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Your first indication that the latest computer animated romp from Dreamworks is not exactly the best animated film you’ve seen is that it’s releasing in March. Any cartoon worth its pixels is released in the summer or Thanksgiving thru Christmas season.
Your second indication should be that it stars the voice of (wait for it) Nicholas Cage. Yes, the ever-grunting and cheerless Cage who long ago gave up the dignity of acting for commercial success (it’s like a d*** Cheney false choice!) is the star attraction in a movie that is supposed to make youngsters laugh and cheer. Good job, casting department.
Since it’s set in prehistoric times and purports itself to be about the first family road trip EVER, you can expect a lot of tongue-in-cheek references to The Flintstones. It sort of helps that the movie is co-directed by Chris Sanders who made the winning and charming Lilo & Stitch over a decade ago when he worked at the Mouse House, but this film doesn’t have the strength of character or depth of relationships that made Lilo so memorable.
It does have a gruff father (Cage) who is constantly battling it out with his teenage daughter (Emma Stone), especially when it comes to the handsome stranger (Ryan Reynolds) they happen upon as they make their way to a new cave. But since it’s all so stock and cliché and only features a small amount of laughs for the grown ups, this one is straight kiddie fare. It will come and go in a few weeks time, and no one will remember it in a year’s time.