see you at the movies

Director: John Lasseter
Starring: Paul Newman, Richard Petty, Owen Wilson, Bonnie Hunt, Dan Whitney, John Ratzenberger, Larry the Cable Guy, Cheech Marin, George Carlin, R. Lee Emery, Tom Magliozzi, Ray Magliozzi

WHAT’S IT ABOUT? A comedy adventure set inside the world of cars. Lightning McQueen (voice of Owen Wilson), a hotshot rookie race car driven to succeed, discovers that life is about the journey, not the finish line, when he finds himself unexpectedly detoured in the sleepy Route 66 town of Radiator Springs. On route across the country to the big Piston Cup Championship in California to compete against two seasoned pros, McQueen gets to know the town's offbeat characters – including Sally (a snazzy 2002 Porsche voiced by Bonnie Hunt), Doc Hudson (a 1951 Hudson
Hornet with a mysterious past, voiced by Paul Newman), and Mater (a rusty but trusty tow truck voiced by Larry The Cable Guy) – who help him realize that there are more important things than trophies, fame and sponsorship.  Cars is – dare I say it? – a little on the slow side. It pains me to say this since Pixar, the studio which had made it and modern-day classics such as The Incredibles, Finding Nemo, Toy Story, Bug's Life and Monsters Inc., has always been one step ahead of its competitors . . .

Review by : James O'Ehley
**

Director: Henry Anderson, David Bowers, Sam Fell
Starring: Hugh Jackman, Kate Winslet, Ian McKellen, Andy Serkis, Bill Nighy, Simon Callow,
Geoffrey Palmer, Shane Richie

WHAT’S IT ABOUT? From the creators of "Chicken Run" and "The Wallace and Gromit Movie"
comes this feature which tells the story of an uptown rat who is flushed down the toilet from his
penthouse apartment into the sewers of London, where he has to learn a whole new way of life.
McKellen voices the story's antagonist, a villainous frog, while Serkis plays his hench-rat, Spike.
Jackman will play Roddy, the pampered rat.

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Flushed Away is the latest animated offering from Aardman, the British outfit responsible for Wallace & Gromit and Chicken Run. It is however a computer-generated movie instead of their usual “claymation” efforts . . .

Review by : James O'Ehley
****

Director: Tim Johnson, Karey Kirkpatrick
Starring: Bruce Willis, Garry Shandling, Steve Carell, William Shatner, Avril Lavigne, Catherine O'Hara, Eugene Levy, Wanda Sykes, Nick Nolte, Omid Djalili, Allison Janney, Thomas Haden Church

WHAT’S IT ABOUT? When R.J., Verne and their woodland friends find a suburban housing development encroaching on
their forest home, Verne's first instinct is to retreat into his shell and leave, but the ever-opportunistic R.J. sees a treasure trove to be had from his unsuspecting new neighbours. Together, Verne and R.J. form an unlikely friendship as they learn to co-exist with -- and even exploit -- this strange new world called suburbia.  Over the Hedge is an energetic, funny and clever computer-animated movie, just the sort of movie you'd expect the makers of Shrek to come up with . . .

Review by : James O'Ehley
***

Director: Raman Hui, Chris Miller
Starring: Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy, Cameron Diaz, Antonio Banderas, Rupert Everett, Julie Andrews, John C lee se, Justin Timberlake, Eric Idle, John Krasinski, Cheri Oteri, Amy Poehler, Maya Rudolph, Amy Sedaris, Ian McShane

WHAT’S IT ABOUT? Shrek the Third finds Shrek and Fiona reluctantly reigning over Far, Far Away. But if they can find
the heir to the throne and bring him back, they can return to their swamp. While Shrek,
Donkey and Puss in Boots are in search of the heir, Fiona holds off a coup d'etat by Prince Charming.

Shrek the Third (2007)

In less than three weeks on the American cinema circuit Shrek the Third has grossed a whopping $258 million! No wonder a Shrek 4 “prequel” and a Puss in Boots (starring only you-know-who) spin-off is already in the works for 2010 . . .

Review by : James O'Ehley
***