Journey to the Center of the Earth

Kung Fu Panda

Po, a somewhat of a chubby panda, has always dreamed, (literally), of becoming a great master of Kung Fu. When he is proclaimed the Dragon Warrior, his dreams become vividly real. The only problem? No one wants him there, not even the one who must train him, and the other fighters are disdainful toward him. But when the Tai Lung breaks out of prison, Po gets the chance to become the warrior he was born to be...

This movie was entertaining...thoughout its whole, it's "OK", but several moments are truly, laugh aloud, funny. My twelve year old sister enjoyed it more than my grandparents, and the last fight scene (as with many movies) is probably the best.
Kids will love it, as I first-handedly found out, as the kids sitting next to me shrieked aloud often with laughter and glee.

Anyway, this film isn't raunchy, nor does it have any other undesirable thing in it, and its worth seeing at least once.

This movie receives the O.A.M.R. of three stars

Movie Artwork

Alvin and the Chipmunks.

Oy vey.

My sister purchased the soundtrack before we ever saw the movie. For about two days I was driven up the wall with those grating, squeaky little rodent voices...
And then came the movie, which was, I admit, TEN times better than the soundtrack...which is an odd thing for me to say, as all I ever listen to is orchestra soundtrack music...hey, ya gotta love those french horns.
Although the voices are slightly...(is irritating the right word...?)...annoying, the plot is passable as entertaining and attention keeping, and the overall message...good.

I guess this movie just wasn't my cup of tea, because my friend and I have the habit of skipping over many parts in movies and going right to the battle or fight scenes, and I fear that this movie has no epic battles, explosions, or fist fights.

My sister, however, enjoyed this movie very much, so I know kids will like it. It has no profanity, just hyper chipmunks.

This movie receives the O.A.M.R. of 2 stars.

Bee Movie

Barry B. Benson, a bee fresh from college, is not like other bees. He dreams of bigger, better things...soon, these dreams take him outside of the hive, and into the world outside. The result? Near death experiences, a friendship with a human, and worried parents.
On one of these exploits outside, Barry comes across the honey section in a human grocery store. The result of this...? He wants to sue.

Although this movie wasn't what I would call, "great", it was entertaining. The opposing lawyer with the KFC Colonel accent was the best part, and the general message food for thought, although I'm not sure it was entirely believable.

I know for a fact that kids will like Bee Movie, and am proud to announce that no cussing found my notice within it, nor anything such as that.

This movie receives the O.A.M.R. of 1 star

Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium

Starring Dustin Hoffman, Natalie Portman, Zach Mills and Jason Bateman, this movie is a tale of about a magical toy store, a manager with low self confidence, an uptight "mutant" accountant and a boy with no friends and large hat collection.

This movie could have been great--and yet, it wasn't. Had there been more of the good, yet fleeting, moments, (where you actually began to think, "Huh, maybe this is worth my time after all)), maybe it would be better--or maybe not.
Magorium's insane childish behavior, (he did have a few, memorable lines, though), was somewhat disturbing to me...I mean, had you been living for 200-plus years, maybe that's how you would act...or maybe not. I think the guy had too much sun, personally, though he managed to stay likable and was fairly funny at times.
Then there was another scene with the mutant, (accountant), where he's playing with the monkey-eared kid, that made me want to slap my forehead.

Having said all this, I must admit that the film had good character development and that it did have genuine, funny scenes threaded throughout all the semi-okay parts. The best part of all of it was the Mutant, and the friendless kid,
No cussing, and no profanity in any kind or sort; I'm sure most semi-older kids will enjoy it, and, admittedly, it kept my attention throughout...in an odd sort of way.

This movie receives the O.A.M.R. of 1 1/2 stars

10,000 BC

Hearing several mixed reviews about this movie from a friend of mine, though truly wanting to see it, my family and I greatly enjoyed this film.

There were, however, several things lacking.
1) it had very little character development.
2) all the other tribesmen of the main character looked alike, making it impossible to remember certain sub-characters in the end when it really mattered.

But despite all that, the action in this movie is captivating and the bad guys semi-cool...for bad guys, that is. :) The ending is also neat, though slightly odd, and although the character "Old Mother" is somewhat disturbing, (more of a disturbing concept than anything else, because, as Christains, we know it cannot be true), I am very glad we took the time to see it.

This film, having no bad words and nothing truly "nasty" to edit,
I hereby give it the O.A.M.R. of three and a half stars

Movie Artwork

Horton Hears a Who

Finally, a talking animal movie that isn't ridiculous!

When Horton the Elephant finds a speck of dust calling out for help, he knows that he must protect it, despite the disdain of all the other jungle animals. But when the evil kangaroo hires Vlad the Vulture to go get rid of the speck, Horton's journey to put the speck of Whoville in a safe place becomes more dangerous, (and more humorous for us viewers), than he could ever have imagined.

When we went to go see this film, we picked up two friends, (one about nine and the other about twelve), and headed off to the theater. Although the nine-year-old probably laughed more, the twelve-year-old had a really good time watching this. Me? My expectations were low, though I didn't think I would hate it entirely, but once we sat down those two hours just flew by. This movie was really fun to see, even for a fourteen-year-old such as myself, humorous and entertaining. It was a welcome break from Dr. Dolittle.

