7 Favourite Animated Films

If you know me, you know how much I love animated movies. I have probably watched every DreamWorks/Disney movie out there, and I continue to watch anime and other new animated films that keep coming. From old movies like Bambi to Ralph Breaks the Internet, I love all of them! But, here are seven modern-day animated films that I absolutely love! 

1. Inside Out

One of the most brilliant movies ever, teeming with innovation and a fresh perspective on something that all of us know and experience every day. The importance and necessity to balance all emotions is something that we all struggle to do even as we grow up. It made me teary-eyed, and melted my heart. It is one of the most refreshing, thought-provoking, inventive feel-good film I've watched. The screenplay and the sequencing is brilliant, and the visuals and animation needs no more say than "Disney-Pixar".

2. Big Hero 6

I love the movie! It is F-A-N-T-A-S-T-I-C! Actually, none of the characters are evil, and there is no real villain in the whole story. I bet you could never ever find characters more lovable and huggable than my Baymax! Trust me and watch it.

3. How to Train Your Dragon

This is a film with some spectacular visuals, and Hiccup is such a warm character. As you are drawn into the world of dragons and Vikings, be prepared to be thrilled, entertained, and absolutely charmed!

4. Zootopia

My dad, brother, and I went to the theatres to see when this released. And, this is one of the fewest-of-few movies where my dad definitely didn't mind animals talking! If you need translation: that means it was crazy good! Also, tip: the credits roll, don't shut your laptop. There's a gazelle that'll thrill you with her voice! Probably the only movie where people stayed for the credits (apart from Marvel movies), thanks to Shakira! If you're still skeptical about watching this movie, I have one thing to say: try everything!

5. The Incredibles

Classic. Unforgettable. Heart-warming and kickass- all at the same time. I love Jack-Jack. I love the Incredibles!

6. Whisper of the Heart

Whisper Of The Wind is a romantic tale of self-realization of the protagonist's abilities, purpose, and dreams. It rides high on the small but vividly mesmerizing world of Shizuku as she travels through her adolescene in style- with love, confidence and a vision of spectacular dreams. The musicality of this anime film is captivating, and ensues a sense of calm and peace. From the creators of Spirited Away, this is another classic, and a must-watch for all age groups!

7. Minions  

This is probably the most favourite. I love everything about Minions. I love the idea, conception of the idea, the screenplay, the execution, the flawless masterpiece that enthralls you in a happy bubble. What's not to love about it! If I weren't a grown girl, I'd have probably run around the house screaming gelatooo after the film. Please do yourself a favour and watch it if you haven't!

There are so many more that I love, but a list of seven can only have seven! Which is your favourite animation film? Let me know in the comments!

7 Bollywood Movies I Really Like

I have probably watched way more Bollywood movies than movies of any other language, weirdly. I also have to give these movies a fair credit for making me more comfortable with listening to Hindi for longer periods of time. While there were many I regretted watching thanks to the very typical formulaic stories, there were some that I really enjoyed watching. Out of the ones that I enjoyed a lot, here are the first seven that came to my mind when I wanted to write this post!

1. English Vinglish. The story is simple, beautiful, and very relatable to most of our lives. We all have at one point or the other teased our own parents, grandparents, friends or people we know for their English. Or, sometimes the viewers might be the ones who regret about not being great at this language. While we might have done that with no intention to put them down or hurt them, and they also sportively take it as a joke, we hear them comment sometimes that they wouldn't be the butt of the joke if they knew better English. Sridevi as Sashi puts up a very enjoyable, real and beautiful performance. English Vinglish is heart-warming to watch. 

2. Hindi Medium. This was a hilarious, yet important, take on all that parents do, and the sheer desperation to have their kid study in a "reputed school". The story also gives out an important message that we need to try and make every school worthy rather than go to any extent in order to get that one school that we idolize. Irrfan Khan brings light and humour into this simple tale, and every moment is enjoyable. I really enjoyed this one.

3. Barfi. A love story, but a realistic and stunningly sweet take on many different things. Ranbir Kapoor and Priyanka Chopra were brilliant, and the whole screenplay was beautiful. The movie leaves you feeling a warmth and magic that you should definitely experience!

4. Rang de Basanti. What is not beautiful in this film! The story, the screenplay, the music, and the whole air that this film brings is one that fills you with energy, awareness, a sense of pride, a sense of what is right, and the film holds your attention every second of its runtime. The film has a star-studded cast, and unquestionably brilliant performances. This is one of the movies that leave you thrilled watching it!

5. 3 Idiots. This movie is a sensation in itself. I think the credit completely goes to the screenplay and the absolutely relatable dialogues. It also addresses a well-known, but ignored fact on how we are taught, and how we learn in schools and colleges. It is a movie that gives you a message, keeps up the humour, entertains you thoroughly, leaves you smiling thanks to the stellar performances, and you just sit back and have fun watching!

