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Looking back, Dreamworks has some great movies like Shrek but, they've never been the forerunner in the animation field, until recently that is. Ever since Kung Fu Panda, the quality in their movies has increased(with the exception of Monsters vs. Aliens. It was a decent movie, but a step back). Their best to date to me is, How To Train Your Dragon. Rise Of The Guardians doesn't soar as high as How To Train Your Dragon, or kick-ass the way the Kung Fu Panda movies do but, it comes close. This might be a step back for them but, it's only a tiny step back.
As much as I enjoyed this movie there were problems. The first is, the script. It's not bad but, compared to How To Train Your Dragon and Kung Fu Panda it just didn't have the same depth or feel as the scripts from those two movies. That's not to say there wasn't any depth but, it could have been better. The other thing is the storytelling. This movie moves at such a rapid pace that the story can't keep up, which makes some scenes feel out of place. Neither of these things didn't take that much away from the experience though. I loved everything else about the film.
The visuals are really good, the characters are well drawn out, there's ton of pretty colors and action to entertain both parents and kids. The animation isn't the best I've ever seen but, it's better than most these days. Ironically this takes place during Easter but, there's snow everywhere and Santa that it felt like Christmas. I loved that Santa was Russian and had tattoos everywhere, very cool twist on the character. The Easter Bunny is suppose to be the cute and adorable one, not here. He's portrayed as a warrior, and a good one at that. The tooth fairy is this half women half humming bird, not sure how I still feel about it, interesting nonetheless. The sandman doesn't talk and instead has to talk through well, his sand which I thought was cool. He was probably my favorite character next to Jack Frost who's the only normal looking one. He looks like a teenager but, has the voice of a man? It was weird at first but, I got use to it. The only thing that's really cute and adorable is Tooth's army and Santa's elves. The children characters didn't annoy me and I like how they became relevant to the story. Then there's pitch who has the least features and is the least drawn out. He was still cool looking though.
The character's are surprisingly fleshed out with Jack being the most fleshed out. Sure the whole hero trying to discover himself thing is cliched now but, he's given nice twists in his back story that it didn't make me like the character less, he was my favorite one. Pitch is also given an interesting back story, as well as a strong motivation to what he's doing and I like how it ties in with Jack Frost.
Though this won't be staying in theaters much longer as well as playing in 3-D, the 3-D is incredible. If it's still playing in 3-D by you go see it, trust me, the extra surcharge is worth it. The 3-D isn't over done or used as a gimmick, it's used the way it should be, to immerse you in the experience. The best are the fight scenes and when Jack Frost is flying. The fight scenes themselves are really cool and will wow both children and adults alike.
The voice acting is top notch. Sure you can recognize Chris Pine and Jude Laws voice but, it doesn't take you out of the experience at all. Alec Baldwin and Hugh Jackman were great, had I not looked at the cast list before I saw the movie I would haven never known it was them and Isla Fisher uses her American accent. The kids did a good job too, didn't recognize any of the names.
Overall, a nice edition from Dreamworks. It might not be as great as How To Train Your Dragon or Kung Fu Panda but, it comes close. The script isn't as deep and this movie felt rushed. Wish it was longer. This movie was a blast and I'm glad I saw it. The animation is great, the voice acting is top notch, and the 3-D was great. I also forgot to mention, there's not as much comedy as I thought there would be. I didn't care and don't misunderstand me, there were funny lines and scenes but, compared to other animated movies it's more serious. I still liked it anyway and it should still appeal to everyone