This movie having no bad words, a good theme for youngsters to learn, and humor that even most parents will enjoy as well as their kids, this is an AWESOME movie.

I officially give this movie the O.A.M.R. of three and a half stars

The Game Plan

When NFL quarterback Joe Kingman and his team have a chance to win the championship, a girl knocks on his penthouse door. And the girl is? His daughter.

Starring, Dwayne "the Rock" Johnson as "Joe Kingman" and Madison Pettis, (the sassy kid off the Disney series, "Cory in the House"), as "Peyton Kelly".

Had this movie not had the plot twists and turns that it does indeed possess, I can see me not liking this movie much, but it was made well and the acting was believable and humorous.

This film has no profanity, and has its moments of four-starish-ness threaded throughout its wake.
A "cute" film, my sister calls it.

I hereby give this movie the O.A.M.R. of three stars

Pathfinder

This is an older movie, and its been out awhile, but when we rented it from our local movie rental place, I'm glad we took the time to see it.

When a woman finds a crashed Viking ship, (awesomely eerie in itself), she comes across a boy left in the wreckage. After some speculation, the lad is raised by the Native Americans and named "Ghost".
After years and years go by, guess who returns to "cleanse the land of savages"? That's right, the Vikings. And so, loyal to those who made him a part of their tribe and family, Ghost goes out to kill those who killed his family. But the Vikings have another plan...

The film-makers made the Vikings really neat, (not in the cool-and-fun-to -be-around way, either). Their helmets are terror inflicting, and their language, (could it be Old Norse?), is really neat to listen to.

This movie is complete with awesome and believable fight-scenes, a shield sledding scene where the hero is pursued by the Norsemen down a slippery slope, and really pretty country-side.

Other than a few inavoidable bad words in the subtitles of the Vikings, this movie is clean and fun to watch.

I give it the O.A.M.R. of four stars

I am Legend

This movie was great. Any zombie/survivalist/explosions lover will find this movie...AWESOME.

There are times when this film keeps you on the edge of your seat, and, as if your Dad has just popped out of nowhere and screamed, "BOO!", might make some viewers pop right out of their chairs and fly headfirst into the wall...like when the protagonist is running through a dark parking lot complex with the zombies chasing him.


There are some bad words, and I wished that we might have hooked up our TV Guardian to the theater, so this movie would be best viewed at home.
But other than that, this is a great movie that I'm sure you'll enjoy.

I present this film with the O.A.M.R. of five stars

Dr. Dolittle: Tail to the Chief

What can I say? Hmm...well, on the positive side, some of the animal voices were humorous...Lucky, in particular. In fact, Lucky is the only good part about this movie. Who doesn't love a sarcastic, furry companion?

But, despite Lucky's humorous comments, I found this movie annoying. It was basically another, "save the rain forests" speech to the public.
The main character bugged me too. If everyone had as much low self esteem as her, this country would still be in the Dark Ages. She gave up too easy, allowed herself to get pelted with tomatoes and couldn't seem to figure out how to cure the demonic dog "Daisy" of her mean streak, even though the answer was incredibly easy to see even half way through the film.

Then again, I haven't found many talking animal movies tasteful after the movie with the dancing Penguin in it.

This movie has no profanity in it, though, and I imagine that most kids, (and talking-animal lovers), will like it.

I give it the O.A.M.R of one star

Nancy Drew

I thought this movie was entertaining, (although I've only ever read half of a Nancy Drew book and ended up losing interest half way through), and that the acting was done well.

We, unfortunately, ended up ordering the "pop-up version", of this film on PPV. I'm not sure whether I found that little pop noise more distracting or annoying, and that I oftentimes would end up not paying attention to what the actors were saying just to read some silly little fact about the director. But even through all this, I thought that the movie was made well and it held my attention nearly all the way through...which is a lot to say, as I was writing my book at the time and actually looked over at the movie more than my computer screen.

This movie has no profane language, no "nasty" themes and is definately a good one to take the Nancy Drew experts to.


This film receives the O.A.M.R. of two and a half stars.

The Last Legion

This movie is based on the fall of Rome, when the bad guys come and take over and the last emperor, Romulus Augustus, is forced to flee. He and his protectors, (Colin Firth, Ben Kingsley, Aishwarya Rai), and pursued by the barbarians, (Kevin McKidd), as they take a perilous journey north to Britania to seek out the Ninth Legion...the last legion.

This movie has no bad words, awesome fight scenes and cool, if not already tried, themes. There is one scene in the end that may prove questionable, where the warrior maiden "accidentally" slips into Aurelius' tent, (as in many movies, they left out the part where these two people got married), but there is nothing edit-worthy even here.

I give it the O.A.M.R. of three and a half stars.

