Chicken Little/Zathura
Links for Chicken Little (Zathura below)
—1. Overview (multimedia)
—2. Overview Basic (dial up speed)
—3. Reviews and Blogs
—4. Cast and Crew
—5. Photo Pages
—6. Trailers, Clips, DVDs, Books, Soundtrack
—7. Posters (animated films)
—8. Production Notes (pdf)
—9. Spiritual Connections
—10. Presentation Downloads
Nothing new under the computerized sun
A common fault of children’s films is that they tend to aim either too high or too low in content, structure and theme. Many of them alternate between the two extremes, always just missing the target audience. Either the children are completely oblivious to half of the pop-reference jokes, or the parents are clawing at their armrests from the sheer simplicity of the plot. Though Chicken Little and Zathura are both enjoyable films, both seem to spend time flip-flopping across this dreadful too-high/too-low spectrum.
Chart-topper Chicken Little is a valiant effort to blend the old Disney feel of happy animals coexisting in a very human-like manner with the new conventions of computer-generated animation. The G-rated film begins after the events of the famous fable (in which Chicken Little warns all his friends about a falling sky that turns out to be nothing more than an acorn). Poor, diminutive Chicken Little (voiced by Zach Braff) is ridiculed by everyone in town, and his father, Buck Cluck (Garry Marshall) is visibly embarrassed. Through perseverance, though, and the support of fellow rejects—Runt of the Litter (Steve Zahn), Abbey Mallard (Joan Cusack) and the mute Fish Out of Water—Chicken Little manages to wow the town with a winning homerun in a championship baseball game. The fickle masses now praise Chicken Little as a town hero. However, just as he’s enjoying this fame, he discovers that the sky might really be falling. Will he warn his adoring fans again and risk more public humiliation?
One of the main problems with Chicken Little is that it’s structurally sloppy. It seems that the team of screenwriters couldn’t decide whether they wanted to tell a story about an awkward pre-teen becoming a town hero through perseverance, or the story of a town hero who must sacrifice his status to save the town. Though the film could have easily included both, the writers spend so much time catching us up with all the exposition that they don’t introduce the major dramatic question (which is usually introduced in the beginning) until about an hour into the film. As a result, the film feels like two different cartoon episodes meant for Saturday-morning viewing instead of a single story intended for theatrical release.
Two characters, Runt of the Litter and Fish Out of Water, are not really necessary for the plot. Instead, they remain by Chicken’s side to provide two levels of comedic relief. Runt’s annoying habit of breaking out into old karaoke favorites seems to be an attempt to reach the parents in the crowd. Naturally, the fact that he’s overweight is supposed to appeal to the children, teaching them that it’s fun to laugh at fat people. Fish Out of Water picks up where Runt left off, functioning like a mentally deficient Harpo Marx with fins. For some reason, most of these cultural references and sight gags feel like they’ve been done before. Though some of the moments are funny, many feel forced, and they often halt the story’s progression.
Zathura, rated PG for fantasy action and peril, and some language, also includes a bit of story halting. In it, two quarreling siblings play an old recently-discovered board game, they discover a man trapped in it, and they unlock a host of dangers that can only be stopped by finishing the game. If the plot seems familiar to you, you’re not alone. In fact, that’s the exact premise of another children’s book adaptation, Jumanji. Though there are many legal procedures that keep people from plagiarizing someone else’s material, the sad fact is that there’s no law against plagiarizing yourself. And that’s exactly what author Chris Van Allsburg does—considering this children’s book to be a “sequel” to Jumanji.
Despite the recycled premise, Zathura is fun to watch. Like Van Allsburg’s other works (Jumanji and The Polar Express), Zathura has a darker feel than the average children’s entertainment. Often reminiscent of R.L. Stine’s Goosebumps horror tales, it’s got some good edge-of-your-seat moments in a wonderfully imagined outer-space world.
Though the suspense is one of Zathura’s strong points, it also has a tendency toward redundancy. Characters return to the same obstacles time and time again, even though they had previously overcome those obstacles. There are also a few too many instances when the heroes stand paralyzed in fear, as if waiting for the villain to remember his late cue to attack.
Despite the drawbacks of both films, they both make a point to teach valuable lessons about family relations. Though the lessons in both are pretty heavy-handed, that’s excusable, since the intended recipients are children. Chicken Little teaches the value of perseverance and honesty. It also teaches that a parent’s aim should be to love his or her offspring without any strings attached (such child-rearing draws its influence from the unconditional love of God, the ultimate parent (Romans 5:8)). Zathura addresses the pain of divorce and the importance of sticking together as a family to deal with such pain (The writer of Ecclesiastes addresses this need for togetherness in Ecclesiastes 4:9-12). The film also addresses the need for sharing, taking responsibility and overcoming fear.
Though neither Chicken Little nor Zathura will be remembered in 10 years, they’re both fun diversions that teach a little something along the way—just like all the other cheap diversions that are churned out for multi-million dollar tabs. Enjoy the family time together at the movies, but don’t expect any earth-shattering experiences until these same-old, same-old films quit making such high returns.
