BOOK REVIEW - #Frozen: The Poster Collection

About a year ago, I was given the opportunity to go to Los Angeles to go behind the scenes of the blockbuster Disney animated film Frozen. I got to meet the directors, play in the rigging lab, even voice Olaf! It was an experience I'll never forget, and it forever made Frozen hold a very special place in my heart.

When Insight Editions contacted me to check our their new book Frozen: The Poster Collection, I couldn't resist.

The book is large and absolutely gorgeous. Each poster is double sided and printed on thick, high quality paper. The images included feature memorable scenes from the film, popular characters, and--my favorite part--foreign market versions of the film posters.

The images are stunningly high quality and show details you may have missed in the theatre or at home on your television. My camera couldn't do them justice, but I was most impressed by the fact that you can see the woolen texture of Anna's skirt! Just incredible!

 The book retails for $24.99 and is available wherever books are sold, including Amazon, linked below!





Disclosure: I received a free copy of the book for review purposes. For more information, please see my Disclosure tab.

Big Hero 6 on Blu-ray TOMORROW!

Image courtesy Big Hero 6 facebook page.

Are you ready to own not one, but TWO Academy Award-winning films? Tomorrow, Tuesday February 24th, Disney's Big Hero 6 comes out on Blu-ray combo pack and DVD! And it includes the theatrical animated short, Feast! Both Big Hero 6 and Feast won Oscars last night!

Images courtesy Walt Disney Animation Studios.

It's no secret that I am a huge, ginormous fan of Big Hero 6 and it was one of my favorite movies last year! Check out my full film review HERE.  The cats of the TV Household have been remiss since I saw it as I've taken to calling them "Hairy Baby" every time I pick one of them up! There are just so many great things about the movie. Thankfully, the Academy agreed! Congrats to the teams that worked on Big Hero 6 and Feast! Both awards were well deserved!

The Blu-ray combo pack features:

• Blu-ray, DVD, and Digital HD copy
• Feast theatrical short
• The Origin Story of Big Hero 6: Hiro's Journey
• Big Hero Secrets (check out a sneak peek on the Big Hero 6 Facebook page!)
• Big Animator 6: The Characters Behind The Characters
• Deleted Scenes

And don't forget to pick up Big Hero 6 on Blu-ray combo pack or DVD tomorrow!

Disclosure: A copy of Big Hero 6 on Blu-ray was provided for this post. Please see my Disclosures tab for more information.

MOVIE REVIEW: Disney's #BigHero6

Big Hero 6 was in post-production when I went to LA last February for the Frozen and Pirate Fairy event. I didn't know much about it, other than it was a super hero-ish movie that had some sort of Japanese-ish influence. I've been getting the emails and following the Facebook page for months, and I honestly couldn't make heads or tails of it. I went in with no expectations... and left having seen one of my favorite Disney movies of all time. It's that good.

All images © Disney.

Before I get into Big Hero 6, I have to start where the movie experience does, and that's with the new animated short, Feast, featuring the cutest little glutton this side of Garfield.

Look at how cute!

The short takes us through the meals of a rescued puppy and his owner, but there is a bigger story behind the pup. I'm almost positive this will be up for Oscar consideration in the animated shorts category, because it's amazing how much of an emotional roller coaster viewers experience in just a few minutes. You will laugh, cry, and cheer before it's over.



Now, onto our feature presentation!

I'm going to warn parents that Big Hero 6 has the usual Disney story mechanism of dead parents. We all know it's not a Disney movie without dead parents! Lucky for us, the parents' demise happened long before our story takes place. However, that does not save us from more tragedy early on. That's all I'm going to say. Be prepared to feel, folks. The trailer kind of hints at it...



Meet Baymax: the most huggable robot companion ever, and probably one of Disney's funniest characters. So many of Baymax's scenes were laugh out loud funny, despite his calm and even delivery. Straight-laced comedy at it's finest. The low battery scene is probably the most hilarious thing Disney has written since The Emperor's New Groove.

"Hairy BABY!"

I was surprised at how dark the villain is in the film. He's pretty scary, and while TV Boy is the most well-adjusted kid on the planet when it comes to peril in entertainment, for some reason, other young kids might be a bit afraid of this guy on the big screen.

Overall, the film is visually stunning, incredibly well-written, and absolutely the most fun you'll have at a kids' movie. Parents will be psyched that there is no annoying soundtrack for your children to obsess over like Frozen; instead the film's title song is written by Fall Out Boy, and is pretty awesome. I can't stress enough how much I enjoyed Big Hero 6 and how every parent on the planet should take their kids to see it. Honestly, it has earned a spot in my top three favorite Disney movies of all time (Emperor's New Groove and Aladdin are my other two, if you were curious). I also really love how they depict female characters in science. Truly fabulous!