6. Kahaani. Kahaani has been one of my most favourite films. It is solely carried by Vidya Balan, and she does absolute justice to her character. This feels like reading a mystery-crime-thriller all rolled into one with a pregnant woman looking for her missing husband, and makes you sit up straight in anticipation and keeps you on the toes when it comes to the storyline. We are all left hanging all the way to the very end till we finally watch the twist unfold on screen. This is definitely a movie that I thoroughly loved!

7. Piku. A simple story about an old man who thinks he is going to die of constipation. Every dialogue in the film is brilliant, and the simple story is so well-written and well-played that you can't help but smile. Again, star-studded, this movie has some of the most effective performances I have seen. Love it!

I have seen so many more, and I have also enjoyed many of them. But, like I already said, these are the 7 movies that came to mind when I sat to write this post, and hence they feature here! Which is your favourite? Let me know in the comments!

Ralph Breaks The Internet

Movie: Ralph Breaks The Internet (Wreck It Ralph 2)

Genre: Animation

Directed by: Rich Moore, Phil Johnston

Written by: Phil Johnston, Pamela Ribon

Music by: Henry Jackman

Vanellope von Schweetz is bored of driving around the same old tracks, and being the same old star racer in her game, Sugar Rush. There is a new plug-in to the surprise of all the game characters in the arcade- 'WiFi', but they are strictly forbidden to enter that zone. In a misfire when Ralph creates a new track for Vanellope to make things interesting for her, a desperate human player of Sugar Rush at the arcade turns the steering wheel a bit too much trying to control Vanellope in the game, who had ditched the original track to explore the new one by Ralph. 

Sugar Rush is an old game, and the human girl finds out that the only one final steering wheel available is on eBay. The owner of the arcade decides to unplug the game as the steering wheel for the game is much costlier that what the game makes in a year at the arcade. Ralph and Vanellope decide to enter into the Internet through the WiFi zone so that they can buy the steering wheel from eBay and save Sugar Rush.

I'd have loved to say that is all the movie is about, but that's not all. The first half of the movie was extremely entertaining, with some very relatable and hilarious personified depictions of what we come across on the internet while browsing like pop-ups, suggestions during search results, advertisements, 'trending' videos, and several other things. But, towards the latter half of the film, it slid into what was more a fight and insecurity about friendship. That was still fine. Towards the very end, it was just Ralph and Vanellope taking turns and competing to be sad for not being a good friend to each other. 

Those who have watched the absolutely brilliant and fun first part Wreck-It Ralph: you'll know the premise in which the theme of friendship has been used in this movie. However, it was plainly weird sentiment rather than any concrete story or plot towards the end. Even with such an interesting and promising start, and steady build up of what seemed like a nice storyline, Ralph Breaks the Internet somewhere lost its story towards the end, and held on to a single point, leaving other factors hanging. 

It was an okay film, but nowhere close to the amazing Wreck-It Ralph. So, if you are watching it after the first part, don't carry over your expectations from there!

The Pianist

Movie: The Pianist

Directed by: Roman Polanski

Written by: Ronald Harwood

Starring: Adrien Brody, Thomas Kretschmann, Frank Finlay, Maureen Lipman, Emilia Fox, Ed Stoppard, Julia Rayner, Jessica Kate Meyer

Music by: Wojciech Kilar

Running time: 150 minutes

"If you prick us, do we not bleed? 

It you tickle us, do we not laugh? 

If you poison us, do we not die? 

And if you wrong us, shall we not revenge?"

- Shylock in The Merchant of Venice

September 1939, when the German Nazis bomb Warsaw, Poland for the first time, a Polish radio station where Władysław Szpilman, the pianist, plays for the radio, is also hit by the bombings. The story progresses slowly inching towards the 1940s as the Nazis get a stronghold on Poland abusing the Polish Jews. 

The Szpilman family is forced to disgraceful treatment for being Jews. They quickly descend from being a respectul, prosperous, and peaceful family living in a decent locality to huddling in a "Jewish district" that soon turns into a hungry, desperate Warsaw ghetto, where anyone did anything to survive. As part of Operation Reinhard, Szpilman and his family are packed in an cramped train to the death camp in Treblinka in August 1942. However, a friend in the Jewish Ghetto Police recognizes Władysław, pulls him out of the crowd with the intention of saving him, and separates him from his family to his utter terror.

The Pianist is the heart-wrenching story of the sights of slaughtered Jews, unwavering grip of fear, and the good-hearted help and luck from several non-Jewish friends that Wladyslaw witnesses as he tries to live through the barbaric holocaust, waiting for the Russians, French and the English to put an end to the agony-filled years of World War II. The film tries in no way to make it like a thriller, or make its protagonist the hero. The film doesn't convert the protagonist to lead a revolution. It captures the essence of his fear, the torment, and the dreadful consciousness in the viewer that, without a miracle, not even the fittest survived. And, this is why the film hits you so close. 

The film is based on the actual memoir titled The Pianist  by Władysław Szpilman, a Polish-Jewish Holocaust survivor who later settled in Poland and continued to be a pianist and composer. 

