SMALLFOOT
An animated adventure for all ages, with original music and an all-star cast, “Smallfoot” turns the Bigfoot legend upside down when a bright young Yeti (Channing Tatum) finds something he thought didn’t exist—a human. News of this “smallfoot” (James Corden) brings him fame and a chance with the girl of his dreams. It also throws the simple Yeti community into an uproar over what else might be out there in the big world beyond their snowy village, in a rollicking story about friendship, courage and the joy of discovery.
Directors: Karey Kirkpatrick, Jason Reisig
Writers: Karey Kirkpatrick … (screenplay by), Clare Sera … (screenplay by), John Requa … (screen story by), Glenn Ficarra … (screen story by), Karey Kirkpatrick … (screen story by), Sergio Pablos … (based on the book “Yeti Tracks” by)
Stars: Channing Tatum, James Corden, Zendaya, Common, LeBron James, Danny DeVito, Gina Rodriguez
Rating: 7 / 10 Stars
REVIEW – Let us be honest, we all know that studios like Warner Brothers see films like this as not selling one ticket, but multiple. This is the goal of the family film. There is no parent going to send a kid alone in a theater. They are going to bring the family. Smallfoot is that family film that seems too smart for its own good. While we get the familiarities of songs and situations that kid films fall into. This film though, has a hidden message that seems very mature for this film. This film seems to give us a message about questioning authority and not being just another person in the machine. Migo, is a big hearted fun Yeti who learns that the things he was raised to believe are false. He discovers a mysterious “Smallfoot” who is actually a TV host in need of a comeback. This film was fun for what it offered. I understand that Warner has been wanting for something to stick outside of the LEGO universe it created. The film has this vision that the Yeti’s cannot communicate with humans and vice versa. So, those scenes are pretty funny. I will admit James Corden as “Smallfoot” was an odd choice. I did not mind his acting, but when he does this freestyle of “ Under Pressure” it was very bad. It was just horrible. Channing Tatum as the Yeti is fun and sounds very comfortable. It comes across as natural and just exciting. While this is far from a Pixar film, this really has a lot to give positives towards. Common has fun when he gets to do a musical number as well. This film just really entertains and tries to educate in the process. I will say the animation at times does seem a bit of a letdown. Not too much, but there are some moments that you feel they should have put more thought and time into it. As far as child films go, this one does not insult the adult audience. It actually tries to give a universal feel to the material. I think it would be a great holiday treat to watch this film as a family. It has enough humor to keep the kids laughing and the parents smiling.
SMALLFOOT | Official Trailer:
