Here are some of the top animated children’s movies of 2009. Don’t agree with my list feel free to add your favorite to the comment section!

These are in the order in which they premiered in theaters, since there’s no way I could pick an absolute favorite.

1. Monsters Vs Aliens premiered in theaters on March 27th and was the first animated movie we saw in 2009. It’s the story of a young woman struck by a meteor on her wedding day. The radioactivity from the meteor turns her into a giant, so she’s taken to a secret government compound.

2. Coraline premiered in theaters on February 9th making it one of the first animated movies to premiere this year. Coraline is the story of a little girl who suddenly finds herself in a parallel world, that seems to be the idealized version of her own, until she starts to look closer.

3. Disney Pixar’s Up premiered in theaters on May 29th 2009. Carl Fredrickson ties balloons to his house so he can float off on an adventure to Africa, little does he know there’s a stowaway on board.

4. Ice Age: Dawn Of The Dinosaurs the latest installment of the Ice Age series, premiered in theaters to cool off the summer on July 1st. Sid decides to adopt 4 dinosaur eggs, then gets kidnapped by the eggs’ mother.

5. Cloudy With a Chance Of Meatballs hit theaters on September 18th. Cloudy is the story of an inventor who’s invention gone wrong has one town with food falling from the sky like rain.

6. Disney’s A Christmas Carol 3D is the latest animated version of Charles Dickens’ classic tale of a miser and his visits from the ghosts of Christmas past, present, and future. It premeiered on November 6th, just in time for the holiday season.

7. Astro Boy premiered in theaters on October 23rd, and tells the story of a young robot created by a scientist to replace a son he just lost. Astro Boy ends up becoming a superhero and using his super powers to save the Earth.

8. Planet 51 premiered on November 20th. What happens when we’re the aliens? Planet 51 tells the story of an astronaut who lands on a faraway planet, and what happens when he finds himself the alien on a strange planet.

9. The Princess and the Frog hits theaters on December 11th, as an updated version of the classic The Frog Prince.

10. Alvin and The Chipmunks: The Squeakquel will be in theaters just in time for Christmas on December 23rd. This is one movie I can’t wait to check out!

11. Disney’s G-Force was in theaters July 24th. Tells the story of happens when an elite secret government program to train animals as spies is shut down, and the special agent guinea pigs try to stop a plot to take over the world.

So which movie was your animated favorite of 2009?

Images: Amazon

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We were still both laughing out loud several times during the movie. It’s definitely a movie I’d recommend going to see if you get the time this holiday season.

The only drawback is the movie is fairly predictable, but for kids I think the humor definitely makes up for that.

The movie turns the tables and makes a human the alien when he visits another planet. The planet is supposed to be barren and rocky and have no life. The life on the planet is like the decade of the 50’s in the way they dress, and their way of life.

Image: Amazon

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1. Hit the local library, most have summer reading programs for kids with daily or weekly activities. There are also tons of books and magazines to browse through and talk about.
2. Go bowling! Many bowling alleys have discounted rates during summer weekdays, since it’s their slow time.
3. Go see a movie, there are several summer blockbusters for kids this year. We usually go see a movie to avoid the heat of summer, but this year it’s been to avoid the rain! If you’re not worried about seeing the latest movies, many theaters have early morning showings of movies that have been out for a while for very reduced prices.
4. Visit a local museum, some museums are having free admission this summer.
5. Stay in and have a game day. Break out all the board games and have a game day marathon.

What does your family like to do on rainy summer days?

Image via sxc.hu

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From the previews Labou looks like a heartwarming children’s tale. The film is geared toward children, and will have a G rating. Among the movies themes there are lessons for children on believing in yourself ,and working together with friends.

The film was started production just before hurricane Katrina hit the Louisiana area, they had to evacuate New Orleans just after they started filming, and did not get to return until January the next year.

“Labou” is being released on DVD by MGM on May 19th 2009.  It will be available in stores everywhere. If you’re looking for more information on the film check out their website, LabouTheMovie.com.

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I hope I can bring a unique perspective to Play Library, and of course, I’m thrilled to hear from Play Library’s readers.  I’m always willing to try the next great toy or product.  There are so many toys in my house right now that adding more doesn’t make a difference anymore.  Anyone else out there in the same boat?  Can you no longer see your floor through all the toys?  Is there just no place left to put them all in your house?  It’s nice to know I’m not the only one!

If you’d like to learn more about me, you can read my b5media bio.  It’s chock full of all the details about my background, my other blogs, my books and more.

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From cbs2.com:

A child advocacy group complained Thursday to the Federal Trade Commission that ads and toys tied to the upcoming “Transformers” movie are aimed at children as young as 2 years old even though the film is rated PG-13.

…and…

The Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood told the FTC it monitored the Nickelodeon cable channel Monday and recorded “Transformers” movie ads during the shows “Fairly Odd Parents” and “Jimmy Neutron,” both rated TV-Y for all children, including those ages 2 to 6. It also recorded ads during “Ned’s Declassified,” which is rated for children 7 and older.

I remember having a similar frustration last year when the Pirates of the Caribbean movie was the theme of the toys featured in the Happy Meals. Regardless of the fact that the Transformer toys have been around longer than the movie, it seems clear that the movie is still being marketed to children too young for it.

What do you think? Are the marketers pushing the limits of the patience of parents?

ht: Hsien

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I was finally able to watch Samantha: An American Girl Holiday with my Samantha. I really liked the movie, and the character of Samantha. I liked the values, the responsibility, and the “I can do it” spirit that is portrayed in the character. It actually made me look forward to seeing the other two, though we haven’t made it to them, yet!

Hsien pointed me to an article that states that HBO Films and American Girl (owned by Mattel) have struck a deal to produce new “films, series, specials and documentaries.”

From the Reuters article:

Picturehouse, a joint venture of HBO and New Line Cinema, will release the franchise’s first big-screen foray, with production beginning in the summer. No director is attached. Actress Julia Roberts will serve as a producer.

Although a film targeting girls ages 3-12 might seem a strange fit for the indie distributor, whose slate includes such adult fare as “Pan’s Labyrinth” and “A Prairie Home Companion,” Picturehouse president Bob Berney said the company is looking to branch out into new areas.

“We want to show that Picturehouse can incorporate any genre, any demographic in a really high-quality way,” said Berney. “As an indie, to reach a younger girl audience is a really exciting prospect.”

It’d be nice to have more high quality, family friendly movies to take the kids to, don’t you think?

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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!

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I’d originally planned to treat them to the new release, Over the Hedge, but the video store was out. You know what one of the fun things about kids is, though? If the movie came out before they were born, they don’t necessarily know that it’s not new. So, over to the $1 section I went, and grabbed this little piggy movie.

We tried to keep the snacks healthy, or at least healthyish. Some apple slices and a little bit of caramel dip, along with the prerequisite popcorn in individual paper sacks for the kids (minus the baby, no choking going on here!).

The kids enjoyed it and stayed seated for a whopping 30 minutes, I think, which made me really glad that we hadn’t dropped a bunch of cash to chase them around the movie theater.

A fun, healthy, thrifty evening as a family. What could be better?

PS-Bald Man took the photo of me prepping for the grand event, so I thought I should at least show my appreciation and include it. Don’t worry, it won’t happen often.

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I’m really looking forward to it. We have the VHS at grandma’s house, but the tape has been watched so many times that we’re afraid it’s going to break! As a result, my kids have only seen this movie once or twice. I can’t wait for The Little Mermaid to be a part of their world.

Did you know that it won two Oscars and was nominated for another? Not bad for a cartoon.

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