Brody is unbelievably real on screen as Wladyslaw, with a spectacular performance that convinces you he is the hauntingly sublime personality- the pianist. The movie doesn't cover all of the holocaust, and it doesn't aim to. It focuses only, and only, on our protagonist, what he saw, what he felt, and what he did. There are no tears as you look at Brody as Wladyslaw, only a close feeling of poignant and evocative emotions that settle in your heart, slowly and slowly as you see the pianist go from a positive, optimistic man, to a desperate Jew on the run to save his life. 

I loved the film, it is a must-watch!

Whisper Of The Heart

Movie: Whisper Of The Heart (Mimi o Sumaseba)
Directed by:  Yoshifumi Kondō
Written by: Hayao Miyazaki
Music by: Yuji Nomi
Running time: 111 minutes

Country roads, take me home
To the place I belong

Fourteen year old Shizuku Tsukishima lives a blissful life, nestling comfortably in the vast public library where her father works, and burying herself over a pile of books taller than herself all through the day. A curiosity is triggered in young Shizuku when she comes to notice a common name in the due slip in every book she takes- Seiji Amasawa had read every book she picked before she had read! The excitement to meet a match as well read as herself, pushes Shizuku to ask around about Amasawa while day dreaming about how soft and knowledgeable the boy must be. A curious, vagabond cat, called by different pet names in different households, brings these two together. Shizuku meets Baron, a mysterious cat doll, when she visits Seiji's grandfather's antique store. As she gets closer to Seiji, she discovers his dream of becoming a proficient violin-maker, and he confides his plan of pursuing it in Italy. 

Shizuku is bothered by one question she asks herself: when she is just as well read, knowledgeable and ambitious as Seiji, why does she not know what to do? Shizuku had often been praised for her budding writing skills, and her charming 'gift' for poetry. She realizes that she has no forethought about her future, and is just dazzled by the everyday life as she flits around one day after another. The transformation of Shizuku, determined to make her life more purposeful, and 'test' herself, is what makes the enchanting tale.

Whisper Of The Wind is a romantic tale of self-realization of the protagonist's abilities, purpose, and dreams. It rides high on the small but vividly mesmarising world of Shizuku as she travels through her adolescene in style- with love, confidence and a vision of spectacular dreams. Whisper Of The Heart is born out of Shizuku, and she portrays herself to be a sweet yet strong person, with an understanding of the world that is beyond those of her age, and with a spirit akin to a warrior. 

On Shizuku's accomplishment, we find ours in the movie. As her father proudly and lovingly whispers to his sleeping daughter: "ah, a soldier at ease!" The emotions of the movie are something dear to all of us, having gone through a similar phase sometime in our life and it triggers fond thoughts as we take a trip into our memory lane. Our heart melts as we see the support and warmth that Shizuku's family extends to her. In a time that set rigid rules, we see an accepting, loving, and understanding family who choose to trust Shizuku rather than discern her views. 

Whisper Of The Heart is absolutely heartwarming. The musicality of this anime film is captivating, and ensues a sense of calm and peace. From the creators of Spirited Away, this is another classic, and a must-watch for all age groups! I absolutely loved it!

I saw myself in this scene, and couldn't help but break into a wide smile that was quite difficult to wipe off!

The Theory Of Everything

Movie: The Theory Of Everything

Directed by: James Marsh

Written by: Anthony McCarten

Music by: Jóhann Jóhannsson

Running time: 123 minutes

The life of Cambridge PhD student Stephen Hawking goes happy and smooth through his University days as he effortlessly excels and stumps his colleagues, and falls in love with an arts student Jane Wilde, until his muscles start failing. After attending a lecture about black holes, Stephen is pushed to think that black holes must have existed at the beginning of the Universe, and this leads him to his thesis on the beginning of the Universe and time itself for his PhD. 

One fatal day, walking across the University campus, Stephen's legs fail, and he falls flat on his face, hitting his head. Stephen is diagnosed with motor neuron disease that shall eventually, and slowly, take away from him all voluntary muscle control, and a life expectancy of two years. Shattered, Stephen puts his all into working on his thesis. But life takes a turn as Jane marries him irrespective of his progressively deteriorating condition. The film is about how the man who was given two years to live defied all expectations, and shattered all boundaries, both personally and professionally. 

Eddie Redmayne is brilliant as Stephen Hawking, slumped in his chair, making you reconsider if it really is just acting. The film is beautiful, though in some parts it lacks the effect it seeks to produce. It is an extremely good film with some great acting. It focuses more on how Stephen's personal life and care pushed him to a life more hopeful, and how it helped him excel professionally. With nothing really science-based in the movie, it in fact humorously portrays how Jane understood what her astrophysicist husband was courting all the time. 

I really enjoyed the movie. It is true that some sequences disappoint, as you expect it to make a better impact on you, but overall the movie is really nice and enjoyable!

