”, “One Piece” and “Bleach”. I recognize why they employ these tactics (the shows are made concurrently with the comics but have to keep from catching up with the source material, which often times leads to entire fifty episode story arcs of pure, meaningless filler), but that doesn’t mean I have to like it.

Thankfully, they also make movies. Much like the “Dragonball Z” movies I review so frequently for this website, “Naruto the Movie” cuts the crap and gets right to the point. It takes everything that’s decent about the show and leaves behind much of what makes it impossible for me to watch. But is it still any good?

For those who don’t keep up with the show, Naruto Uzumaki (Maile Flanagan) is an obnoxious ninja boy with a nine-tailed demon residing within his body, which gives him incredible power. He is a member of Team 7, a group of young ninjas consisting of the quiet loner stereotype, Sasuke (Yuri Lowenthal), the brain-dead pink haired generic anime girl, Sakura (Kate Higgins), and their leader, the enigmatic adult ninja, Kakashi (Dave Wittenberg). Team 7 is given the mission of escorting the stuck-up actress Fujikaze Yukie and her film crew to the Snow Country. However, along the way they discover that Yukie is actually the deposed Princess of the Snow Country, Princess Koyuki Kazehana. Team 7’s job meets with complications when they are attacked by a band of rogue ninjas, lead by Doto Kazehana, who wants Yukie’s necklace as it is in fact the key to the Snow Country’s greatest treasure.

Alright, so it should be fairly obvious that I’m not the biggest “Naruto” fan in the world. So then, why did I go see this movie for it’s extremely limited (one night, one showing, in select theaters only) theatrical release? Because America doesn’t make cel-animated movies anymore. Or, we don’t release them theatrically, anyway. As a matter of fact, the last cel-animated cartoon I saw in theaters was the “Full Metal Alchemist” movie…and I saw that when I was visiting Kyoto in 2005. I basically just wanted to see a cartoon on the big screen that wasn’t CGI. It really could’ve been anything.

Still, like I said earlier, this movie leaves behind most of the things I hate about the TV series and was actually rather enjoyable. The various batshit-crazy ninja moves that characters execute in battle are a trip and remain very creative and visually entertaining. They employ them in lots of inventive ways that actually surprise the audience (I never see that damn substitution-jutsu coming no matter how many times they pull it). The story’s no great shakes, pulling quite a few ideas from the much-superior “Castle of Cagliostro”, even going so far as to have a predictable “the REAL treasure of the country is blah blah blah, which the villain could NEVER have!” trite ending. Yet, they tell the story in the span of 113 minutes instead of 113 episodes, so it has that advantage over the TV series.

The animation is also pretty good. I mean, you can tell the budget wasn’t cosmic or anything, as the animation is only a bit better than the TV show’s, but it’s still very technically sound and the fight scenes are pure eye candy. A lot of “Naruto” fans express loathing for the English dub of the show, but I’ve never really found it all that bad. Well, save for that ”Believe It!” thing, but thankfully they keep that to a minimum.

Now for the stuff I hate. I hate most of the characters. That’s right, even Sasuke. The cast is basically made up of every shallow anime character template you can think of. I think Sakura is my least favorite, as the extent of her personality is “I love Sasuke, TEE HEE!” Naruto’s brand of obnoxious buffoonery can actually be endearing at times. I found the scene where Yukie maces him in the face and buries him under a pile of logs to be pretty funny. I suppose if I had to like one character, it would be Kakashi. He seems to be aware that every other character in the show is annoying as all Hell.

So did I like the movie? Eh, not really. But I’m not a “Naruto” fan, so it really wasn’t geared for me. I did enjoy seeing a well-produced cel-animated feature film on the big screen, so it wasn’t a total loss. “Naruto” fans are sure to enjoy it, and since they’re the target audience, I guess the film achieved its goal.

Grade: C

While I enjoyed all 3 Shrek movies to a degree, I’m not sure 5 are necessary, but hey – as long as they are raking in dough, I’m sure there will be more to come….