IN A NUTSHELL:
From Apple Original Films and Skydance Animation comes the story of Sam Greenfield, the unluckiest person in the world! Suddenly finding herself in the never-before-seen Land of Luck, she must unite with the magical creatures there to turn her luck around. This is Skydance Media’s first animated feature film.
The film was directed by Peggy Holmes who used to be a choreographer at Disney. The writing team includes Kiel Murray (CARS), Jonathan Aibel, and Glenn Berger. This is John Lasseter’s first connection with a non-Disney-related animation. You can definitely feel his touch on the movie.
THINGS I LIKED:
- Who doesn’t love Simon Pegg, right? He plays a magical, Scottish, polydactyl cat named Bob. Get out your tissues for a reveal about him at the end.
- Eva Noblezada gives a great voice to the unlucky leading lady and even sings a little in some scenes.
- Jane Fonda plays a dragon who is as impeccably dressed as the actress is in real life. While she could easily have retired years ago, she continues to pump out work. Her popular TV series with Lily Tomlin, Grace and Frankie, just recently ended but she is keeping very busy still!
- Other cast members include Jane Fonda, Whoopi Goldberg, Flula Bor, John Ratzenberger, and Lil Rel Howery. They all do a fantastic job.
- Fun fact #1: The first trailer was released on Friday the 13th of May. That’s ironic because Friday the 13th is notorious for being bad luck. In my family, it’s good luck though, because one of my sons was born on a Friday the 13th! The bad luck of that formula was that he was born so fast that he was born at home on my bedroom floor! ha ha
- The animation is fantastic. Things like hair and fabric look especially amazing.
- Some of the characters are super cute. I loved Jerry, the redhead who got super excited when he found out that Sam had eaten grilled cheese before.
- Irish music, the Celtic knot, and even a Riverdance-looking system are utilized in the world of shiny lucky pennies with a bunch of leprechauns.
- Cute musical number.
- The bad luck sequences at the beginning of the movie are super entertaining and endear us immediately to Sam.
- The powerful messages come through loud and clear.
- They have included every kind of image and creature in the movie that has been associated with bringing good luck and bad luck for centuries. There are rabbits, but no focus is on the rabbit’s foot, unfortunately.
THINGS I DIDN’T LIKE:
- It would have been perfect if this had premiered during St. Patrick’s Day, right? The movie has quite a few leprechauns and is all about luck (obviously).
- When it comes to world-building, it seems like there are some missing details that make the rules seem inconsistent. Bob tells Sam “It doesn’t work that way” and attempts to explain complicated systems. That element of the movie is a bit messy and confusing.
- I was surprised there wasn’t a cute, bonus scene somewhere in the final rolling credits.
- Like almost every movie nowadays, the bosses are all women.
TIPS FOR PARENTS:
- Super sweet and fun for all ages
- You and your kids might want to look on a map to find out where Latvia is.
- People and creatures are often in chaotic, dangerous situations.
- You might need to explain the foster system to your kids. Hopefully, they’ll appreciate you as their parent more!
THEMES:
- Good luck charms
- Orphans
- Friendship
- Make your own destiny
- Sacrificing for others
- Success
- Resilience
- Gratitude
- Courage
- Loneliness
- Doing good with your life
- Sharing
- Forever Family
- The good qualities we develop through challenges
You can see the full review on the Movie Review Mom YouTube channel.
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