10 Children’s Movies Not To Miss This Year

Summer is almost upon us, and this year, it is bringing with it an impressive slate of children’s movies that will take us right through to Christmas. Children’s movies are tricky endeavours but, when well executed, they can be glorious, shining beacons of first-class story-telling. The very best are those that engage the imaginations of the young, while entertaining the fully grown - and the remainder of 2015 certainly promises to deliver a range of those. The release schedule features live action, animation and combinations of the two. We can look forward to action, adventure, science-fiction, fantasy and, above all, lots and lots of comedy. There will be new characters and familiar faces in sequels, spin-offs and entirely original stories. Will any of these movies join the ranks of past classics and runaway successes? We’ll have to wait and see – but, in the meantime, here is a preview of the children’s movies headed our way between now and the end of the year. Jurassic World (June 12th, 2015) Simply put, Jurassic World is one of the most anticipated films of the year, in any category. Characterised as a direct sequel to 1993’s Jurassic Park (instantly rendering The Lost World and Jurassic Park 3 as mere spin-offs), director Colin Trevorrow has repeatedly stated his desire to fully recapture the stunning spirit of that first movie. With that in mind, the plot links straight to the events that unfolded in the first place, taking us back to the same site, 22 years later. Since the events of Jurassic Park, Isla Nubar has been successfully transformed into everything John Hammond (Jurassic Park’s Richard Attenborough) initially dreamed of – a dinosaur theme park tourist resort with cutting edge technology and state of the art facilities. The park’s operations manager, Claire Dearing (Bryce Dallas Howard) oversees the creation of a giant, hybrid dinosaur, known as Indominus Rex, and when it goes on the rampage during the week that her young nephews are visiting, she must team with park staff to salvage the situation and save lives. Also starring Chris Pratt, Vincent D’Onofrio, Jake Johnson, Irrfan Khan and B.D. Wong, Jurassic World is the first of a broad range of movies expected in cinemas that revisit popular stories from the past, and are made by true fans of the original. Just as JJ Abrams will deliver his Star Wars: The Force Awakens, so Colin Trevorrow has created his entry into a franchise that helped define his formative years, as much as the formative years of those in the audience. In doing so, Jurassic World will hopefully bring that sense of wonder to the younger viewers, too. Inside Out (June 19th, 2015) The next movie from Pixar centres on a young girl named Riley, who is forced to move from her home in the Midwest and live in San Francisco for her father’s job. We meet Riley’s emotions – Joy, Fear, Anger, Disgust and Sadness – who are characters in themselves, guiding Riley from their Headquarters in her mind. When Sadness and Joy get lost, Anger, Fear and Disgust are left at the controls, and cause chaos and mayhem while Sadness and Joy try to find their way back to HQ. For a Pixar movie, the plot of Inside Out is fairly high concept. Telling a story about the emotional life of a young character by turning emotions into characters themselves is bold, original and challenging to say the least – all of which makes this a very exciting prospect to look forward to. In addition to the obvious advantages of effective comedy and world-class animation, its appeal lies in the fact that it addresses the idea of emotional intelligence – something that is of the greatest importance to growing children, and yet is still rarely discussed openly. Directed by Pete Docter (Up, Monster’s Inc) and Ronaldo Del Carmen (Freakazoid!), Inside Out boasts a script written by Docter, Meg LeFauvre (now writing Captain Marvel) and Josh Cooley (co-director on Toy Story 4). It stars the voice talents of Amy Poehler, Phyllis Smith, Bill Hader, Lewis Black, Mindy Kaling, Diane Lane, Kyle MacLachlan and John Ratzenberger. Minions (July 10th, 2015) At long last, everyone’s favourite little helpers are getting their very own big-screen story, with this spin-off from the smash hit Despicable Me franchise. This is essentially an origin tale for Gru’s beloved support team, who must face great challenges and overcome intimidating obstacles throughout history in order to find their perfect boss. Before there was Gru, there was, apparently, Scarlet Overkill – voiced by Academy Award winner Sandra Bullock. This villainous criminal mastermind has a cunning plan that will take the dedicated Minions all the way to England, and to the presence of Queen Elizabeth II. While the Minions have always been a fan favourite – generating their own range of short films online – there was initially concern that this project might fall foul of the age-old spin-off problem, in which we find supporting characters are unable to sustain their own stories. Preview footage quickly allayed those fears, however, promising a rich, well-thought out plot for these perennially optimistic, helpful little assistants. The film also features the voices of Pierre Coffin, Jon Hamm, Michael Keaton, Allison Janney and Steve Coogan. Pixels (July 24th, 2015) After NASA launches a capsule into space in 1982, containing examples of Earth culture of the time, aliens take the enclosed snippets of classic arcade games to be a declaration of war - using those video games as models to mount a range of assaults on the planet. The President (Kevin James) enlists the help of a rag-tag group of retrogamers to combat the threat. Starring Adam Sandler, Josh Gad, Peter Dinklage, Michelle Monaghan, Brian Cox, Ashley Benson and Jane Krakowski, Pixels combines computer animation with live action to create a comedic story of unexpected heroes and necessary teamwork. Appearing to be a classic tale of ‘underdogs’ rising to the occasion, Pixels is based upon a 2010 animated short of the same name, made by Patrick Jean. It has Chris Columbus (Percy Jackson & The Lightning Thief) at the helm, and a script by Timothy Dowling (This Means War), Tim Herlihy (Saturday Night Live), and Adam Sandler. Hotel Transylvania 2 (September 25th, 2015) This sequel to Hotel Transylvania sees Count Dracula’s holiday establishment open to human guests, while his vampire daughter now has a human partner, named Johnny, and