Parasite (Gisaengchung)

Movie: Parasite (Gisaengchung)

Language: Korean

Directed by: Bong Joon Ho

Written by: Bong Joon Ho, Han Jin-won

Starring: Song Kang-ho, Lee Sun-kyun, Cho Yeo-jeong, Choi Woo-shik, Park So-dam, Chang Hyae-jin

Music by: Jung Jae-il

Running time: 132 minutes

Father Ki-taek, mother Chung-sook, son Ki-woo, and daughter Ki-jeong of the Kim family struggle to make ends meet for a regular living, with no jobs for any of them. What seems a boon when an offer comes their way to Ki-woo, to tutor the daughter of the rich Park family on the recommendation of a friend, soon turns into a string of lies. The well-rehearsed lies, and some well staged plans, lead to the whole Kim family being employed with the Park family, without the Parks knowing the connections between them. There develops a symbiotic relationship between the Parks and the Kim family, and the lives of these two families placed in disconnected worlds cross over. But, the parasites discarded by the Kims, as a part of their hatched plans to get employed, return to threaten their newfound lives, making the heart of the story. 

The movie captures the differences in privilege with a honesty that is haunting. The dependence, and the troubles born out of truth and lie is almost parasitic. Privilege till the end remains a dream for the Kims. Their attempts to be employed without lying fail. But when they lie to live, the lies bury them deeper. The details in the film are intricate and well-knit, pushing you to a space of familiarity, and slight discomfort on seeing blank truth, at the same time. 

Parasite is a brilliant film. The Korean drama feels extremely true to its title, and it is so real that it keeps you at the edge till the very end. The story is simple, but the sequences are beautifully placed that it leaves you guessing all the time. You know some things would happen as you watch the movie, and they do- but never at the moment that you think they would happen. The film is bounty with twists and turns, and leaves you high on expectations at some points only to hit you with that unexpected tangent of events.  

Parasite refuses to fit into a pre-decided confinement of a single genre. It is thrilling to the point that your brain spins with the score of possibilities, and it is also with consistent comedy, leaving you at the end with a feeling of a roller-coaster ride I could bet you haven't been on before. 

Inside Out

Movie: Inside Out

Directed by: Pete Docter, Ronnie del Carmen

Written by: Meg LeFauve, Josh Cooley, Pete Docter

Running time: 94 minutes

Eleven-year old Riley and her parents move from their home in Minnesota and shift to San Francisco when Riley's father gets a new job there. Riley is controlled, like any of us, by her emotions and their memories. Joy, Anger, Sadness, Disgust and Fear, work around tirelessly in Riley's brain to try and ensure that Riley has a "happy day". And, when they learn that the family is moving, they struggle to keep up Riley happy. 

Joy, the one responsible to make Riley feel happy, is a little too ambitious in the beginning, wanting all and most memories to be joyful. Joy puts down Sadness and keeps her at bay from coming to Riley. However, this lands them in trouble, as Joy and Sadness get sucked out of Brain Headquarters in a mishap, and land in the mazes of long term memory- far, far away from the active brain HQ. Now, with them removed, Riley can feel neither sadness nor joy, and her life is solely controlled by fear, disgust and anger, who though function with good intentions cannot produce the results that Joy or Sadness can. With the absence of Joy and Sadness, Riley's core memories and islands of personality such as Family Island, Friendship Island, Goof-ball Island, Honesty Island start falling apart. 

Left alone with Sadness, Joy comes to the shocking realisation that sometimes allowing someone to feel sad is what lets them be joyful later. She understands the importance of not neglecting any emotion. On an adventurous expedition back to the Headquarters, Joy and Sadness work together, and finally reach on time to save Riley from her thoughts of running away from home. Joy gives Sadness a free hand over Riley to set things alright, and to get back happiness in her. And, since then, Riley's memories are not overpowered by just Joy, but lets in other emotions, and has a beautiful mix of all.

One of the most brilliant movies ever, teeming with innovation and a fresh perspective on something that all of us know and experience every day. The importance and necessity to balance all emotions is something that we all struggle to do even as we grow up. It made me teary-eyed, and melted my heart. It is one of the most refreshing, thought-provoking, inventive feel-good film I've watched. The screenplay and the sequencing is brilliant, and the visuals and animation needs no more say than "Disney-Pixar".

A beautiful, wonderful film that everyone needs to watch!

Whiplash

Movie: Whiplash
Directed by: Damien Chazelle
Written by: Damien Chazelle
Starring: Miles Teller, J. K. Simmons, Paul Reiser, Melissa Benoist
Music by: Justin Hurwitz
Running time: 106 minutes

Whiplash. How it left me feeling, as the credits rolled in the end, can be accurately summed up in just two words: absolutely exhilarated.

Terence Fletcher is a jazz instructor and Andrew Neiman is a young, ambitious jazz drummer. The tension between Terence Fletcher's undying urge to push people's limits and Andrew Neiman's daunting attitude, that involves both condescending arrogance and impeccable confidence, to prove he is capable of taking Fletcher's push and much more, makes the crux of the movie.

