The Littlest Angel (a J!-ENT Children’s DVD Review)

A fun, heartwarming and spiritual tale for the entire family!  For parents or grandparents who grew up reading best-selling children’s classic, “The Littlest Angel”, the animated film adaptation is just as heartwarming as the book and definitely worth sharing with your children or grandchildren.  Recommended!

Images courtesy of © 2011 Portsmouth Pictures LLC. All Rights Reserved.

DVD TITLE: The Littlest Angel

DURATION: 83 Minutes

DVD INFORMATION: Dolby Digital 5.1, English Subtitles for Deaf and Hearing Impaired, Anamorphic Widescreen 1:78:1

COMPANY: Anchor Bay Entertainment

RATED: G

RELEASE DATE: November 15, 2011

Directed by Dave Kim

Screenplay and Story by Sean Catherine Derek, Sean Roche

Story by Dave Kim

Based on the Book by Charles Tazewell

Produced by Dave Kim

Co-Producer: Rex Piano

Executive Producer: Lance Thompson, Seth Willenson

Associate Producer: Lucas Thompson

Music by Corey A. Jackson

Edited by Dave Kim

Production Design by Don W. Kim

Featuring the voices of:

Ed Kelly as Halo/Alban/Logan/Mr. Creepedeep/Strongman

Nina Kircher as Mrs. Creepedeep/Ox

Clarity Newhouse as Angel Eve

Ron Perlman as God

Caleb Wolf as Littlest Angel

The Littlest Angel tells the story of a young boy who arrives in heaven before his time.  Home-sick and lonely, he will travel back to earth, with his friendly pup Halo, to retrieve a most selfless and precious gift for The Baby Jesus. First released in book form in 1946, The Littlest Angel became popular for its ornate words and phrases paired with beautifully muted oil paintings. Tazewell’s book was adapted into a TV musical in 1969 starring Johnny Whitaker, and theatrical versions continue to be done by schools and church groups today. The author would follow-up with another childhood favorite, “The Littlest Snowman,” that would be read annually on the “Captain Kangaroo” show.

“This is a story that has made so many people happy over the years,” says Lance Thompson, one of the producers of the film. “We’ve added some new elements to this production, but this is still The Littlest Angel everyone remembers from their childhood, and one that parents will enjoy introducing to their kids. I think Tazewell would enjoy knowing his work lives on.”

It’s a modern twist on the timeless tale of an Angel that discovers the greatest gifts in life are faith, friendship and doing the right thing. This new version of The Littlest Angel features wonderful animation and great vocal talent, including Ron Perlman (“Beauty and The Beast,” Tangled), and is sure to become a holiday favorite, much like the book it’s based on. The Littlest Angel is a motion picture that will put a smile on everyone’s face, and what better gift is there than that.

Visual and digital effects artist Dave Kim is known for his 3D work on films such as “2012″, “The Golden Compass”, “Australia” and “The Day the Earth Stood Still” and now the artist takes on his latest challenge as director, co-writer and producer of the spiritual children’s animated film “The Littlest Angel”.

Based on the 15th best-selling children’s book of all time by Charles Tazewell and created back in 1946, the book has entertained generations of children and now Dave Kim gives “The Littlest Angel” the CG treatment via an animated film adaptation that will entertain families and children, especially with the holiday season just around the corner.

“The Littlest Angel”  revolves around a boy known as The Littlest Angel who is trying to get used to being an angel.  He is currently enrolled at the angel academy where children train in order to get their wings to become a full-fledged angel.

But for the Littlest Angel, he tends to get in a bit of trouble, mainly because he misses his life on Earth.  Misses his dog and the fun he used to have.  But he also misses his most beloved belongings which he has kept inside a box that is buried near the home he once lived in.  The Littlest Angel believes that he won’t miss Earth so much if he had his treasures.

Not to say that Heaven is not fun, it’s just that angels and animals are separated in the kingdom of Heaven because animals are not kept as pets, they live in freedom.  And the Littlest Angel loves playing with animals.  But because he needs to make his own fun, he ends up causing a bit of destruction and gets in trouble.

But his teacher Alban has had enough of the troubles that the Littlest Angel has created and so he is sent to meet with Angel Eve in where he is told that before he can play with the animals heaven, he must first dedicate himself to his angel training at the angel academy.