Big Hero 6 is rated PG and is released in US theatres today, November 7th. Seriously, do yourself a favor and go see this movie. And, just like all good superhero movies, stay after the credits! Trust me on this. Geeks especially. I know I sound majorly cliched in this post, but this is the best movie of the year!

Here are some fun science experiements you can do with your kiddos to celebrate Big Hero 6!





Disclosure: A free screening of the film was provided for review purposes. For more information, please see my Disclosure tab. 

Teaser Trailer: Disney Pixar's Inside Out!

Disney released the new teaser trailer for the upcoming animated feature Inside Out today. Inside Out arrives in theatres June 19th, 2015!

Images © Disney Pixar.

MOVIE REVIEW: Disney Planes Fire and Rescue #FireAndRescue

Last night, the TV Family went to the sneak peek of the new Disney Planes: Fire and Rescue movie. I either haven't been paying enough attention or what, but I was surprised to see a 3D film from my friends at DisneyToon Studios (where I saw all my cool Pirate Fairy stuff!)... these folks are mega talented!

Image © Disney.

The 3D (we saw the "RealD" version) was stunning. TV Boy has never seen a 3D movie before, so this was a big deal to him. I was surprised he kept the glasses on for the whole film too, but that could have been my big speech at the beginning about having to have them on so it wouldn't hurt his eyes (a bit of a bent truth, but I guess it worked). However, remember that 3D isn't great for really small children's eyes, so keep that in mind.

The move picks up where Planes left off: Dusty Crophopper is a world class, high-win race plane. He's become famous for his speed and stunts. However, being an older model plane, when his gearbox fails and starts to disintegrate, a replacement part can't be found. I would say this is akin to the plane/car version of needing an organ transplant and being told you have a rare blood type. Dusty has to give up racing, but he is reluctant. When a fire occurs in Propwash Junction, and the old firetruck Mayday is slow to the rescue, Dusty volunteers to become a fire plane. He flies off to Piston Peak Park to train with an old friend of Mayday's, Blade Ranger. Dusty must overcome his new affliction and become a certified firefighter before the big corn festival back home.

We all thought the movie was pretty cute. There were a few good jokes for the parents, including a fire plane named Dipper who is the epitome of the "Overly Attached Girlfriend" meme in plane form, voiced by Modern Family's Julie Bowen.

Image © Disney.

*Actual Dipper line in movie.

Also, be on the look-out for references to CHiPS and Howard the Duck. In the same scene. And featuring guest voice Erik Estrada. So much epic in one five minute segment. 

Hint: This is the scene of awesome. Image © Disney.

If you've been reading for a while, you know I'm a sucker for an "all star cast", and Planes Fire and Rescue delivered there. We have Dane Cook returning to voice Dusty as well as Brad Garrett (Robert from Everybody Loves Raymond) as his sidekick fuel truck Chug, Teri Hatcher as fix-it truck Dottie, and Stacy Keach as mentor and coach plane Skipper, but we get voices from Cedric the Entertainer, Fred Willard, Jerry Stiller, Patrick Warburton, Kevin Michael Richardson, Regina King (aka human resources lady Mrs. Davis in Big Bang Theory), another brief cameo from Brent Mustburger, and of course John Ratzenberger has a minor character (because it wouldn't be a Disney film without him anymore). That's just to name a few.

My favorite, though, is new fix-it truck from the fire base, Maru, voiced by Curtis Armstrong (aka Booger from Revenge of the Nerds, host of King of the Nerds, voice of Snot from American Dad, and Robot from now-cancelled Nicktoon Robot and Monster). What I find funny is that no matter what character Armstrong voices, animators seem to have a similar face for every single one of them. And they all look like Curtis Armstrong.

Tell me you don't see his face in Maru. You do. Image © Disney.

Finally, I was a little teary to see the film not only dedicated to firefighters everywhere who put themselves in harms way for the good of others, but to see actual firefighters' names listed in the credits. That was a classy move on Disney's part. 

To celebrate the movie, which premieres in theatres everywhere tomorrow, July 18, click the image below to download a printable activity book for your kids to enjoy! The movie is rated PG. It's a fun, heartwarming (no pun intended!) movie and perfect summer fun for the whole family!

Image and files © Disney.

*Disclosure: I was provided a free screening of the film for review purposes. Please see the Disclosure tab for more information. 

MOVIE REVIEW: Maleficent

Thinking of taking the kids to see Disney's Maleficent this weekend? Here's what you need to know.

Image © Disney.