In truth, there's nothing pleasant about most of the scenes in the movie. I feel the scenes can be best described as raw. Neiman's drive to become 'one of the greats', and seeing him being extremely unforgiving and hard on himself to try and earn credit from Fletcher, would leave you wondering how much farther one could go to prove oneself. Fletcher's brash tone stays intact throughout the movie. And, the clash of these two minds just seems like a bloody warfare.

Even scenes that by normal circumstances one would consider as exaggerated (like when Andrew meets with a car accident but still drags himself to stage all bloody and hurt to perform in a show where he has "earned his part", or the general excessive abusing of Fletcher) fit in magically well with the movie, and just adds to the rawness that the film oozes with in every shot. Be it the passion-driven jazz drumming, the intensity of Andrew Neiman's insane dedication, or Terence Fletcher's ruthless passion towards perfection, by pushing his students 'beyond what is expected' through his aggressive swearing that both motivates and demoralizes them, not one scene feels overdone, and it ensures that the eyes do not wander.

The music track is great. It has a gravity that can hold the attention, even of those illiterate to jazz or western music (like me). The music is one of the primary expressions in the film, and it contributes to the story as much, if not more, as the script and acting, to the varying emotions in the film. The actors have clearly done justice to the script and the tone of the film. Every main and side role has displayed the passion that the story-line commands. The director's slight and just-about-adequate focus on Andrew's love interest, and the relationship he shares with his father, gives the movie that essential tinge of the lesson of empathy without diluting the passion.

Overall, the movie was an intense display of powerful feelings that guide the way to success. It held my focus till the last individual beat of the drum, after which it let me sit still for a while, exhilarated.

Freaky Friday

Movie: Freaky Friday

Genre: Drama, Comedy

Directed by: Mark Waters

Produced by: Andrew Gunn

Based on: Freaky Friday by Mary Rodgers

Music by: Rolfe Kent

Anna, a normal teen with aspirations to take her rock band to great levels, always gets into a fight with her mom, Tess Coleman, a single-mother who thinks Anna’s band is just irritating noise. Anna and her mother differ in everything- from music to hairstyle and fashion to studies. Anna’s mom plans to marry a man named Ryan, whom Anna doesn’t get along with at all. Also, Anna’s band get the chance to participate in the upcoming band auditions, but Tess doesn’t allow her. On top of all this, Anna has an irritating little brother whom she can’t put up with. And the result: Anna and Tess, her mom, get into a big row.  

They all go to a Chinese restaurant, and there the whole issue bursts out, and mom and daughter get into serious arguing with a lot of “you are ruining my life” dialogues from Anna. A Chinese woman sees this, and gives them both the fortune cookies. When they eat it, and they both alone feel an earthquake. The argument ends there, and they are both happy to be safe. They go back home after dinner.

In the morning, Tess finds out that she has gone into Anna’s body, and Anna in hers! They get all miserable at the thought, but agree to keep it between themselves. So, to look like themselves, Anna goes to office, while Tess goes to school. She, for the first time realizes the truth of Anna’s complaints when Mr. Bates, the English teacher, gives her an “F” grade, calling it subjective grading, even when Tess answers his questions correctly. She also finds that Anna is true, more than ever, calling her ex-best friend, mean and horrible, when the girl passes her a note during examination, and then claims that Anna copied from her. But, Jake, a boy Anna fancies but Tess doesn’t have a good impression on, knows the truth, and helps Tess finish the exam paper. Her impression on Jake changes. She also understands why her daughter always ended up in detentions.

Meanwhile, Anna has all the fun time. She enjoys spending with her mom’s platinum credit card, and makes Tess's form look all trendy. She takes up her mom’s role in office, as a physiatrist, and attends to her patients, as well as possible. She understands that she can never be like her mom, and also understands the pressure her mom is usually under. Anna even attends Harry, her little brother’s, parent teacher meet. There, she sees an essay written by Harry on how his sister is the best in the world. She is bowled over by the genuine feelings of his, and doesn’t see him as irritating anymore.

When Anna and Tess finally meet, after completing each other’s respective jobs, they go back to the Chinese restaurant, and meet the old lady’s daughter demanding her to change them back. But, the old lady’s daughter apologizes to them, and tells them that there is no other way than to make the note inside the fortune cookie come true- to understand each other and do a selfless act.

Nothing happens, and Anna feels certain that she’s going to be struck in Tess’s body forever. They try different things but they go in vain.  Finally the day of Tess’s marriage to Ryan arrives, and that same day Anna’s band have their auditions. Anna’s friends and co-artists in the band, take Tess away, thinking she is Anna, for the auditions, after they plead Ryan to allow them. Anna, who is Tess’s form, follows them after Ryan asks his to-be wife to go and cheer her daughter. On stage, Tess is not able to play the guitar or give a solo because she doesn’t know to. But her friends are confused as to why she wasn’t doing it. Anna comes to the rescue, and plays on her guitar offstage, while Tess mimes on the stage. Tess realizes that it isn’t all just noise, as she had imagined it to be, and it takes a lot more to go stand up on the stage and perform. They  get through the auditions, and both mom and daughter are thrilled at the victory.