Links for Zathura (Chicken Little above)
—1. Overview (multimedia)
—2. Overview Basic (dial up speed)
—3. Reviews and Blogs
—4. Cast and Crew
—5. Photo Pages
—6. Trailers, Clips, DVDs, Books, Soundtrack
—7. Posters (science fiction)
—8. Production Notes (pdf)
—9. Spiritual Connections
—10. Presentation Downloads
—1. Overview (multimedia)
—2. Overview Basic (dial up speed)
—3. Reviews and Blogs
—4. Cast and Crew
—5. Photo Pages
—6. Trailers, Clips, DVDs, Books, Soundtrack
—7. Posters (animated films)
—8. Production Notes (pdf)
—9. Spiritual Connections
—10. Presentation Downloads
Nothing new under the computerized sun
By Mark Ezra Stokes
11-17-05
A common fault of children’s films is that they tend to aim either too high or too low in content, structure and theme. Many of them alternate between the two extremes, always just missing the target audience. Either the children are completely oblivious to half of the pop-reference jokes, or the parents are clawing at their armrests from the sheer simplicity of the plot. Though Chicken Little and Zathura are both enjoyable films, both seem to spend time flip-flopping across this dreadful too-high/too-low spectrum.Chart-topper Chicken Little is a valiant effort to blend the old Disney feel of happy animals coexisting in a very human-like manner with the new conventions of computer-generated animation. The G-rated film begins after the events of the famous fable (in which Chicken Little warns all his friends about a falling sky that turns out to be nothing more than an acorn). Poor, diminutive Chicken Little (voiced by Zach Braff) is ridiculed by everyone in town, and his father, Buck Cluck (Garry Marshall) is visibly embarrassed. Through perseverance, though, and the support of fellow rejects—Runt of the Litter (Steve Zahn), Abbey Mallard (Joan Cusack) and the mute Fish Out of Water—Chicken Little manages to wow the town with a winning homerun in a championship baseball game. The fickle masses now praise Chicken Little as a town hero. However, just as he’s enjoying this fame, he discovers that the sky might really be falling. Will he warn his adoring fans again and risk more public humiliation?
One of the main problems with Chicken Little is that it’s structurally sloppy. It seems that the team of screenwriters couldn’t decide whether they wanted to tell a story about an awkward pre-teen becoming a town hero through perseverance, or the story of a town hero who must sacrifice his status to save the town. Though the film could have easily included both, the writers spend so much time catching us up with all the exposition that they don’t introduce the major dramatic question (which is usually introduced in the beginning) until about an hour into the film. As a result, the film feels like two different cartoon episodes meant for Saturday-morning viewing instead of a single story intended for theatrical release.
Two characters, Runt of the Litter and Fish Out of Water, are not really necessary for the plot. Instead, they remain by Chicken’s side to provide two levels of comedic relief. Runt’s annoying habit of breaking out into old karaoke favorites seems to be an attempt to reach the parents in the crowd. Naturally, the fact that he’s overweight is supposed to appeal to the children, teaching them that it’s fun to laugh at fat people. Fish Out of Water picks up where Runt left off, functioning like a mentally deficient Harpo Marx with fins. For some reason, most of these cultural references and sight gags feel like they’ve been done before. Though some of the moments are funny, many feel forced, and they often halt the story’s progression.
Zathura, rated PG for fantasy action and peril, and some language, also includes a bit of story halting. In it, two quarreling siblings play an old recently-discovered board game, they discover a man trapped in it, and they unlock a host of dangers that can only be stopped by finishing the game. If the plot seems familiar to you, you’re not alone. In fact, that’s the exact premise of another children’s book adaptation, Jumanji. Though there are many legal procedures that keep people from plagiarizing someone else’s material, the sad fact is that there’s no law against plagiarizing yourself. And that’s exactly what author Chris Van Allsburg does—considering this children’s book to be a “sequel” to Jumanji. Despite the recycled premise, Zathura is fun to watch. Like Van Allsburg’s other works (Jumanji and The Polar Express), Zathura has a darker feel than the average children’s entertainment. Often reminiscent of R.L. Stine’s Goosebumps horror tales, it’s got some good edge-of-your-seat moments in a wonderfully imagined outer-space world.
Though the suspense is one of Zathura’s strong points, it also has a tendency toward redundancy. Characters return to the same obstacles time and time again, even though they had previously overcome those obstacles. There are also a few too many instances when the heroes stand paralyzed in fear, as if waiting for the villain to remember his late cue to attack.
Despite the drawbacks of both films, they both make a point to teach valuable lessons about family relations. Though the lessons in both are pretty heavy-handed, that’s excusable, since the intended recipients are children. Chicken Little teaches the value of perseverance and honesty. It also teaches that a parent’s aim should be to love his or her offspring without any strings attached (such child-rearing draws its influence from the unconditional love of God, the ultimate parent (Romans 5:8)). Zathura addresses the pain of divorce and the importance of sticking together as a family to deal with such pain (The writer of Ecclesiastes addresses this need for togetherness in Ecclesiastes 4:9-12). The film also addresses the need for sharing, taking responsibility and overcoming fear.
Though neither Chicken Little nor Zathura will be remembered in 10 years, they’re both fun diversions that teach a little something along the way—just like all the other cheap diversions that are churned out for multi-million dollar tabs. Enjoy the family time together at the movies, but don’t expect any earth-shattering experiences until these same-old, same-old films quit making such high returns.
Links for Zathura (Chicken Little above)
—1. Overview (multimedia)
—2. Overview Basic (dial up speed)
—3. Reviews and Blogs
—4. Cast and Crew
—5. Photo Pages
—6. Trailers, Clips, DVDs, Books, Soundtrack
—7. Posters (science fiction)
—8. Production Notes (pdf)
—9. Spiritual Connections
—10. Presentation Downloads
posted by Greg Wright at 7:46 PM
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