Login

Login
Lost Password?
No account yet? Register
 

AddThis Social Bookmark Button

Recent HD Reviews

Iron Man Ultimate 2-Disc Blu-Ray Edition (5.0) (0)
Category: HD Reviews
The Godfather-The Coppola Restoration Giftset (0) (0)
Category: HD Reviews
The Strangers- Unrated Blu-ray (0) (0)
Category: HD Reviews
Grey's Anatomy- Season Four Blu-ray (0) (0)
Category: HD Reviews
Rest Stop- Don't Look Back- Uncut Blu-ray (0) (0)
Category: HD Reviews
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre- The Ultimate Edition Blu-ray (0) (0)
Category: HD Reviews
Ultimate Unrated Comedy Collection Blu-ray (0) (0)
Category: HD Reviews

Recent DVD Reviews

The Godfather Collection- The Coppola Restoration (0) (0)
Category: DVD Reviews
Jeffrey Ross - No Offense Live From New Jersey (0) (0)
Category: DVD Reviews
Jack Brooks- Monster Slayer (0) (0)
Category: DVD Reviews
Under the Same Moon (La Misma Luna) (0) (0)
Category: DVD Reviews
Ladies and Gentlemen, The Fabulous Stains (0) (0)
Category: DVD Reviews
Snow Angels (0) (0)
Category: DVD Reviews
French Postcards (0) (0)
Category: DVD Reviews

Recent Quick Reviews

Alvin & The Chipmunks: Classic Holiday Gift Set
Alvin & The Chipmunks: The Alvinnn!!! Edition
Click & Clack's As The Wrench Turns
Blue Dragon Volume 1
Fox Horror Classics Volume 2
Speed Racer
Pulse 2
The Foot Fist Way
Ninja Collection
Savage Streets- Special Edition

Enter Our Giveaway

CSI NY
  
 
 
 CLICK ON THE COVER TO 

ENTER! 

Latest Special Features

Site programming by Cory Webb

Cory Webb logo

Great DVD/Blu-Ray sites

Curious George 
Reviews DVD Reviews
Written by Dave Anderson   
Sunday, 08 October 2006


Favored by 0 users (Register to add this entry to your favorites)

Curious George

Grade

Content Grade: B+
Sound Grade: A
Extras Grade: A-
Picture Grade: A

Specs

Universal 1.85:1 Anamorphic Widescreen English, French & Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital English, French & Spanish Subtitles 88 min., color, 2006 Rated G

Review

You gotta admit it takes a lot of guts for a studio to shell out millions on a film aimed squarely at small children. You simply just don't see movies like "Curious George" that often...short, simple, quaint, with little ambition other than to charm toddlers. Because of that, it's also easy to see why it didn't do well at the box office. Stuff like this is much better appreciated on DVD, where a kid can watch it over and over again (like my youngest daughter, Lucy, has already done) for far less than what it would cost to for adults to sit through in a theater.
I'm kind of making "Curious George" sound like a bad film. On the contrary, it's very cute, charming, fairly low-key compared to most so-called family films, and very-much retains the look and tone of the classic children's books on which it is based. It's also sort of refreshing, in this era where a new CG animated extravaganza seems to be premiering every week, to watch traditional hand-drawn (for the most part) animation. And the animation is quite good, as is the voice work by Drew Barrymore and Will Farrell. The plot, involving George's human friend, Ted (Ferrell) and his attempt to save a friend's museum (along with a romantic subplot between Ted & Maggie [Barrymore]), is probably more complicated than a film like this needs, but the little ones aren't likely to care once George shows up to create his usual good-natured havoc. The film is also given to considerable boost by some charming songs by Jack Johnson.

AddThis Social Bookmark Button

Picture and Sound

The movie is given a good transfer for DVD, which is presented in its original aspect ratio. The colors are bright & vibrant, and lines are sharp. The audio is rendered in 5.1 Dolby Digital, and has great balance, with no hissing or distortion.

Extras

Not surprisingly, most of the bonus features are of the kid-friendly variety (I seriously doubt anyone is pining for director commentaries and such). There's a Jack Johnson music video (which has a song-along feature), several interactive DVD games, a tutorial which shows you how do draw George, and a fun vocabulary feature. 15 deleted scenes are also included, as well as a short bit on how George was animated for the big screen.

Summary

Unlike a lot of Pixar, Dreamworks or Disney animated fare, this feature version of "Curious George" isn't likely something parents are gonna want to sit through again and again with their kids, but it is a charming, low-key & undeniably cute film small children will love watching repeatedly (and probably a strong argument for getting your kids a DVD player of their own), very much remaining faithful to the tone of the classic books. Recommended.

User reviews

There are no user reviews for this item.

To write a review please register or login.