They go back to the marriage hall. There, Tess asks Anna to tell Ryan that they ought to postpone the marriage, since she doesn’t want her daughter to marry the man! But, Anna goes up, brings everyone to attentions, and gives an emotional speech praising Ryan as the special man who made Tess and the family happier, instead of telling him to postpone the marriage. That selfless action of love fulfills the note in the fortune cookie, and Anna and Tess swap back to their respective bodies.

Tess and Ryan marry. All ends happily!

The movie was fantastic! I completely loved it! The characters are so cool, and the acting was excellent! The whole movie was very creative! My favourite characters are Tess and Anna. I especially loved the parts when each realized they couldn't be the other, and yet started appreciating each other. The parts when Anna tries to treat the patients, and Tess tries to act like her teenage daughter, which she completely fails to do, is hilarious!

It was a movie worth watching!

21 Movies That You Can Watch As A Family

Here is a list of 21 movies that you can watch as a family. Click the movie name to see the review. Happy watching!

1. UP
2. ET- The Extra Terrestrial
3. Mary Poppins
4. How To Train Your Dragon-2
5. Frozen
6. Chicken Run
7. The Incredibles
8. Tangled
9. The Muppets
10. Hugo
11. Monsters Inc.
12. Ratatouille
13. Turbo
14. Akeelah and the Bee
15. Bridge To Terabithia
16. Puss In Boots
17. Rango
18. Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
19. Elf
20. Big Hero 6
21. Remember the Titans

Remember The Titans

Movie: Remember The Titans

Genre: Drama

Directed by: Boaz Yakin

Produced by: Jerry Bruckheimer

Written by: Gregory Allen Howard

Music by: Trevor Rabin

Coach Boone, a black, gets appointed as the Head Coach of football for the Titans, replacing Coach Yoast, a white. Yoast gets pushed down as Assistant Head Coach, and feels insulted. He decides to quit, and go to another school where he is offered the position of Head Coach. But, the white boys in Titans refuse to play for Boone, especially if Yoast is quitting. So, Yoast stays as Assistant. Coach Boone takes them all on a training camp. When asked to get into the buses, all the whites go into one, and the blacks into the other. Seeing this, Coach Boone calls everybody out again, and mixes them according to their positions- offence and defense. So, all boys playing offence end up in a bus, and the defense players in the other. That’s the first step Boone takes in uniting them.

At the camp, they initially fight, but later understand each other, and become great friends! They stop seeing each other by colour, and rather by football playing standards. Gerry Bertier, a white, and Julius Campbell, a black, become such thick friends that nothing tears them apart! They all survive Boone’s tough training, and get into the team of Titans.

The training ends successfully, and they come back- blacks and whites together- happily chatting away and singing. But, they are shocked to see the whites protesting against the blacks back at their place. They stick together, and keep their friendship, irrespective of the feelings of their family and friends.

On the football side, they beat every team against them in all matches, having a string of victories to be proud of. The people, whites and blacks, learn from the friendship of the team, and start accepting the concept of living without seeing colour. The Titans make it to the state championship and win it, even though the referee plays it unfair! This makes the whole town look up to them. There are parties organised, and they completely celebrate their win. But at that time, Gerry meets with an accident, and gets paralysed waist down. This brings gloom to the whole team. They don’t know what to do without their captain and best player.

The big day of the final championship match of the season arrives! They go on to the pitch with determination, but do very badly in the first half. They buck up, convincing themselves that they ought to do it for their coaches, for the people, for Titans, and especially for Gerry, who is seeing the game from his hospital room! This makes them play real well, and they win the championship. They make everybody around them proud! They show the world that the whites and blacks can unite, and win!

The movie is wonderful! The part I liked the best is during their training camp. The way they become so close from being enemies, is so good! I loved it. My most favourite characters were Gerry, Sheryl, Julius, Ronnie Bass(Sunshine) and Petey! They are cool.

The movie was really very good to see.

Big Hero 6

Movie: Big Hero 6

Genre: Fantasy, Sci-fi, Animation

Directed by: Chris Williams

Produced by: Roy Conli

Based On: Big Hero 6 by Steven T. Seagle

Music by: Henry Jackman

Hiro Hamada, a fourteen year old and an expert robot builder, gets crazy about “bot fights”, fighting with robots. His brother, Tadashi Hamada, takes him to the Nerd Laboratory in the University, and shows the work of his nerd friends. Hiro gets stunned by the projects that Tadashi’s friends were working on. Finally, Tadashi shows Hiro the project he has been working on. He introduces Baymax, the healthcare robot, who can identify emotions, pains and feelings, and keep people away from danger. Hiro loves all these projects!

Hiro gets convinced that he somehow has to enter the University, and asks his brother the procedure. Tadashi explains to Hiro that to join the University, he would have to create something really awesome and display it in the exhibition while Callaghan is there.