But before he returns back to training, Angel Eve teaches the Littlest Angel about how to use a halo but also takes him to a land where the angel animals live.

When the Littlest Angel hears a conversation between Alban and the muscular angel Logan, he comes up with a plan to borrow wings to fly and plans to go back to Earth in order to retrieve the box of treasures.

He manages to get some help by the dog named Halo who wants to help the Littlest Angel get his treasure and both go to Earth quickly to retrieve it.

But unfortunately, Mr. and Mrs. Creepedeep end up taking the Littlest Angel’s treasure and when they find out that Halo can talk and that both Halo and the Littles Angel are real angels, they want to capture them in order to make money.

Meanwhile, back in Heaven, Alban finds out that God is coming to visit and immediately, all angels must give a gift for the upcoming birth of God’s son and everything must be perfect.  But when Alban finds out that the Littlest Angel is missing  and learns that he has been captured on Earth, he and Logan must rescue the Littlest Angel on Earth before God arrives.

But will they be able to save him in time?

VIDEO & AUDIO:

“The Littlest Angel” is presented in Anamorphic Widescreen (1:78:1) and presented in Dolby Digital 5.1.  Animation is done by Portsmouth Pictures and Cinepix Animation and for the most part, the film is a CG animated film.  It may not be as detailed or very expensive compared to a Disney/Pixar animated film or big-budget Hollywood film but because the target demographic for this film is for families and children, overall, the CG animation is good, especially knowing that the creators were working on a quick and tight schedule.  This is not a multi-million dollar project but for what they accomplished, I was quite pleased with the overall look of the film.

Colors are vibrant, shading is well-done, good amount of detail in some areas of the film.  The DVD does showcase some banding but its what is expected from a DVD release.

Audio is presented in Dolby Digital 5.1, dialogue and music is clear and understandable.  Subtitles are in English SDH.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

“The Littlest Angel” comes with the following special feature:

• Pure Michigan Promo -  (7:57) A featurette about Michigan’s film industry and “The Littlest Angel” director and producer Dave Kim and co-producer Rex Piano talks about the film industry and what they enjoyed about working in Michigan.

EXTRAS:

“The Littlest Angel” comes with a slipcover case.

“The Littlest Angel” is a heartwarming tale that is spiritual and fun!

There are not many Christian-based animated films out there (aside from the popular “Veggie Tales” series) but I have to say that I was quite pleased by the “The Littlest Angel” because it was a pure film.

At first, “The Littlest Angel” is shown to be a child that tends to get into trouble, but he means well, it’s just that he misses his old life on Earth.  There is no discussion about how the character died and went to heaven, what we do know is that his favorite treasures which he buried as a child is what he desires the most.  It’s all he needs to remember Earth while he is in Heaven.

And the character is shown as a child who does make some bad decisions but through those decisions, he learns from them.

It’s a straightforward tale that is easily accessible for children and even adults. And while the film does involve angels and God, it’s not a film that tries to preach any type of religion towards the viewer.  If anything, the story is about a young naive angel who gets into trouble when he goes to Earth.  In some way, I guess a film that I can easily compared it to is “Finding Nemo”, in which Nemo finds himself in trouble and his father must go to find him, with “The Littlest Angel”, we have angels Alban and Logan going after the Littlest Angel and trying to bring him back home before God shows up for the celebration.

As for the voice acting, I have to give credit to Ed Kelly who did a lot of the voices for the film.  From Alban, Logan, Halo the dog, Mr. Creepedeep and Strongman, he did a great job in playing the multiple roles.  And of course, Caleb Wolf who provides the voice of the Littlest Angel, he also did a great job!  And of course, you have the talented Ron Perlman (“Hellbody”, “Sons of Anarchy” and voice actor for “Tangled”, “SpongeBob Square Pants”) providing the voice of God.

Also, interesting was the special feature promoting the film industry in Michigan.  Dave Kim and Ron Piano chose to create the film in Michigan and not surprising as we are seeing more films shot in the state such as the Richard Gere film “The Double” and Drew Barrymore’s “Whip It”.

