Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and the Island of Misfit Toys (2005)

Memories

Dyas when the World seemed A Better Place. September 30, 2008

Great for Kids

My 3 year old daughter absolutely adores this movie. We have watched it countless times over the past few months and it is the only Christmas movie I can't delete from my TiVo. The songs are catchy and the story is a pretty heartwarming one. And personally, I enjoy the singing hippo. Just a really fun movie to watch with your family. January 9, 2007

Ugh

We all remember the original classic Christmas special. It featured a reindeer who had to overcome prejudice in the workplace to get to the very top, and it was inspiring to us all. Apparently, after 40+ years, we missed something from the original story, so they made this sequal.

Unlike the original, which was stop-motion animation, this is entirely computer animated. That COULD have been done well, but THIS wasn't. The models all look overly simplified, and the animation for all characters is robotic and lifeless. The backgrounds and effects are all flat, and overall it looks like someone's senior film. Actually, I take that back, because I've seen senior films that looked a hundred times better than this.

The plot itself is annoying and confusing at the same time. Rudolph is STILL dealing with people making fun of his nose, and has to be reminded by his dentist buddy that he should focus on his talents instead. (hey wait...I thought we established that in the first one?) Also, the Island of Misfit Toys still exists and still collects toys - this part confuses the heck out of me! I thought the point of the ending of the first "Rudolph" was that the Island of Misfit Toys had been closed down and that all toys were accepted, whether they were worthless or not. Imagine if they made a "Schindler's List 2" and the Jews were still in concentration camps, and you'll understand how I feel.

To be honest, I turned this off at the part where the hippo queen bursts into song. The music in this is terrible, and it's just ugly to watch. I know that compared to what Pixar does the original stop-motion specials may look dated, but this new "Rudolph" is FAR from what comes out of Pixar. When a 1960's cartoon upstages a modern cartoon using modern technology, that's just sad, and just goes to show it's really writing and effort that makes a project work.

Shame on Richard Dreyfuss, Tony Bennett, and any one else who dared to contribute to this. SHAME ON YOU ALL!! SHAME!!! December 16, 2006

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