Hiro thinks he can easily do that, but his mind is dry of ideas. Tadashi helps his brother, at that point, by literally “shaking him up” and asking him to “see in a new angle”. Just then, Hiro gets a brilliant idea. Tadashi and his friends also help Hiro gain confidence and prepare him to go on stage. The big day arrives. Hiro goes up on stage and presents his idea about “microbots”, tiny robots that work through the controller’s thoughts.

Hiro’s idea becomes a huge hit, and a man named Krei pushes Hiro to sell it to him. But Hiro refuses. He gets selected to go to the University. As they all celebrate, a fire breaks in when Callaghan is still in. Tadashi rushes in to save him, but the whole thing bursts into flames. People mourn for Tadashi and Professor.

Hiro gets depressed, and doesn’t go to the University even after the classes start. One day, while he takes he accidentally drops something on his toe, Baymax emerges from Tadashi’s room after hearing a cry of pain! Baymax attends to Hiro, and tries to improve his emotional status. While all this happens, Hiro finds out that somebody is misusing the microbots! Hiro and Baymax find out that a masked man is doing so!

Tadashi’s friends join Hiro to catch the man. They learn, to their shock, that it is Callaghan, the man whom they thought was dead!

Together, Hiro and Baymax, along with Tadashi’s friends from Nerd lab, catch Callaghan, find out the cause and solve the problem! They become the Big Hero 6!

I loved the movie! It was F-A-N-T-A-S-T-I-C! Actually, none of the characters are evil, and there is no real villain! The characters are totally lovable, and huggable! I loved Baymax, Fred(one of Tadashi’s friends), Tadashi and of course Hiro. They are all cool. The climax was really awesome.

Big Hero 6 is a movie that is a must-watch!

Elf

Movie: Elf

Genre: Fantasy, Comedy

Directed by: Jon Favreau

Produced by: Jon Berg, Todd Komarnicki and Shauna Robertson

Story by: David Berenbaum

Music by: John Debney

Buddy, as a baby, gets into Santa Claus’s gift bag. Santa, carries this baby off to the North Pole, and Buddy grows among Santa’s elves. One day, after he has grown to be an adult, he realizes that he is a human and not an elf! So, he comes to New York in search of his real father, Walter Hobbs. He finds his father in the Empire State Building. His father is not sure about their relationship, and thus, takes him to a doctor for DNA verification.

It gets confirmed that Buddy is indeed Hobb’s son. Buddy moves into Hobb’s home, and wins the appeal of his half-brother Michael by defeating Michael’s bullies. But he doesn’t act his age, and it becomes a problem as he begins to go around.

He makes friends with a girl called Jovie, who works in the toy shop. There, he is shocked to find out that the children are tricked by a fake Santa Claus, and that it is not the Santa Claus he knows! So, he picks up a fight after pulling of the fake Santa Claus’s beard. Finally, he is chucked out of this place.

He asks his friend, Jovie, out, and they enjoy their outing. He interrupts his dad in a meeting with an author, and disrupts the business by mistaking the author, who is short, for an elf. The author gets angry, and leaves. Exasperated, Hobbs asks his son to get out of his life, and tells him that he doesn’t care anything for Buddy. So, Buddy runs away, after leaving a note of apology. As he wanders, he catches sight of Santa’s sleigh crashing, because the last of Christmas spirit had gone off. He tries to fix it, but it doesn’t work.

Meanwhile, Michael sees the note at home, and runs to his father, who is half-way in a meeting, to tell him the sad news of Buddy leaving. Hobbs realizes his mistake, and leaves the meeting to search for Buddy, even though it costs him his job. They locate Buddy, and understand what he is trying to do. Michael helps Santa by taking Santa’s book to the media, and making everybody believe in Christmas.

Jovie, Buddy’s girl, overcomes her shyness by singing a Christmas song, and spreading the Christmas cheer. The spirit of Christmas increases and Santa’s sleigh starts flying again. But it doesn’t have enough spirit to fly completely. Only when Walter Hobbs starts believing, and joins the song, the spirit makes Santa’s sleigh fly right into the sky.

Everything ends happily.

The movie was very funny. I don't know what else to say about it!

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang

Movie: Chitty Chitty Bang Bang

Genre: Fantasy, Musical

Directed by: Ken Hughes

Produced by: Albert R. Broccoli

Based On: Ian Fleming’s “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang: The Magical Car”

Music by: Robert B. Sherman and Richard M. Sherman

Jemima and Jeremy Potts, the kids of the inventor Caractacus Potts, disagree with Mr. Coggins’ idea of selling an old race car that they had come to love playing on. They make Mr. Coggins promise that he wouldn’t give it away until they come back after asking their father.

As they run back to their house, they almost nearly dash into a car driven by whom they came to know as Truly. Truly gets to know that Mr. Potts doesn’t care about sending the children to school. She drops the children in their house and is determined to have a conversation with Mr. Potts about the children. But Potts is far too busy and sees her as a nuisance. When she tells him that his children would have almost been run over by her car, and that he should teach them to go to school, he gets angry and asks her to leave the place immediately. Outside, her car doesn’t start, and he starts it up for her. They both part in a not-very-friendly manner.