I wish there was special features on the making of “The Littlest Angel” or even the voice talent of the film.  But other than that, for a family film, “The Littlest Angel” was quite fun to watch.  And sure the CG is not going to be hyper-detailed or cost multi-millions to make like a Disney/Pixar, FOX animation or Dreamworks Animation film but still, for the demographic that this film is for and the cute and innocent characters that are featured, I actually enjoyed this heartwarming family film.

Overall, if you grew up reading the book and have a young child in your family that you want to share this classic story with ala an animated film, “The Littlest Angel” is worth watching!

Recommended!

Spy Kids 4 on Blu-ray & DVD 11/22!

ANCHOR BAY ENTERTAINMENT AND DIMENSION FILMS ENTER A NEW GENERATION WITH
 SPY KIDS: ALL THE TIME IN THE WORLD
ON BLU-RAY™ AND DVD

The Fourth Film In The Popular SPY KIDS Film Franchise, SPY KIDS: ALL THE TIME IN THE WORLD Heads To Retail On November 22, 2011

BEVERLY HILLS, CA – Anchor Bay Entertainment and Dimension Films announced today the home video release of the fourth film in the action-packed family film franchise, SPY KIDS: ALL THE TIME IN THE WORLD, from dynamo director Robert Rodriguez (Sin City).  Lead by Jessica Alba (Little Fockers), SPY KIDS: ALL THE TIME IN THE WORLD features a talented ensemble cast that includes funnyman Joel McHale (TV’s “Community”), comedian Ricky Gervais (TV’s “The Office”), Jeremy Piven (HBO’s “Entourage”), Danny Trejo (Machete), Rowan Blanchard (The Back-up Plan), andnewcomer Mason Cook—along with the franchise’s long-standing cast members Alexa Vega and Daryl Sabara, who have appeared in all four SPY KIDS features.

Heading to retail on November 22, 2011, SPY KIDS: ALL THE TIME IN THE WORLD is available for a SRP of $39.99 for the Blu-ray™ Combo Pack, which includes a Blu-ray™, a standard definition DVD, a Digital Copy of the film, as well as a special bonus disc that includes a 3D Blu-ray™ version of the film—for a total of 4 discs; and $29.98 for the standard definition DVD.

The action packed franchise is back…with the next generation of Spy Kids!  Marissa Cortez Wilson (Jessica Alba) has it all: married to a famous spy-hunting television reporter (Joel McHale), with a new baby and intelligent twin step kids, Rebecca (Rowan Blanchard) and Cecil (Mason Cook).  When the maniacal Timekeeper (Jeremy Piven) disrupts her domestic bliss—threatening to take over the planet—Marissa comes out of retirement as a top secret agent.  With Armageddon quickly approaching, Rebecca and Cecil are thrust into action!  With a little help from some familiar Spy Kids friends, Carmen (Alexa Vega), Juni (Daryl Sabara), their faithful dog Argonaut (Ricky Gervais) and some mind-blowing gadgets, they just may be able to save the world!

The SPY KIDS: ALL THE TIME IN THE WORLD Blu-ray™ and DVD bonus features include an interview with director Robert Rodriguez; a “Spy Kids Passing the Torch” featurette; a “Spy Gadgets” clip; deleted scenes; and more!  Note: Special features are subject to change.

Learn more about SPY KIDS: ALL THE TIME IN THE WORLD at:  www.spykidsmovie.net

ABOUT THE WEINSTEIN COMPANY

The Weinstein Company (TWC) is a multimedia production and distribution company launched in October 2005 by Bob and Harvey Weinstein, the brothers who founded Miramax Films in 1979. TWC also encompasses Dimension Films, the genre label founded in 1993 by Bob Weinstein, which has released such popular franchises as SCREAM, SPY KIDS and SCARY MOVIE. Together TWC and Dimension Films have released a broad range of mainstream, genre and specialty films that have been commercial and critical successes, including Tom Hooper’s THE KING’S SPEECH, winner of four 2011 Academy Awards®, including Best Picture.