First and foremost, the movie is rated PG, but that's a rating I don't entirely agree with. I think the movie industry falls short, because I don't think it should necessarily be rated PG-13, but I think PG is just a tad weak. I think that the video game rating system works better here, and I'm calling it an E-10... yes, it's a Disney movie, but there is a lot of darkness to it and a surprising amount of violence early on. Younger kids who are sensitive may not mesh with this fairy tale. There were a couple kids that I guessed to be around 7ish sitting next to me in the screening, and I found myself looking over at them often to gauge their reactions. While TV Boy didn't go with me, and I'm sure he'd be fine with it (the monsters in Doctor Who and in movies like The Avengers didn't phase him in the least), I don't think this movie is quite the family flick they're painting it to be. Just be warned.

Image © Disney

Here's one of the trailers that not only shows some of the scary critters in the film, but a couple moments of one of the fight scenes. Plus it features the haunting version of Once Upon A Dream that gives me chills every time I hear it.




That said, let's get down to the meat of it. This time I was joined by my "little brother" and movie reviewer, Mike Raine. Check out his blog of movie reviews! And here's his review, which has a little more of the plot than I reveal here.

Image © Disney

The narrative is simple: the story we all know and love from the original Disney animated classic Sleeping Beauty isn't "what really happened". Disney adopted a sort of "Wicked" format... the villian isn't truly evil, she's just misunderstood. And honestly, with that they do a decent job. I am not going to get all spoilery, but if I was Maleficent and had the same thing done to me as she has in the beginning of the film, I'd be mad too and would probably seek revenge just the same. They do a good enough job of getting you to care about the villain, and really that's what matters.

The fairy dumdums. Image © Disney.

Fans of the original are going to be disappointed with some of the changes, including the three fairies entrusted with raising Aurora being made into complete bumbling idiots, along with having their names changed entirely (no Meriwether here, folks!). They aren't the only ones suffering a name change, as Maleficent's pet crow/servant Diablo is renamed Diaval... not much difference, sure, but it's enough. It bugged me.

He's a bird turned human, but with hollow bones! ©Disney

I found the plot to be pretty predictable overall. It kind of detracted from the performance of Angelina Jolie, which I have to say... I'm not a fan of hers usually, but she was absolutely outstanding in this role. I don't know if it's because they have to cram more than twenty some-odd years into one movie or what, but it felt rushed to me.

Image © Disney

The visuals are pretty spectacular, and they do a good job of tying in some of the classic film scenes we're all used to (see above). Our screening happened to be in IMAX 3D, which was kind of neat, but honestly I don't think the 3D element added much to the movie itself. Plus it gave me a headache. Glasses + 3D glasses =  not a good combination. I found myself having to look around too much to really take in the film entirely. Save your money and see the regular 2D version.

Mom and daughter. Image © Disney.

Fun fact: Angelina's daughter Vivienne makes a cameo appearance as one of the young Auroras (5 year old version). They share a really cute scene together and she gets a couple lines.

Elle Fanning as Aurora. Image © Disney.

Elle Fanning (aka Dakota Fanning's little sister) was a passable Aurora. Not amazing, but not horrible. For a change, the actress playing the character was actually right around the same age as the character. That's unusual for the entertainment industry, and I actually am happy with it. The Disney films especially seem to gloss over the teens in terms of body type and attitude.

Image © Disney

Overall, it was good, but I wasn't in love with it. If you're a die hard Sleeping Beauty or Angelina Jolie fan, it's worth seeing in theatres. I'd leave the little princess fans at home though, or wait to see it on DVD/Blu-ray.

Now I just want one of these Diaval dragon tees in my size and I'll be good.

Maleficent is playing in theatres starting today, May 30th, and is rated PG. 

Disclosure: I was provided a free advanced screening of the film for review purposes. Please see my Disclosure tab for more information.

Breaking the Silence and Things You May Have Missed!

If you're a regular reader of mine, you might have noticed it has been awfully quiet around here lately. Part of me wants to say something like "I've been super busy, life got in the way", but it just wouldn't be honest.

Well, it's time for the honesty.

So, I have some sad news... mostly sad for myself and my bank account. As of a week from today, I will no longer be writing for the Kids' Cartoons page at About.com. This is mostly what has fueled my radio silence around here. I'm bumming. Hard. I have been with About for two years and I'm definitely going to miss it and the notoriety that came with the brand. I have put in applications for a couple other topics over there, but since one application is entering its seventh month of going unread (according to the status update thingy), I'm guessing I won't be strolling back onto their servers any time soon.

