Before I headed out of town last week (it seems like AGES ago!) I had the chance to take 3 of my kids (the 3 who were not already committed to other weekend activities that morning) to a screening of the new Dreamworks movie, The Croods. Like many of animated kids’ movies, I hadn’t payed much attention to the movie, though I had seen several of my blogging friends mention it on twitter and Facebook. I was mildly interested, if that.
In contrast, my kids (especially my 8th grader) were extremely excited to see it in theaters. In fact, they were so eager that they happily woke up early on a Saturday morning to drive to the screening (where we stuffed our faces with a breakfast of theater popcorn, I might add…).
The Croods follows a family of cavemen (and cave kids and cave women?) as they venture out of the safety of their cave on an adventure of a lifetime. The first thing that struck me was that this is not JUST a family with a mom AND dad AND kids, but Grandma lives with them, too. How often do our kids get to experience muti-generational families in their entertainment? As is typical with teens, the focal character, Eep, is head strong and longing for some time away from her family and outside her cave. Her dad, Grug, doesn’t “get” her desire for independence and adventure. His motto is anything new or unknown is BAD.
The Croods’ family “road trip” takes them across colorful and eye-popping landscapes, leading them farther away from the only home that they’ve known…and closer and closer to each other.
Perhaps my favorite scene in the entire movie is this one. Yes, even pre-historic women loved shoes!
The movie was a hit with all of the kids (ages 7, 10, and 13) – they laughed and jumped and laughed again through the whole movie, and when it was over, they gave it a hearty 6-thumbs-up.
If the beautiful animation isn’t enough, the voice talent in this movie was top notch, and everyone was perfect for their role: Nicolas Cage played Grug, the father of the Crood crew, Emma Stone was the feisty and adventurous Eep, and Ryan Reynolds played the part of the “new” guy…Guy (yes, his name was a fun addition to the film as well).
The Croods is currently in theaters (in 3D) as of March 22, 2013. It is rated PG, which I think is appropriate and entertaining enough for even young kids (I think preschoolers will particularly be drawn to the scenery and colors – have I mentioned how colorful this movie is?).
The Franklin family gives it a stamp of approval. It’s a fun family flick and definitely worth your time to check it out in the theaters!
Connect:
The Croods official website
The Croods on Facebook
Everything Croods on Pinterest (lots of DIY and crafty stuff!)
Note: I was given public screening tickets for my family after attending another screening as press. I was not obligated or compensated to write a review. All opinions are my own.
© 2013, Food Fun Family. All rights reserved.
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