We went to see the Croods today. I confess to not being all that whoopie about going to this movie. The trailers made it look like something I wouldn’t enjoy. Once again, Dreamworks has surprised me. I really enjoyed the movie. It was so well done. The characters are very well written and I actually got chills at some of the beautiful scenery they created. There is one scene, well one stage setting scene and then the follow up a little later on, that really I think represents how well done these characters are.
Grug’s whole life revolves around keeping his family fed and safe. That’s his life and he likes it that way. They get a giant egg for breakfast and Grug sees to it that his family eats first and as a result there’s only one little drop left for him. But he’s ok with that because his family is fed.
Later on, and I’m trying not to give too many spoilers away here so I’m leaving out a LOT of details, they have a huge roasted bird to eat and being cavemen and women, the Croods fall on it like the mongol hordes and devour it.
Guy, the interloper in their lives, watches them in a bit of horror and finally says to Ep, Grug’s daughter, “I guess there’ll be no leftovers then.”
Ep looks at him and says, “What are leftovers?”
Guy answers, “Leftovers are when you have so much food you have some left over.”
The camera pans to Grug and his face just falls. You can see the thought process, that this stranger has provided for his family better than he ever did (well you can assume it based upon the set up). I found this really touching and I think it really demonstrates how well rounded these characters are.
It’s not so obvious that it detracts from the enjoyment the kids have either. It’s just something that adds richness and depth to the story. All of this and I haven’t said a word about the world of wonder Dreamworks created in The Croods. The colors are so vibrant and the animals are wonderfully whimsical and imaginative. It’s a fantasy world filled with life and danger and a very human story.
With my tongue planted firmly in cheek I will have to add that apparently it’s now a rule that every animated movie has to have an Owl City song on the soundtrack. Which is ok because I love Owl City.
One of these days I’m going to learn to trust Dreamworks. The last movie I wasn’t too whoopie to see of theirs was Kung Fu Panda and I really didn’t like Jack Black so I really didn’t want to see that one but I did and it’s one of my favorites. Well not on the level of How To Train Your Dragon, but still right up there.
Last but not least, previews:
Star Trek: Into Darkness OMG I so want to see that. The little bit I saw indicates that they’ve got the Kirk/Spock banter going on and just right.
No Pacific Rim preview and for the record I would like to say that The Smurfs are more frightening than anything Pacific Rim is going to put up on a preview trailer. This is relevant because there was a Smurfs 2 preview and I’m embarrassed for Neil Patrick Harris that he is in it.
Epic is looking better the more I see of it.
And that is my review of The Croods and the three previews we saw before it. If you can The Croods is an enjoyable way to spend a couple of hours with the family. It probably won’t change your life but it’s a good story well told and beautifully animated. K.