It has taken a lot out of me to even think about blogging or writing lately. The wind has been let out of my sails and even though my parting with About has nothing to do with me personally (the program under which I have been writing for the past two years has ended and they essentially just let my contract expire), it still felt like a major blow to the old self esteem.

I have been pitched by one brand to jump on the ground floor of their marketing campaign for their app. It's going to be a neat opportunity and I'm looking forward to working with the company. Keep an eye out for that either late June or early July. In the meantime, my dear blogger buddy Nickida over at NickisRandomMusings.com has been helping me hone my pitching skills and teaching me some tricks of the trade, and I can't even begin to explain how grateful I am for her help. Be sure to pop over to her site for lots of fun posts and tell her I sent you!

I'm trying really hard to get back up on the horse and ease on down the dusty trail. (Why am I making cowboy references? I have no idea.) I want to get this blog standing on its own two feet--do blogs have feet?--and make TheTVMom.com a brand worth recognizing and working with.

In the meantime, here are some neat things you may have missed in the entertainment world, beginning with my favorite, Zach Braff's new film, Wish I Was Here. I was a part of the Kickstarter, so a special treat to me was my very own copy of the new full trailer showed up in my email this morning. Check it out here, and be sure to imagine me fanning myself like a southern belle when he points at my name!



Next, check out this neat poster for the upcoming Marvel film Guardians of the Galaxy!

Image courtesy Marvel.

Heads up on August 19th when "Toy Story of Terror" hits store shelves on Blu-ray combo pack/DVD/Digital HD/Disney Movies Anywhere! The combo pack includes "never before seen bonus features, including parody vintage toy commercials, deleted scenes, audio commentary, and more!" If you happened to catch this cute little short last halloween, you know you won't want to miss owning it!

Image courtesy Disney/Pixar.

And finally, in celebration of the new upcoming Focus Features/LAIKA stop-animation film, The Boxtrolls, kids and families are encouraged to visit TheBoxtrolls.com and build their very own Boxtroll for a chance to have their personal Boxtroll be brought to life as a real puppet by LAIKA artists and other Box-tastic prizes! Check out the video below and see the site for more information and complete rules!



That's all I have for now. Please be sure to check in at my Facebook page to see more fun stuff worth sharing and liking. Thanks, readers, for sticking with me, and here's to all the fun that is yet to come!

TRAILER: Disney Planes: Fire and Rescue!

Check out the new trailer for the upcoming Disney flick, Planes: Fire and Rescue, coming to theatres this summer!

BEHIND THE SCENES - Pirate Fairy Directors!

Sniffle.... my last L.A. trip post. This means I have nothing more to talk about regarding my trip. My trip is officially over you guys! Wahhh!

Today's post is about my Q&A session with The Pirate Fairy Director Peggy Holmes and Producer Jennifer Cook. If you have the DVD or Blu-ray, you can see their smiling faces on the special features as they introduce the deleted scenes. These ladies are adorable!

Jennifer Cook and Peggy Holmes. Image © Disney.

What was neat about talking with them after our screening is their passion for the characters and the story. They talked about Pirate Fairy like it was one of their children, and in a way, it is. It took months of planning and hard work. Peggy Holmes begins by describing the tale of Zarina in that she "wanted to tell a story about a girl who makes a mistake... everyone makes mistakes."

Again, my techy-geekness strikes and I recorded the entire presentation with these two ladies. You can listen below! There is also a little sneak audio peek of Tom Hiddleston's special feature from the disc from his recording session for the "Frigate That Flies" around the 9 minute mark (which you will want to turn your speakers down for... sorry about that!).


There is also discussion about the adorable little Crocky. Here's the hard truth: everyone loves Crocky. Period. Not only is he downright adorable but he rescues the fairies from a trap, AND he becomes infamous in the stories of Peter Pan! How can you NOT love him? As you'll hear in the presentation, it took a few tries to get his design just right. What we get is nothing short of cute overload! There is even a special feature devoted entirely to Crocky!

Image © Disney.

Finally, I wanted to share something I now treasure as I look at it every single day above my desk:

That, my friends, is a piece of art featuring the background scene from inside Skull Rock, and it is autographed by Jennifer Cook and Peggy Holmes! You know, I have been looking at it for a few weeks now, and it wasn't until the Blu-ray finally arrived at my house and I re-watched it until I realized that it was inside Skull Rock. Yeah, major derp on my part! But I now have a place to start hanging some of my cool stuff I get when I go on these trips... next to my Pirate Fairy art!

