Chris Sanders (1) (1962–)

A family of cave people have to find a new home after their cave is destroyed. It's visually stunning, but what CGI movie isn't nowadays? The story hits some of the standard lessons about the value of family and the importance of being open to new things. What really struck me about this movie, and it seems like a minor point if the movie wasn't so unusual in its handling of it, is that it avoids a very, very common problem with visual portrayals of cave people. Namely, the men are get to show more look powerful and brutal, while the women (even if they're portrayed as just as strong physically) have to look like twiggy supermodels in loincloths. The Croods avoids this by allowing heroine Eep to have the same broad-shouldered, apelike build as her father, making it look plausible that she's really superstrong and tough and naturally able to drop into a four-legged, loping gait to cover long distances. I mean, they do make her pretty, but it's nice to see a film with some body type diversity that doesn't allow 'we have to make her sexy! override everything to the point of absurdity. show less

B+ (Very Good).

A shipwrecked robot raises a goose.

It has visual style, and lots of Big Feelings. The last ten minutes kind of falls apart, though. I think maybe they couldn't decide on whether or not it would be okay to have a sad ending.

(Feb. 2025)

A cute, fluffy space monster uses an orphan as a human shield against his pursuers.

I had forgotten how wonderful this movie is - right up there with Pixar's best.

Concept: B
Story: B
Characters: A
Dialog: B
Pacing: A
Cinematography: B
Special effects/design: A
Acting: B
Music: B

Enjoyment: A plus

GPA: 3.5/4

(Dec. 2011)

2025 movie #92. 2024. A great animated film. A robot accidentally ends up on an uninhabited island. Learning to exceed it's programming to care for a gosling whose family it accidentally killed, it becomes a friend to all the animals on the island. For kids sure but still good.