Choose Your Own Adventure on DVD

I was so excited when Michelle Crames, one of the founders of Lean Forward Media, asked if I would like to review their recently released DVD, Choose Your Own Adventure - The Abominable Snowman. I think I started dancing around the kitchen. Cause, hey, I LOVE free stuff. And free stuff that I can use with my kids is even better. And free stuff that I can use with my kids that reminds me of things I used to enjoy as a kid?—EVEN BETTER! So, yeah, I was excited. (There’s my disclaimer that I did not pay for this product, but that in no way influences my review of it. I am loyal to you, our readers. But you should not expect to get it for free, you just have to head on over and buy one yourself, should you appreciate my review.)

The movie is based on the book by R. A. Montgomery, an originator of the Choose Your Own Adventure series. Did you love this series as much as I did? Did you cheat like my friend did, and just read all the options from the start?

The animated video features the voices of William H. Macy, Felicity Huffman, Frankie Muniz, Lacey Chabert, and Daryl Sabara and follows the adventure of the orphaned North siblings on their quest to meet their adventurer uncle who’s on his journey to find the elusive Yeti. There’s your plot in a nutshell, and the title of the DVD may clue you in that the rest of the story is largely up to you to determine.

My five year old was my guinea pig for the movie, and she had a blast with it. She had a problem choosing the first time, it seemed that the countdown went quickly for her, but she had it down by the second choice. It was interesting to hear her answers as to why she chose one option over the other.

I had to laugh at myself during one portion of the movie. My daughter chose to follow a certain path, and it shows the kids in a dire situation. I was thinking, “Well, that’s not realistic, they couldn’t survive that outcome.” It was at that point, once the characters had run out of sight, that the screen faded to black and the, “End?” prompt appeared. Apparently it’s more realistic than I initially assumed. But it’s fun because, from there, she could rethink her options and choose a different path. In fact, the viewer has that option whenever a particular thread of choices comes to an end.

My daughter only had two complaints about the movie. The first was that one of the brothers didn’t want to listen to his sister’s idea in the beginning. I imagine she had issues with that because she lives that reality every day of her life with her two brothers. The second was that the movie was too short. The movie is listed at 80 minutes, which is probably true depending on the choices that you make. However, some options will lead you to a journey of 20 minutes or so, but you can immediately change your choices to continue the storyline. If you don’t choose an option at any particular juncture, the DVD will choose for you, so even a child who can’t manipulate the remote enough to make the choices will get a complete story just watching the movie.

Bonus features include some background on the people of Nepal and the Himalayan Mountain Range. They share some very interesting facts, as well as relational examples to help kids understand the differences between their daily lives and the lives of the children of Nepal. Another bonus feature is a “making of” film. This is almost always my favorite part of any DVD. I love seeing the actors talk about their characters, and it’s so fun to get a behind the scenes view of the film. It’ll be interesting to see if the North kids continue as the main characters in future CYOA movies.

So, overall, it’s a great movie, and I’m so glad it’s a part of our collection. The variety of outcomes will make it really hard for the kids to get tired of anytime soon. The writing was entertaining, making me laugh out loud several times. The characters were engaging, and I actually cared about what happened to these animated kids. Very fun.

Visit www.choosemovie.com to help find the Yeti or to view clips from the movie. I’m really surprised that they let you see so much in the clips. It gives you a good feel for the movie. Enjoy!

Thanks, Michelle, for including me!