Anime and Manga : Princess Mononoke (1997)

Princess Mononoke

This Miyazaki movie is for keeps! This is one of the few anime films from the many I have seen, that I will give a full 5 stars. You must give yourself a chance to see this movie at least once. I will definitely buy this DVD when it comes out. Plot is set in ancient mythological Japan where humans clash with humans and damages the environment. Great story, beautiful animation, very strong character development. Lots of action. You will see that a lot of work went into this film. Too bad, I can't recommend this for kids for all ages, maybe around 15 yrs up, but you parents will be the final judge. No nudity, but there are quite a few blood and violent scenes (such as beheading). Don't get me wrong, the story does not really focus on the violence. Watch it and you will know what I mean.

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Anime and Manga : Spirited Away (2001)

Spirited Away

I've seen this movie twice and I don't usually do that kind of thing (the last time I did that was for "Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon" and in fact, there are some interesting similarities between the two movies). So here's the capsule: A truly excellent piece of art. Funny, moving, beautifully-rendered and thus PERHAPS a little more than slightly scary for younger kids. I think you have to use your judgment for this one, but if your kids can watch Buffy or the death of Bambi's mother, they'll be able to handle this for sure.

Miyazaki has been described as the greatest (or one of the greatest) anime directors ever and this stunningly well-textured movie is definitely his best visual work yet. In fact the only thing about this movie that was at all disappointing was the sickly music at the end over the credits but even this is part of the cultural experience of modern Asian pop culture so it has relevance even if it makes you leap for the exit as if you were pursued by a vomiting monster.

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Anime and Manga : Monsters vs. Aliens/B.O.B.'s Big Break in Monster 3D: Ginormous Double Pack

Monsters vs. Aliens/B.O.B.'s Big Break in Monster 3D: Ginormous Double Pack

I must warn you though, the actual 1hr 1/2 film is NOT in 3D.
But the 13 min short film IS, which is amazing.it doesn't work on old 2 ft wide tvs though. had to watch it on my flat screen computer in order to get the 3D effects,Which were AMAZING.

Saw this with my 11 year old son, five year old daughter, and my husband, who, like me, is 40. We all enjoyed it a lot. My son, who has a great sense of humor, thought it was one of the funniest movies he has seen, and the story was good. There aren't many kids' movies that I look forward to seeing again (besides most all of the Pixar films among a few others) but I'm planning to buy this asap.

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