Friday, March 16, 2018

Trolls (2016)



Number Rolled: 65
Movie Name/Year: Trolls (2016)
Tagline: Find your happy place.
Genre: Animation, Adventure, Comedy
Length: 92 minutes
Rating: PG
Production Companies: DreamWorks Animation
Producer: Jonathan Aibel, Glenn Berger, Holly Edwards, Dannie Festa, Gina Shay
Director: Mike Mitchell, Walt Dohrn
Writer: Jonathan Aibel, Glenn Berger, Erica Rivinoja, Thomas Dam
Actors: Anna Kendrick, Justin Timberlake, Zooey Deschanel, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Christine Baranski, Russell Brand, Gwen Stefani, John Cleese, James Corden, Jeffrey Tambor, Ron Funches, Grace Helbig

Blurb from Netflix: When their fellow Trolls are captured by hungry Bergens, upbeat Princess Poppy and her grouchy pal Branch embark on the adventure of a lifetime.


Selina’s Point of View:
At first, I thought this was just a film that didn’t have much to offer adults but would be cute for kids. The beginning had a lot of singing and bright colors. It wasn’t all that interesting, but it was geared toward the younger kids, so it didn’t have to be interesting to me. I mean, if a film is made to keep kids relaxed and entertained – there’s nothing wrong with that.

As I continued watching, though, it got super creepy.

Clearly, I don’t mean anything like American Horror Story (2011-)… I don’t mean horror-esk. I mean creepy like, a clown with a dirty white windowless van.


The creepy parts didn’t last long, but it was enough for me to side-eye the film and wonder who green lit that part of the story – or at least the visualization of it. It’s not even stuff that should alter the MPAA rating, either. It’s just… not the kind of thing one would want to see in a movie geared toward little kids. At least, in my opinion.

Without giving out spoilers, it’s kind of hard to explain, but the feeling is what was important.

The ending was better than the rest of the film… but even that didn’t really save it for me.


Cat’s Point of View:
There’s a lot of nostalgia going around this week. 

I’ll be honest, though, and admit that while I remember the crazy-haired troll toys from the 80’s and such, I was never the biggest fan. I don’t know why. The little ugly yet adorable critters just didn’t do it for me. As you can imagine, when Trolls was released, I wasn’t exactly doing cartwheels on my way to watch it. My daughter, on the other hand, couldn’t wait to see the movie.

At this point, she’s already watched this film two or three times, and opted not to watch it with me this time. Even so, it’s earned her decided stamp of approval.


I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised with how much I enjoyed this movie. No matter how much I was inclined to emulate the blue pessimist troll named Branch, Trolls sang and danced its way into my heart.

There’s great messages underlying all the crazy hair shenanigans. Namely, you don’t need an external source to be happy – it comes from within.

The tunes are catchy, and overall Trolls offers a good time that resonates with all ages. It won me over and I wouldn’t have any problems recommending the movie. In fact, with Easter approaching, the bright colors fit right in!


Languages
Speech Available: English, Spanish
Subtitles Available: English, Spanish

Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score – 73%
Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score – 68%
Metascore – 56/100
Metacritic User Score – 7.0/10
IMDB Score – 6.5/10

Trust the Dice: Selina’s Rating2/5
Trust the Dice: Cat’s Rating 4/5

P.S. There’s a short mid-credit scene.

Movie Trailer:

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