Happy Feet 2 - Better Than Grazia. FACT.

Monday saw the release of Happy Feet 2 on DVD and 3D DVD.Warner Brothers were kind enough to send us out both versions to watch so that we could let you know what you thought.

Having somehow missed Happy Feet I wasn't quite sure what to expect.  I certainly wasn't ready for the hysterical cries of laughter from the sofa after about 3 seconds of the film being played.

My kids loved this film so much I actually had to tell them to stop laughing so that they could hear it. Really.

Their Dad and I sat at a respectful distance reading the paper (him) and Grazia magazine (me). Thirty minutes and twenty attempts to read one page later they were ditched in favour of this heartwarming and funny movie.

The story goes like this:

The sequel to “Happy Feet,” the Academy Award^®-winninganimated smash hit, “Happy Feet Two” returns audiences to the magnificentlandscape of Antarctica in superb 3D.

Mumble, The Master of Tap, has aproblem because his tiny son, Erik, is choreo-phobic.  Reluctant to dance,Erik runs away and encounters The Mighty Sven—a penguin who can fly! Mumble has no hope of competing with this charismatic new role model.

But things get worse when theworld is shaken by powerful forces.

Erik learns of his father’s “gutsand grit” as Mumble brings together the penguin nations and all manner offabulous creatures—from tiny Krill to giant Elephant Seals—to put things right.

Since it was received yesterday they have watched it, or parts of it,  at every opportunity.

At bedtime 'Can I watch Happy Feet 2 again?'
Before school 'Can we watch Happy Feet 2?'
After Playschool 'Watch Happy Meal Mummy?' (Got a bit confused there..)
On the hottest March day on record 'Can we watch Happy Feet 2 instead of going to the beach? Pleeeeease'
It's getting a bit tiresome Warner Brothers.

They seemed to love both versions equally, though of course the 3D version gives a little something extra.

If you fancy owning a copy yourself you can get one here.

Not in a Krillian years did I think I'd see Brad Pitt as seafood.(Sorry.)

Disclosure: This movie was sent to me free of charge for the pruposes of this review.

Lego Duplo - 2012 Panel and Review of Creative Sorter.

The wonderful people at Lego Duplo, in their infinite wisdom and intelligence, have asked me to be part of the 2012 blogger panel.

Yes really. I even have a badge to prove it.

What this means is that I'll be bringing you some Lego Duplo reviews over the year and will even be hosting some Lego Duplo competitions so its a win-win for me and you!

First up for review is the Lego Duplo Creative Sorter for ages 2-5:

As you can see you get a bucket filled with bricks, but also 'sorting plates' that help your child to create jungle animals. Like this:

The age range is 2 - 5 years old but all my lot got stuck into it - dragging the rest of their Duplo out too.

The set retails at £17.99 which isn't cheap, but when you consider that it is a toy that will last and last and last (not like so many expensive toys I know that end up in the bin after a few weeks, grrr), plus it's creative and educational then I guess you'd have to say it's money well spent.

And now I have some insider information for you. *Whispers* Did you know that Lego Duplo and Lego are interchangeable?? I certainly didn't. But look! It's true!

OK I'm not sure what that is either...but the point is it works

How on earth did I miss that?

Anyway, to finish up here's a little demo from Marley on how to make an elephant.

(Please ignore the little brother whinging for Super Noodles in the background. Of course I never, ever feed them junk like that. Honest).

Disclaimer: This toy was provided to me by Lego Duplo to review. All views and children are my own. 

3D Movie Review - Legend of the Guardians & Cats and Dogs

Since getting our 3D TV the other week we've been testing out everything from 3D football to 3D documentaries to 3D Movies. It's impressive stuff.

The two movies I'm going to talk about here are both by Warner Brothers...

Legend of the Guardians

And Cats and Dogs.

Both of the movies are aimed at children, but naturally we wanted to show off our new kit at any available opportunity so when the in-laws came to stay last week we put on Legends of the Guardians just to give them a sneak peek of what it was like.