3:10 to Yuma

This movie was VERY well done. The bad guy, Ben Wade, (Russell Crowe), is so incredibly witty and charming that you immediately like him, and yet he's a brutal murderer. The hero, Dan Evans, (Christian Bale), a rancher, volunteers to see Wade off to the 3:10 train to Yuma, where he will be sent to jail. In the end, despite their differences, Wade and Evans end up respecting each other, and Evans wins the respect of his son as well.

Although very good, I regret to inform you that there is one part where Wade sketches a scantily clad, (actually, not clad at all), woman, but this part can be easily blocked with a Pillow of Purity. I cannot recall if there is any profane language, as we have our TV guardian working at all times, but this is an excellent movie any Western movie lover will love.

I give it the O.A.M.R. of four stars.

Underdog

It is the all-time super hero dilemma...the secret identity. In this case, the problem is solved by shrinking an old college sweater and jamming it over a dog's head.

This is a great family film, complete with couplets and Polly Purebred's inability to see that Shoeshine is indeed Underdog. I'm sure it is a great walk down memory lane for certain American generations, and those of us who were born much too late to watch the cartoon will like it as well.

I found the film enjoyable and, (from the view point of never actually having watched the cartoon series), the theme song catchy. The animation was believable and Jason Lee did a great job for Shoeshine's voice.

The villian, Dr. Simon Barsinister, was played well by Peter Dinklage. Patrick Warburton, (playing, "Cad"), is humorous, and the role of the troubled child, Jack Unger, (played by, Alex Neuberger), done convincingly. In short, the acting was quite decent and this is a great movie to take the kids to.

I give it the O.A.M.R. of two stars.

National Treasure-Book of Secrets

When Ben Gates', (Nicolas Cage), great grandfather's name is besmirched by some cryptic evidence, he takes along the whole gang to help him restore it--his ex-wife, his blundering geek and his feuding, divorced parents. But, hey? Who doesn't love Justin Bartha as our beloved geek? (Riley Poole). Yep, ol' Riley certainly did a good job, and Diane Krudger as the ex was played well. But despite my poking fun at this film, I certainly did enjoy it.

As the second part to the first, "National Treasure" movie, I found Book of Secrets to be much more believable with the clues that they find than the first one was. I mean, the chances of someone playing with their desk drawers is a lot less than no one noticing a brick with a insignia on it.
All of these clues, wonderfully and conveniently placed, all lead up to the lost...whoops, almost spilled something there. Nope, you're just going to have to watch the movie for yourself to see what they find at the end.

This movie is a great one to take the older kids to, (as they'll be more inclined to appreciate the historical sites and items), and any history-buff will be sure to like it. It also, I am happy to report, has a sweet car chase scene complete with explosions, screaming people running away from screeching vehicles, and a bad guy you love to hate...until...

I give this film the O.A.M.R of three and a half stars

Beowulf

Now, I'm a big fan of anything Lord of the Rings, RPG games, and, definitely, epic poems.
So, upon seeing the movie trailers of Beowulf, and having read a considerable amount of the poem/book, I was, in a word, pumped about seeing this movie.
So, on my birthday, we picked up my friend in town and headed for ye olde movie theater up yonder. My friend had been wanting to see this movie too, and had been telling people at school about how he was going to see it that afternoon all day, so when we finally sat down--me, my friend, my sister and my parents--we were psyched about seeing it.

From the main theme, I was hooked...that is to say, before the king came in wearing a loose toga that, to my mother's great shock, fell off several times, only to be caught just before revealing "anything".
I, personally, loved the first fight seen, though. Grendel, the monster, attacked so suddenly I hung at every screech he emitted and grinned as he threw people into he wall. Until...the second attack of Grendel. In this next assault, the "hero", Beowulf, strips before the Queen's, (and we viewer's), eyes.

The dragon scene...well, it sparked my imagination. This part was done very well. One of the only good parts, in my opinion.


I don't mean to reveal this movie's entire plot to those out there reading this who haven't seen it yet, but this movie is revealing enough as it is, so I doubt I'm risking anything.


Anyway, this movie's fight scenes, (in general), are great. If all the nudity and profane words and topics have been edited, I would have enjoyed this movie immensely. As it stands, though, this movie would be best viewed with a large green Pillow of Purity, and a TV guardian.

I give it the O.A.M.R. of one star, just for the last fight scene.

INTRODUCTION

Coming from a family with strong morals, we own both a TV Guardian, (the Foul Language Filter), and use what we have dubbed, "The Pillow of Purity." This large, green pillow is thrust to the TV screen when we encounter...er--nasty spots, in certain movies. For this reason, we watch many movies off Pay Per View.

Ok, so here's some stuff about this site that you'll find handy to know:

1. O.A.M.R. stands for, "Official Amanda Movie Rating". It is based on a five star possibility.
2.Comments are greatly appreciated, whether they're to correct me on something, to agree with me, or just to leave your own thoughts on the site. (Notice: All comments can be read by other site viewers)
3.Actually, there isn't a third thing, but just having the number 1 and 2 without 3 seems wrong.

Well, that's about it. I hope you'll enjoy reading my posts as much as I do writing them.

-Amanda, Author of Christian Movie Reviews