Powered by jReviews
 
< Prev   Next >

Featured Review

Top Gun - I Love the 80's Edition

Category: DVD Reviews
The Navy calls their elite pilot training program the Fighter Weapons School; the pilots call it TOP GUN.  After a close call in the air leaves the top spot open, pilots Pete “Maverick” Mitchell (Tom Cruise, ALL THE RIGHT MOVES) and Nick “Goose” Bradshaw (Anthony Edwards, REVENGE OF THE NERDS) find themselves on the fast track to Fightertown USA.  But Maverick is a rule breaker and finds himself butting heads with his fellow pilots and instructors, all while getting tangled up in a romance with civilian instructor Charlotte “Charlie” Blackwood (Kelly McGillis, WITNESS) and simultaneously searching for the answers behind his pilot father’s mysterious disappearance.

Movie Quotes

I have come here to chew bubble gum and kick
ass, and I'm all out of bubble gum.

Roddy Piper
They Live

Latest Reviews

Wire: The Complete Third Season, The

Wire: The Complete Third Season, The Wire: The Complete Third Season, The

Supernatural- Season Three

Supernatural- Season Three Supernatural- Season Three

The Godfather Collection- The Coppola Restoration

The Godfather Collection- The Coppola Restoration The Godfather Collection- The Coppola Restoration

French Postcards

French Postcards French Postcards

Top Gun - I Love the 80's Edition

Top Gun - I Love the 80's Edition Top Gun - I Love the 80's Edition

Cinematic Titanic- The Wasp Woman

Cinematic Titanic- The Wasp Woman Cinematic Titanic- The Wasp Woman

Bashing

Bashing Bashing

Doctor Who- The Invisible Enemy and K-9 And Company

Doctor Who- The Invisible Enemy and K-9 And Company Doctor Who- The Invisible Enemy and K-9 And Company

Pushing Daisies - The Complete First Season

Pushing Daisies - The Complete First Season Pushing Daisies - The Complete First Season

The Guild- Season One

The Guild- Season One The Guild- Season One

Some Kind of Wonderful - I Love the 80's Edition

Some Kind of Wonderful - I Love the 80's Edition Some Kind of Wonderful - I Love the 80's Edition

An Autumn Afternoon (Criterion Collection)

An Autumn Afternoon (Criterion Collection) An Autumn Afternoon (Criterion Collection)

Snow Angels

Snow Angels Snow Angels

Medium-The Fourth Season

Medium-The Fourth Season Medium-The Fourth Season

Never Back Down

Never Back Down Never Back Down

Recent Music Reviews

Keane Curate A Night For War Child (0) (0)
Category: Music Reviews
Jonny Lang Live At Montreux 1999 (0) (0)
Category: Music Reviews
Funk Brothers Live In Orlando (0) (0)
Category: Music Reviews
Hannah Montana and Miley Cyrus-Best Of Both Worlds Concert 3D Film-Extended Version (0) (0)
Category: Music Reviews
Stuff: Live at Montreux 1976 (0) (0)
Category: Music Reviews
High Definition poll
 

Sept 23, 2008 releases

Affair to Remember
Ax Men - Season 1 (History Channel)
Bashing
The Bill Douglas Trilogy
Billionaire Boys Club
Bloood Sucking Cinema
Boston Legal: Season 4
A Broken Life
Brothers and Sisters: The Complete Second Season
A Chipmunk Christmas 25th Anniversary
Cine Manifest
Cinematographer Style
Copycat
Critical Condition
CSI: New York - The Fourth Season
Deception
Design 2
Dororo
Fall from Grace
Family Name
Far North
Final Exam
Friday The 13th - The Series: The First Season
The Godfather - The Coppola Restoration Gift Set
The Godfather - The Coppola Restoration
The Godfather Part II - The Coppola Restoration
The Godfather Part III - The Coppola Restoration
Grease: Rockin Rydell Edition
High School Musical 2
Horatio Hornblower: Collector's Edition
Icarly: Season 1 V.1
Juan, I Forgot I Don't Remember
L.A. Confidential
Leatherheads
Liberia-An Uncivil War
Lion in the House
Love Conquers All
Midnight Eagle
My Name is Earl - Season Three
Naked Fear
The Neighbor
Passing Poston
Pathology
Price of Sugar
Questioning Faith
Re-Cycle
Reno 911: Miami - More Busted Than Ever Edition
Rome - Rise and Fall of an Empire
Run, Fat Boy, Run
Samantha Who: The Complete First Season
Saturn in Opposition
Savage Streets - Special Edition
Scooby-Doo and the Goblin King
Seoul Raiders
Shooting Henry Hill
Sundown-Vampire in Retreat
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Season 2 - Part 2
This American Life - Season 1
Two and a Half Men - The Complete Fourth Season
Unemployed
Vipers
Virginia Lee Burton-Sense of Place

AddThis Social Bookmark Button