97 minutes later we watched the credits roll having got entirely sucked in by it. And not a child in sight I might add.

The story follows Soren a young barn owl who is kidnapped with his brother by the 'bad' owls who take them  to a secret hideout where they brainwash other kidnapped owlets with the view to turning them into soldiers. Whilst Soren manages to escape in a bid to get help his brother turns to 'the dark side' and the story of good versus evil, brother against brother begins.
A bit like Star Wars with owls, as my husband helpfully noted.

Anyway, we all loved the film, though I think the 3D had a lot to do with it. As movies go this one was made for 3D. Impressive flight and fight scenes coupled with amazing close ups had all of us literally 'wowing' out loud.

Hard to fault. I'd give it 5 stars and a big thumbs up.

The second film we're reviewing is Cats and Dogs.

I didn't actually watch this one myself but it kept the 7 and 5 year old quiet for the duration so it gets a nod of approval from me for that alone.

But I'll hand over to Kaya who will tell you what she really thought of it:


So there you have it, another thumbs up:

I've got to say here that not all the 3D films we watched were of as good a quality as the two Warner Brothers ones. A Turtles Tale - rented from the local xtra-vision left us all feeling a bit headachy and a little woozy. The 3D was so extreme in parts that quite often it looked like it just wasn't quite right. So choose your 3D movies carefully.

Next month I'll be reviewing Yogi Bear and Dolphins Tale starring Harry Connick Jr. Yep that's right - Harry in 3D...one for the Mums methinks.

Disclosure: These movies were sent to me free of charge for the purposes of this review.

3D TV - What's it all about anyway?

In my last post I explained how we were lucky enough to be sent a 3D Home Entertainment system in order to review some of Warner Brothers' 3D movies (I know!!)

Now I must make a confession. Prior to receiving it I had zero knowledge of 3D TVs and what was involved with watching 3D movies at home. Can you watch non-3D programs on it? Do you need to wear glasses? Will the movies work in a normal DVD player?

I better take a picture of this - just to make sure it's real...

It's a bit like when Sky+ came along advertising the ability to pause live TV and we all looked at each other with confused faces, secretly wondering what would happen to everyone else if we paused the 9 o'clock news seven minutes in.

Anyway - I am here for the clueless - to answer your questions (which were my questions) and to let you know all that I have learned in the week since we got our package.

So, first question - What do you need in order to be able to watch 3D Movies at home? 
Answer: A 3D TV, A 3D Player, 3D Glasses and a HDMI cable.

Does the TV work normally too?
Absolutely - you can switch between 2D and 3D with the remote control.

Do you need to wear 3D glasses?
Yes. In fact the glasses should be matched to the TV you are using. We have Toshiba TV and glasses, if your TV was Sony then Sony glasses would be recommended. This is because there is no industry standard across the board yet so different makes use slightly different technology.

Can you use the glasses that they give you at the cinema?
No.* The glasses used in cinemas are 'polarised' and work with the projection that cinema uses. Home 3D glasses use 'active shutter' technology. The glasses that we were supplied with are lightweight, rechargeable ones - they're fabulous for adults although a little on the large side for the kids.
*Update: See comment from Aly below re. inactive and active TVs. 

How does 3D work?
Well, in a very simplistic explanation....the scenes are filmed from two different angles and then amalgamated together. The technology beams one image to one eye and another to the other eye giving the 3D perspective. (This is my very basic understanding of it - feel free to correct me here!)

Are all 3D movies the same quality?
No. We've tested out a number of films on DVD and also programmes on the Sky 3D Channel and the standard has varied quite a bit.  I'm delighted (and a little bit relieved!) to say, hand on heart, that Warner Brothers has come out on top for us so far.

My next post will be a review of some of the Warner Brothers movies we've seen so far and how they compare to the other things we've watched.

In the meantime if you've any burning questions that I've missed feel free to leave them in the comments and I'll do my best to answer it for you.

Disclaimer: As stated I was provided with a 3D home entertainment system by Warner Brothers for the purpose of reviewing Warner Brothers 3D Movies. All words and opinions are my own.