Since 2005, TWC and Dimension Films have released such films as GRINDHOUSE; I’M NOT THERE; THE GREAT DEBATERS; VICKY CRISTINA BARCELONA; THE READER; THE ROAD; HALLOWEEN; THE PAT TILLMAN STORY; PIRANHA 3D; INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS; A SINGLE MAN; BLUE VALENTINE, THE COMPANY MEN; MIRAL; SCRE4M; and SPY KIDS 4: ALL THE TIME IN THE WORLD IN 4D. Currently in release are I DON’T KNOW HOW SHE DOES IT, OUR IDIOT BROTHER and APOLLO 18. Upcoming releases include DIRTY GIRL, MY WEEK WITH MARILYN and THE ARTIST. Recently wrapped is COGAN’S TRADE.

TWC is also active in television production, with credits including the Emmy® Award-winning hit reality series “Project Runway,” the new VH1 reality series “Mob Wives,” and the critically acclaimed HBO comedy/crime series “The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency.” The company is producing three “Project Runway” spinoffs, “Project Runway All Stars,” “Project Runway: Masters” and “Project Runway: Accessories,” which are expected to debut in 2011. The company currently has 17 series in different stages of development, including: “Marco Polo,” a scripted historical series about the great explorer; “The Nanny Diaries,” based on the hit book; and “The Mad Ones,” adapted from the Mafia novel of the same name.

ABOUT ANCHOR BAY ENTERTAINMENT

Anchor Bay Entertainment is the home entertainment division of Starz Media, LLC. It includes the Anchor Bay Films and Manga Entertainment brands. It distributes feature films, children’s entertainment, fitness, TV series, documentaries, anime and other filmed entertainment on DVD and Blu-ray™ formats. Headquartered in Beverly Hills, CA, Anchor Bay Entertainment has offices in Troy, MI, as well as Canada, the United Kingdom and Australia. Starz Media (www.starzmedia.com) is a controlled subsidiary of Liberty Media Corporation attributed to the Liberty Starz tracking stock group (NASDAQ: LSTZA).

Christmas Story (a J!-ENT DVD Review)

A film from Finland featuring a storyline on how Nikolas grew up to become Santa Claus.  An enjoyable family film that is hurt by its lack of inclusion of the original Finnish dialogue on the DVD.

Image courtesy of © 2009 Starz Media, LLC.  All Rights Reserved.

TITLE: Christmas Story (Joulutarina)

DURATION: 78 minutes

DVD INFORMATION: Anamorphic Widescreen Presentation 2:35:1, Dolby Surround 5.1 and Dolby Surround 2.0

COMPANY: Delphis Films/Anchor Bay Entertainment

RATED: PG

Directed and Produced by Juha Wuolijoki

Screenplay by Marko Leino

Story by Marko Leino, Aku Louhimies, Juha Wukijoki

Executive Producer: Xiaojuan Zhou

Co-Executive Producer: Penny Luedtke, Michael Badalucco, Joseph Scarpinito

Cinematography by Mika Orasmaa

Edited by Harri Ylonen

Music by Leri Leskinen

Casting by Tuts Paananen, Pia Pesonen

Costume Design: Anu Pirila

Starring:

Hannu-Pekka Bjorkman as Nikolas

Otto Gustavsson as Nikolas 13-vuotiaana as Nikolas (13-years old)

Jonas Rinne as Nikolas (7-years old)

Kari Vaananen as Lisakki

Laura Birn as Aada

Mikko Leppilampi as Hannus

Minna Haapkyla as Kristiina

Mikko Kouki as Eemeli

Antti Tuisku as Mikko

Alp Sipila as Mikko (9-years-old)

This Christmas, a great secret will be revealed.  Have you ever wondered how Santa Claus came to be Santa?  A long time ago, the world’s greatest story was born when a young boy named Nikolas took on the mysterious mission and created a legend that would be carried on from generation to generation.  This magical and heartwarming tale of how the gift giving tradition was created will bring holiday joy to the entire family!

In 2007, the holiday film from Finland “Joulutarina” (Christmas Story), which was directed by Juha Wuolijoki and a screenplay by Marko Leino was released in theaters and won a Jussi Award in 2008 for “Best Cinematography” and an Audience Award in 2008 from the Sarasota Film Festival for “Best in World Cinema”.

The film focuses on Nikolas, the boy who would one day be known as Santa Claus.  Of course, with a variety of different stories of where the origination of “Santa Claus” came from, in “Christmas Story”, the film revolves around a boy named Nikolas who lives in a small village where most of the surroundings is ice and snow.

