Movie #732 ........................."Paranorman"

Movie #732 "Paranorman" -- I watched this because 1) it is nominated for an Academy Award for best animated picture, and 2) I am a huge fan of Coraline, which I ended up liking a tad better, the story, that is (same people did both films. This one is filmed as well as the other, just the story didn't grab me very much, and it was a bit tooooooo long. The characters are cute, esp. the dead grandma (voice of Elaine Stritch), and there were some great funny moments, but not enough story to make this long of a film to me. And if I were a parent, I'd be leery about letting my kids watch this one --- I kept thinking why was this film made. And here's what I came up with. The film makers of this one wanted to watch 10-14 year old, mostly boys, scream in the movie theatre. By that age, they think they've seen it all in films, right? and then they watch this and the film is set up to make the audience jump out of their seats occasionally --- it's very successful that way.........it's all in good fun, but if I had watched the film at that age, I wouldn't be able to sleep some nights afterward. I watched a funny movie entitled "Canterville Ghost" when I was about 11 and I was convinced there were ghosts in my closet for years! So, parents, you've been warned. I would rate it 3.8 out of 5 stars ParaNorman 2012 PG 96 minutes When an army of zombies invades a small town, it's up to an odd local boy with a knack for communicating with the dead to save the day. But judgmental adults prove to be even more formidable adversaries. Cast:Kodi Smit-McPhee, Anna Kendrick, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Tucker Albrizzi, Casey Affleck, Leslie Mann, Jeff Garlin, Elaine Stritch, Bernard Hill, Jodelle Ferland, Tempestt Bledsoe, Alex Borstein, John Goodman Genre:Family Animation, Family Adventures, Family Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Children & Family