Stars (vocally) Ty Burrell, Max Charles, Ariel Winter with Stephan Colbert, Leslie Mann, Alison Janney, Stanley Tucci, Patrick Warburton and Mel Brooks Directed by Rob Minkoff I have a liking for the PDI/DreamWorks animated features, just a smidgen more than for the Pixar/Disney features. PDI/DreamWorks tend to take more chances and they don’t necessarily aim for that all rounded-family genre, but for the slightly more mature, riskier market of the older teens / adults who don’t care that much for animated features. Just look at their output under DreamWorks starting with Antz and Shrek to Over The Hedge, Kung-Fu Panda, Megamind and their last - and actually impressively amazing - Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted (so much better than the first two, but works best if you know the characters). Keep in mind that now every DreamWorks animated feature was done with PDI (Pacific Data Images) as DreamWorks has a secondary animation unit simply known as Dreamworks Animation. They did the last three features, Rise of The Guardians, Turbo and The Croods as well as the upcoming How To Train Your Dragon 2. They also had a short accompanying this feature, Almost Home. It is a sort-of extended teaser for their upcoming feature, Home. The two companies, working in tandem, hence the current output of two animated features a year as opposed to Pixar’s one a year. With Mr. Peabody and Sherman, this might be the first time DreamWorks has tackled a property that has previous existed as a cartoon series, one that might be considered beloved by a generation. I remember watching one or two shorts a long time ago in the age of black and white TV, and thought it was fun to have a dog who was so smart, and could travel through time. The movie itself does well to explain the characters and the unique set-up, and from what I’ve read elsewhere, the movie itself is part remake and part tribute to the original cartoon series. Particularly with the origin of the characters and the situation they find themselves in, wherein Mr Peabody struggles with being a good and protective father to Sherman, the threat of losing his son hanging over him. Ultimately, it becomes a father/son movie with some time traveling hijinks. The time travelling escapades are fun but, depending on your mood, can be hit or miss. And like with the original cartoon, they’re also a little educational and often punny. Ultimately, and by the third act, it’s all about the consequence of ones actions, which - given the nature of the story and movie, lends itself to some decent excitement. The design and animation work is truly impressive with a very immersive 3D presentation, especially with travelling the time vortex and the sword fights early on in the film. The cinematography, as advised by Guillermo Navarro, is a gorgeous mix of colours and light. The music by Danny Elfman is fun, frothy and accompanies the movie well. Personally, I can;t find fault with the movie as a whole, it really is my kind of movie. I love the story and the characters. I didn’t catch every ‘guest star voice’ (sure as heck missed Mel Brooks as Albert Einstein), and felt that Ty Burrell was good as Mr. Peabody while Max Charles didn’t grate as Sherman, playing off nicely against Ariel Winters as Penny. So, my rating is biased. You may deduct one star from the rating to suit your needs. Rating: ****
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