Welcome
back to Mr. Bee's origin month (does that title sound better? Please
comment and let me know.). Now the second movie that I'm going to
review for this special month is Veggie Tales Jonah. Now you may be
wondering why I am reviewing this. Well, the answer is very simple:
this is the first movie that I ever saw in theaters. I was three
years old at the time, and we were celebrating my older brother's
birthday (who is also my wonderful webmaster). But, I remember
vividly the opening credits coming up on the big screen. I actually
fell asleep during the movie (give me a break, I was three). But, I
have seen the whole movie several times since.
Now
first off, this is an evangelical movie and that is not necessarily a
bad thing. I am a Christian so I naturally support what they are
trying to do. Shall we begin?
Background
For those
of you who don't know that Veggie Tales are a series of videos made
for children in order to teach Christian values (hence their tag-line
“Sunday morning values, Saturday morning fun”). The series
started in the early 90's and they apparently always wanted to make a
movie, but were not able to do it until 2002 partly because they
could not find a studio to distribute it. If your wondering, they
also released a movie in 2008.
Plot
Of course
you have the story of Jonah and you also have a story of a bunch of
kids on a way to a concert when their car breaks down. They try to
find help at a seafood restaurant and end up connecting with a bunch
of pirates who tell them the story of Jonah.
Opinion
Now let's
start with the good stuff:
They don't
change much of the story of Jonah and some of the humor can get a
good chuckle, but some of the jokes are juvenile. The songs are
really good Christian songs (except for one song which is basically
an elementary school campfire song). The best song in the movie is
“It Cannot Be” which really gets inside Jonah's head. The
characters are well realized.
Now
for the bad stuff: The animation looks like direct-to-video. The
movie can get preachy, now granted it is a movie made to teach but I
would prefer it not to hit me in the head with a hammer. And
compassion and mercy are said way too many times and begins to sound
a bit redundant (you could give me a penny for every time they said
those two words and I would be as rich as Donald Trump by the end of
the movie).
Overall,
I find that Jonah is a decent kids' movie (definitely not meant for
non-christian families). As for me, I grew up with the Veggie Tales.
So, every time I watch it I find some enjoyment out of it. If you
did not grow up on the Veggie Tales, then you might not find out many
good things about it, but your kids will probably still enjoy it. So,
overall, I would give Jonah the Veggie Tales movie a modest
recommendation of 3 stars.
Well,
thanks for sticking around until the end. Please check out my review
for Mary Poppins if you haven't already (or, if you have, it wouldn't
hurt to check it out again).
And,
the answer to my quiz, Robert Stephenson.
And
this week's quiz is: Which two animated Disney movies were released
in the same year as Jonah? Here is a hint; none of them are Pixar. Comment
below or e-mail me at thatbradley@gmail.com
Goodnight
and Bee Happy!™
By
Mr
Bee
copyright
2016 Mr. Bee Studio International All rights belong to Mr. Bee
and webmaster Wesley M. and if anybody breaks this copyright they
will have to spend ten years as my personal slave, and thanks for
your understanding.
images courtesy of Comcast Corporation/ Lions Gate Entertainment Corp. and Mango Bollywood respectively.
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