It's safe to say I'm seeing a lot of movies these days that would be pretty far off my radar if my 5 year old grandson wasn't my movie buddy.
At an hour and 25 minutes, WONDER PARK is just about the perfect length for him and he loved it, asking my wife to take him again a couple weeks later for a second viewing.
The commercials set the movie up as a lighthearted adventure about a bunch of talking animals that bring an abandoned amusement park back to life.
I was pretty surprised to be sitting next to my grandson when the film actually turned out to be about some pretty adult emotions.
Young June has a wild imagination, spending her days building a massive model of an Amusement park that sprawls across every inch of her home.
Her Mom (Jennifer Garner) and Dad (Matthew Broderick) are huge supporters. But early in the film, you hear whispered phone calls and emotional discussions in the other room and Mom is driven away for Cancer treatments, leaving June wondering when (and if) she'll come back.
Disney famously dealt with death (just think about Bambi's Mom) in their films, but it never felt quite as real as it does here. June sinks into a depression with her Mom at the hospital and my little buddy kept looking at me like "when are the singing animals coming on?", but never in a desperate way. He's a pretty mature 5, but I'd worry about taking younger children to navigate some of the issues here.
Thankfully, June does wonder into the forest and find a massive Wonder World park, populated with some well voiced, fun animal characters that my buddy LOVED.
Kenan Thompson (SNL) is Gus, Mila Kunis is Greta, Ken Jeong is Cooper and Norbert Leo Butz is terrific as Peanut.
At one point, an army of zombie stuffed animals is pursuing June and her animal friends through the park like some animated version of "The Walking Dead".
LOL, are we really sure this is a kid's movie?
My grandson really loved it, holding onto me at several parts when it got a little scary, but there was always a solid laugh or some physical comedy right around the corner.
With some nice messaging about the power of imagination, the love of family and friendship, WONDER PARK is enjoyable for adults and non-sensitive children alike.
Thumbs up from the kid and a B- from me.
Comments