an infant son. Concerned about an apparent lack of vampiric tendencies in the child, Dracula sets about trying to train him. The premise sets the stage for plenty of familial tensions, laced with laughs, as generations of the Dracula clan inevitably face off against one another in protest at perceived interference. This is the second children’s movie of the year from Adam Sandler and Kevin James, and also stars Andy Samberg, Selena Gomez, Steve Buscemi, David Spade, Keegan Michael Key and Mel Brooks. Unlike Pixels, however, Hotel Transylvania 2 will be largely trading on the audience goodwill generated by the first film, which was a runaway hit when it was released in 2012. Original director Genndy Tartakovsky returns to the helm for this sequel. Pan (October 9th, 2015) The narrative of Peter Pan has never been far from our screens, with many television productions having incorporated its fantastical telling of the boy who could fly, and filmmakers delivering their interpretations of J.M Barrie’s literary classic many times over the decades. In fact, Pan will be the ninth such feature-length endeavour, and is directed by Joe Wright (Atonement, Hanna). This promises to distinguish itself from its predecessors, however, by depicting an origin story for both Peter Pan and his arch-nemesis, Captain Hook. As such, it tells the tale of an orphan, who finds himself whisked away to Neverland, where he discovers his destiny as a hero. The script for Pan comes from Jason Fuchs (Ice Age: Continental Drift), and featured on the 2013 Black List. With young actor Levi Miller making his feature film debut in the role of Peter Pan, the wider cast includes Hugh Jackman as Blackbeard, Garrett Hedlund as the younger James Hook, Rooney Mara as Tiger Lily (somewhat controversially, given that the character of Tiger Lily is not white), and Amanda Seyfried as Mary Darling. Goosebumps (October 16th, 2015) Since the source material of Goosebumps is a highly popular series of children’s horror books by author R.L. Stine, this film adaptation features Stine as a character, and the books themselves as a plot device – creating an intriguing premise that promises plenty of action and adventure, with some comedy thrown in for good measure. A young man moves into the house next door to R.L. Stine and his daughter, and unwittingly releases Stine’s characters – ghouls, goblins and all manner of nasties – from the pages of his books. He must then team up with the author and his offspring to resolve the situation, and save the day. The cast includes Dylan Minnette, Odeya Rush, Amy Ryan, Jillian Bell, Ryan Lee, and Ken Marino, but it is the prospect of Jack Black in the role of R.L Stine that elevates this project from ‘probably entertaining’ to ‘must-see’ status. The Peanuts Movie (November 6th 2015) If there is one movie sure to delight the littlest while filling the biggest with a comforting warmth that brings a tear to the eye, it is The Peanuts Movie. Written by Craig Schulz and Bryan Schulz – son and grandson of Peanuts comic strip creator, Charles M Schulz – along with Cornelius Uliano, The Peanuts Movie is directed by Steve Martino and seems to be set to completely recapture the beauty and joy of its original source material. The Peanuts comic strip itself generally centred on the character of Charlie Brown – a young boy with chronically low-expectations of himself. He was joined by a range of friends, a beagle named Snoopy, and a bird named Woodstock over the years, as it ran daily from 1950 – 2000. A total of 17,897 strips ran in more than 2,600 publications across 75 countries, and its popularity also spawned a variety of TV specials and films from the 1980s onwards. The Peanuts Movie will be the first new film appearance for these characters in 35 years, however. Using archive recordings of original Peanuts voice actor Bill Melendez, this new story will see Snoopy face off with arch nemesis Red Baron, while Charlie Brown attempts to woo Little Red-Haired Girl. This is a 3D computer animation from the very successful Blue Sky Studios (the Ice Age franchise, Horton Hears A Hoo!), and also features the vocal talents of Noah Schapp. The Good Dinosaur (November 25th, 2015) The second of this year’s Pixar offerings ran into some trouble during the production process, resulting in original co-director Bob Peterson being removed from the film, and leaving Peter Sohn at the helm. Bob Peterson remains credited as a co-writer, however, along with Enrico Casarosa, for this 3D computer animation. The premise springs from the idea that there never was a cataclysmic asteroid strike of the Earth, and therefore, dinosaurs were never rendered extinct. The comedic story centres on a large Apatosaurus who deals with a traumatic large-scale personal event, and must resolve to restore peace with the help of a young human boy. The film was originally due to be released in 2014, during a spate of other dinosaur-based animations. Now arriving at the end of 2015, however, The Good Dinosaur will not even need to compete with the fearsome creatures of Jurassic World, and can instead enjoy a relatively open field upon which to entertain younger audiences. John Lithgow, Frances McDormand, Neil Patrick Harris, Judy Greer and Bill Hader provide the vocal talent for this project. Alvin And The Chipmunks: Road Chip (December 23rd, 2015) Rather than end the year on a high quality note for children, director Walt Becker and writer Randi Morgan Singer will deliver the Christmas miracle of a fourth Alvin And The Chipmunks movie. This is a franchise that has produced ever-diminishing results, and the announcement of another instalment surprised many. However, it seems as though a plot has been developed enough to bring back original cast members Jason Lee, Justin Long, Matthew Gray Gubler and Jesse McCartney, in addition to bringing in Tony Hale (Arrested Development, Veep) and Bella Thorne (Blended). Could this series possibly turn itself around? Apparently, this sequel will see a series of miscommunications and misunderstandings lead everyone’s favourite chipmunks to believe that their father-figure, Dave, plans to abandon them for a New York City-based life with the woman he loves. Of course, they hatch an outrageous scheme to get there and stop him before he proposes marriage, and of course, there’ll be some chipmunk-ed versions of toe-tapping musical numbers along the way. Christmas fun for the whole family. We hope.