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Heroic take on childhood figures
By Tood McCarthy |
November 25, 2012, Sunday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
A VERY odd assortment of mythical childhood figures, some of them afflicted with severe emotional insecurities and inferiority complexes, are thrown together as an unlikely set of action heroes in "The Rise of the Guardians," an attractively designed but overly busy and derivative mishmash of kid-friendly elements.
A sort of Justice League or Avengers equivalent made up of the fearsome team of Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, the Tooth Fairy, the Sandman and Jack Frost, this final DreamWorks production will play in a predictably agreeable and profitable fashion to small fry.
Based on the book series "Guardians of Childhood" by William Joyce, as well as on the author's short film "The Man in the Moon," the script by David Lindsay-Abaire (Robots, Rabbit Hole) plays fast and loose with these legendary fixtures of childhood, attaching to them all sorts of neuroses, feelings of inadequacy and the sense, or threat, of being ignored. Some might find this tack delightful, but it's just as easy to reject as ridiculous.
Perhaps the most readily amusing of the gang is Santa, or, as he is named here, North. A muscular powerhouse rather than a fatso, North has heavily tatted forearms and, as wonderfully voiced by Alec Baldwin, sports a Russian accent.
Also gathering here are the rangy and rascally E. Aster Bunnymund (an excellent Hugh Jackman), the hummingbird-like Tooth (or Tooth Fairy, delightfully rendered by Isla Fisher) and, ultimately, Jack Frost (a fine Chris Pine), who has wandered the globe alone for centuries and feels woefully unrecognized compared to the others because he has no special day or occasion.
All the same, Jack is hard-pressed by North to join in the battle against Pitch, a diabolical figure (Jude Law).
Director Peter Ramsey never misses a chance to throw in one more roller-coaster-like visual ride to pump up the 3D experience.
The characters and settings are attractively designed, and the vocal performances have real color and a sense of fun that gently undercuts the treacle sincerity of the more kid-pandering moments.
A sort of Justice League or Avengers equivalent made up of the fearsome team of Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, the Tooth Fairy, the Sandman and Jack Frost, this final DreamWorks production will play in a predictably agreeable and profitable fashion to small fry.
Based on the book series "Guardians of Childhood" by William Joyce, as well as on the author's short film "The Man in the Moon," the script by David Lindsay-Abaire (Robots, Rabbit Hole) plays fast and loose with these legendary fixtures of childhood, attaching to them all sorts of neuroses, feelings of inadequacy and the sense, or threat, of being ignored. Some might find this tack delightful, but it's just as easy to reject as ridiculous.
Perhaps the most readily amusing of the gang is Santa, or, as he is named here, North. A muscular powerhouse rather than a fatso, North has heavily tatted forearms and, as wonderfully voiced by Alec Baldwin, sports a Russian accent.
Also gathering here are the rangy and rascally E. Aster Bunnymund (an excellent Hugh Jackman), the hummingbird-like Tooth (or Tooth Fairy, delightfully rendered by Isla Fisher) and, ultimately, Jack Frost (a fine Chris Pine), who has wandered the globe alone for centuries and feels woefully unrecognized compared to the others because he has no special day or occasion.
All the same, Jack is hard-pressed by North to join in the battle against Pitch, a diabolical figure (Jude Law).
Director Peter Ramsey never misses a chance to throw in one more roller-coaster-like visual ride to pump up the 3D experience.
The characters and settings are attractively designed, and the vocal performances have real color and a sense of fun that gently undercuts the treacle sincerity of the more kid-pandering moments.
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