I just want to take a moment to say a huge THANK YOU to everyone who made this trip possible for me: Sabrina, Gabby, Marshall, Click Communications, and Disney. I've made so many amazing memories as well as some incredible and life-changing contacts with this trip. I also want to give a shout out to my new blogger buddies over at DAM Bloggers, which is a page you should all pop over and like. It features some of the best parent-bloggers the web has to offer. To make a long sappy speech short, thanks to everyone I've worked with and here's to the next time I hop on a plane to sunny California!


Disclosure: I received a trip to Los Angeles as well as a review copy of Pirate Fairy in exchange for this post. Please see my Disclosure tab for more information.

BEHIND THE SCENES - The Pirate Fairy Character Development

This is the second to last post about my Los Angeles trip. Getting near the end of these posts makes me itch to jump back on a plane to go to LA again for something or another. (You see that, Disney friends? I'm ready to come back! Please?) These trips are fantastic, a lot of fun, and I've made so many amazing new friends and contacts. I want more!!!

The foyer of DisneyToon Studios.

Yet another one of the neat things I got to do was to sit down for a presentation about the creation of the new character, Zarina, a fairy who becomes a pirate. The character designers had to figure out a way to make her bridge the gap between fairy and pirate, without making her lean too heavy to one direction or another.

The foyer of DisneyToon Studios.

As I've said previously, I love Zarina's pirate costume. I could see myself wearing it to the local Renaissance Festival. Especially her nifty pirate coat... which, as you'll hear in the presentation below, designers designed from the "cuff of a pirate's coat." How neat is that? (And you'll hear a room full of bloggers go "Ohhhhh!" as the idea clicks with us, haha!)

Image © Disney.

One of the questions I asked while I was there was "where did the fairies get their swords?" because the fairy swords were so ornate... and I got my answer: hat pins! Ornate hat pins from the Victorian era would have indeed made perfect fairy swords! I loved how the character designers took everyday objects and made them pirate-y for the fairies.

Image © Disney.

Below is the full half an hour presentation we were treated to, featuring character designers and animation supervisors, all with a background of the cool Skull Rock they had on display in the lobby! Be sure to turn your speakers up! You'll be treated to neat secrets such as which pirate had a secret hobby of sewing and made Zarina's outfit? I won't tell, you have to listen!





Disclosure: I received a trip to Los Angeles in exchange for coverage of The Pirate Fairy release. Please see my Disclosure tab for more information.

Slugterra - Heroes of the Underground on DVD

Check out the contents of the newest Slugterra DVD on the Kids' Cartoons page at About.com!

Image © Shout! Factory.

More Pirate Fairy Fun - My Interview With Iridessa!

As a special treat to go with my coverage of The Pirate Fairy, I was given the opportunity to talk to voiceover actor Raven-Symonè, who voices light fairy Iridessa. Our schedules didn't meet up like we'd hoped, so she emailed me her responses instead. Check out my full interview over at the About.com Kids' Cartoons page! And don't forget to enter to win a copy of the movie!

Iridessa - Image © DisneyToon Studios.

REVIEW: The Pirate Fairy - with GIVEAWAY!

I FINALLY get to talk about this movie! Seriously, I have been sitting on this for over a month now and it has been killing me! But it's here, it's finally here, and I can spill the beans!

Me at DisneyToon Studios for The Pirate Fairy premiere!

The Pirate Fairy releases on Blu-ray combo pack next week. I received my review copy in the nick of time to post this review for my deadline today--I got it yesterday. Convincing TV Boy to watch it with me took some doing, thanks to the glittery fairy wings on the box, but once the sword fighting happened, he gave in and watched it with me. He also noticed Crocky and made sure he had a front row seat for the show!

I personally loved this movie. I didn't think I would. I've never seen a fairy movie before (insert your gasping here!) and I wasn't sure I was going to enjoy it. But walking out of that theatre, I was in love. And I seriously want to cosplay as Zarina sometime. She's rad! Besides, I already have the hair color down... now if only I had her figure! Think I can wish on a star for it?

Image © DisneyToon Studios.

Since this was a straight-to-DVD film, it fell into my About.com writing realm, so my full review is up over at the Kids' Cartoons page. More fun stuff coming soon over there too... wink wink! Watch for that later this week!

Image © DisneyToon Studios.

And of course, what would a video review be without a GIVEAWAY! That's right, my lovely friends at Disney are offering up a copy of the film for one of my fabulous readers. You can win it before you can buy it! Check out the Rafflecopter widget below to enter! The giveaway will run until April 1st, when the film releases (no foolin' here!). Be sure to enter and share with your friends! UPDATE: Also be sure to check out the linky at the bottom for even MORE chances to win!


a Rafflecopter giveaway



Disclosure: I received a trip to Los Angeles and a review copy to cover the release of the film. Please see my Disclosure tab for more information.