Disney A scene from Disney’s new animated movie "Recess."
“Recess: School’s Out” Created and
Produced by Paul Germain and Joe Ansolabehere Directed by Chuck
Sheetz
The sporadic drizzle outside makes it seem like summer will
never arrive. Disney’s new full-length animated feature
“Recess: School’s Out,” however, allows audiences
to take a nostalgic trip back to those warm summer days in
elementary school. In the film, its the last second before three
o’clock at the Third Street School and T.J. Detweiler is
ready to ride his bike, swim and hang out with his friends.
Unfortunately, he finds out that his buddies Vince, Mikey,
Gretchen, Gus and Spinelli are heading off to camp, leaving T.J.
alone for 12 weeks Bored and lonely, T.J. even opts to venture near
his school. To his surprise, his journey to Third Street School is
his ticket to an awesome summer adventure. He sees strange green,
glowing lights beaming out of the school even though it’s
supposed to be empty for the summer. When T.J. notifies his parents
and the police, they disregard his story as a plea for attention.
Nobody will listen to him. As a last resort, T.J. calls on his
principal, Mr. Prickly, for help. Prickly eventually goes to the
school to see what T.J. is ranting about, but when he puts his key
in the door, a giant electrical storm dematerializes him. Scared
and frustrated, T.J. rallies his friends back home to help him.
They uncover a scheme that aims to eliminate their summer vacations
and make school year round. The former principal, Mr. Benedict,
tried to do away with recess and now he’s back to try to get
rid of summer. Benedict is trying to create year-long winters by
moving the moon off of its orbit with a giant laser beam.
Astounded, the kids know they must do something to stop him. The
kids rally together their other schoolmates, and even the faculty,
in hopes of defeating Benedict and saving summer vacation once and
for all. Audiences will surely identify with the kids’ love
for summer and will be grateful that Disney decided to bring its
popular Saturday morning cartoon to the big screen. The characters
in the movie have very different personalities, ranging from the
mischievous T.J. to the nerdy Gretchen to the dramatic Mikey. T.J.
struts his stuff as the group leader, always the one with the plan,
while Gretchen figures out Benedict’s plan with her
scientific intellect. Vince is the kickball king as Mikey amuses
the audience with his loud and mature singing talent. And Spinelli
is the little tough girl who wants to join the WWF. With an
assortment of colorful characters contributing to the cartoon,
“Recess” is definitely a movie that both children and
adults will love. The film allows older audiences to revisit their
childhood days of mischief and wild adventures.
LiLi Tan Rating: 8
“Saving Silverman” Starring Jason Biggs and
Amanda Peet Directed by Dennis Lugan
It’s a love story written in the stars. Sweet, wonderful
guy meets hottie psycho-witch. They woo, while his friends
frantically try to save their fallen comrade from a walking
nightmare in high heels. Isn’t romance grand? The new comedy
“Saving Silverman” follows the exploits of Darren
(Jason Biggs) as he becomes a deer caught in the headlights of the
stunning yet scary Judith (Amanda Peet). Darren, however,
doesn’t stand a chance. Judith tears him apart from his
lifelong friends, Wayne (Steve Zahn) and J.D. (Jack Black), while
controlling every detail in his life She even breaks up his Neil
Diamond cover band. That’s where his lifelong buddies come in
to kidnap Judith, making room for Darren’s high school
sweetheart Sandy (Amanda Detmer), who is supposed to sweep Darren
off his feet. Though funny in the beginning, the film’s humor
drops lower than some of Judith’s necklines. The crude comedy
eventually lags towards the middle and end. The writers resort to
below the belt humor in order to grab the audience’s
attention and a few laughs. Not that below the belt humor
doesn’t have it’s attributes. “Saving
Silverman” is exactly what it looks like: a fun, no brainer
movie that makes you laugh at the desperate bumblings of Darren,
J.D. and Wayne. The film is goofy, and amusing ““ as long as
you can stop the musical stylings of Neil Diamond from sticking in
your head after leaving the theater.
Aimee Howell Rating: 5