One night, Nikolas’s parents had to leave him at home as they had to bring their daughter Aada to the doctor because she was sick.  Because they had to leave Nikolas (who was 7-years-old) home alone with enough food and firewood for a few days, the parents took a short cut.  But with the parents not arriving back home, Nikolas receives the tragic news that his family fell under ice and died during their trip to the doctor.  Now an orphan, Nikolas is brought to the main village where a few families live.

But with everyone with their own families and money tight, the village elder and the families agree that Nikolas will live with one family and on Christmas day, he will move to the next family.  During his time with each family, to show his gratitude, Nikolas would use his father’s knife to carve out animals or toys from wood, which he would then give to the kids of families of the homes where he stayed at.

For the most part, things went well for the next six years…that is until food became more difficult for each family to obtain.  Because of this, families are no longer able to take in Nikolas.

But one day, a mean salesperson named lisakki, a man that literally scares the children has come to the village.  Nikolas who doesn’ t know why people are scared, gives lisakki one of his wooden toys.  lisakki doesn’t believe a young boy could make such a thing but learning that he has no place to live, he takes Nikolas in.

Of course, lisakki is quite mean to Nikolas but gives him a place to live and clean up the workshop.  While lisakki is sleeping, Nikolas would continue making wooden toys for the kids at his village which he wanted to make sure he continued to give as gifts for appreciation.

It becomes a routine for Nikolas and as he gets older, he wants to give back to children not just in his original village but also in other villages as well.  So, throughout the film, we see how the young boy grows up along with his guardian lisakki and suddenly becomes a man who has the long beard and dons a red suit, why he uses reindeer to pull his sled and why its so important for him to deliver toys to the children in different villages.

VIDEO & AUDIO:

“Christmas Story” is presented in Anamorphic Widescreen (2:35:1).  For the most part, the film looks absolutely beautiful as most of the film is shot in a small village and we can see homes in the middle of nothing but snow and trees.  The cold, winter weather was captured quite amazing on camera and was not CG’d.   the cast and crew had to bare harsh conditions to make this film because a lot of the electrical equipment had difficulty working in cold weather and the wiring would easily snap because of the cold weather.  But the scenes overlooking the mountains, snow covered trees, varying seasons during the fall and winter.  Simply put, Mika Orasmaa’s cinematography is amazing and beautiful.

Audio is presented in English Dolby Surround 5.1 and 2.0 and for me, this is probably the most disappoint part of the DVD.  The English dub was well, but I prefer to watch this film in its original Finnish dialogue.   It’s quite interesting because the special feature features the dialogue in Finnish.    For the most part, dubbed dialogue is clear and understandable.  I didn’t notice the surround channels being used all that much but the film is pretty much center and front channel driven.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

“Christmas Story” comes with the following special features:

• “The Making of Christmas Story” – (21:57) the cast and crew talk about the challenge of making this film in the extreme cold (a lot of the equipment would not work in the intense cold and the wires would snap like branches because of the cold weather).  We learn about the scene location and certain scenes that were shot (and cut) from the film.
• Christmas Story Trailer – (1:16) The theatrical trailer for “Christmas Story”.
  

Overall, “Christmas Story” was an enjoyable holiday film.  The film would make a good family film but children under 6-years-old, that’s a tough call because it is a PG film and some children might get scared of how lisakki treats young Nikolas and the fact that there are dramatic scenes in the film.

I enjoyed “Christmas Story” and the special feature was very interesting to watch, especially to see how difficult it was to shoot the film due to the weather conditions.  But I have to say that I was very disappointed that Anchor Bay Entertainment did not include the Finnish audio track and English subtitles to accompany it.  We’ve come to a point in time where many people who are getting exposed to international films want to enjoy a film spoken in the original language.  And the fact that it’s not included on this DVD is disappointing.

Yet, it’s hard for me to dislike the film because the cinematography is beautiful and I did enjoy the film because although it does feature Santa Claus, it was an intriguing take on how Nikolas became Santa Claus .   “Christmas Story” is an entertaining holiday film…and if you have been watching the same Christmas films for the last few decades, its something different this time around.

Overall, if you can overlook the DVD not including the original spoken dialogue, then “Christmas Story” is definitely a holiday film worth checking out.