Mr. Potts and his two children go to Mr. Scrumptious to sell Potts' “Toot Sweets” or sweets that whistle. There, he gets to find out that Truly is Scrumptious’ daughter! She gains him an interview with her father and they both together introduce the “Toot Sweets”. But Edison, their dog, intrudes, and spoils everything.

Mr. Potts then goes to the fair to use one of his inventions to earn money. But when his invention goes amiss, he runs to a dance-show and earns some money. With the money, he gets the car that Jemima and Jeremy had been asking him. He converts this car into a shiny, usable one, and they all go on a picnic. The three name the car Chitty Chitty Bang Bang!

On the way, they meet Truly Scrumptious again. Her car run into the water and stops. So, she accompanies them to the picnic when the children insist. There, they have a lot of fun. The children ask their father to tell them a story.

He starts telling them a story about pirates, castles, children and more, where Chitty Chitty Bang Bang flies in the air, and floats in water taking Jeremy, Jemima, Truly, Grandpa Potts and himself on an amazing adventure!

Finally, the story ends happily. On reaching home, he finds Scrumptious playing with Grandpa Potts. He signs the contract for “Toot Sweets” and becomes rich! He marries Truly Scrumptious and lives happily ever after!

I loved the movie completely! The songs were so nice, and so were the characters. My most favourite one was Mr. Potts, and following him was Grandpa Potts! I loved all the characters.

Just like for Mary Poppins, I feel it is under the must-watch-without-fail category!!

Rango

Movie: Rango

Genre: Fantasy, Animation

Directed by: Gore Verbinski

Produced by: Gore Verbinski, Graham King and John B. Carls

Based On: John Logan and Gore Verbinski

Music by: James Ward Byrkit

Rango is crazy pet chameleon who gets pushed into the desert after his “home” breaks. He meets another animal that directs Rango to the city of Dirt for water. Rango goes there and becomes the sheriff. People start believing in him to bring water to the town. He tries various things, but does not succeed. He forms a team and they all go in search of water. They chase a group of animals taking a water can, defeat them, but find that there is no water in the water tank. They come back disappointed.

That is all I saw. I didn’t sit back to watch the full movie. For some reason, I totally didn’t like the movie. The animation and the effects were all good, but… I didn’t like the story or the characters.

Puss In Boots

Movie: Puss In Boots

Genre: Fantasy, Animation

Directed by: Chris Miller

Produced by: Latifa Ouaou and Joe M. Aguilar

Based On: Brian Lynch

Music by: Henry Jackman

Puss in Boots, the talking cat, is busy hiding as he is labelled “wanted” in his home, San Ricardo. The police are searching for him, but he manages to stay hidden. Puss goes behind the magical beans which is in the possession of the cruel Jack and Jill. While he almost takes the magical beans, he meets a competitor- Kitty Softpaws- who is extremely swift and sly.

They start fighting, and both end up not taking the magical beans. Kitty Softpaws leads Puss to Puss’s old friend who betrayed him- Humpty Dumpty. Even after a lot of arguments, Puss refuses to partner with Humpty to steal the beans.  

Kitty Softpaws tries convincing Puss, on her own, but Puss only goes back to the past, again and again. Puss goes on to tell Kitty about how close Humpty and he had been, and how Humpty had betrayed him and lured him into stealing from the bank of San Ricardo! Just then, Humpty appears and apologizes to Puss, begging him to give another chance. Puss agrees saying that if they do find the golden eggs on top of the beanstalk, he would like to repay the people of San Ricardo.

They agree, and also successfully steal the beans from Jack and Jill. They sow the beans and the legendary beanstalk takes them to the Giant’s castle. They find the golden goose and the golden eggs. They bring the golden goose back to San Ricardo.

Back in San Ricardo, Puss is shocked to find that Humpty had arranged for the arrest of Puss. He also gets to know that Kitty softpaws, Jack and Jill and everybody else that he met were working for Humpty! He is thrown into the jail in San Ricardo. From his jail-mate Andy Beanstalk, the original Jack from the “Jack And The Beanstalk”, he finds out that the Great Terror is the mother of the golden goose! Puss breaks free from the jail with the help of Kitty Softpaws, who comes back to save him. He reaches out to Humpty, brings out the good in him, and they unite to restore the golden goose back to its mother. But it is too late, and the Great Terror comes to San Ricardo. They take the goose out of San Ricardo to prevent damage and give the golden goose to the Great Terror. The golden goose is sent off safely, but Humpty Dumpty falls from the bridge that breaks, and dies. The police still search for Puss, but Puss becomes the hero of San Ricardo!

He is still on the run but with a partner- Puss In Boots and Kitty Softpaws!

The movie is superb, especially the climax! I love all the characters. It was a good watch!