Rise of the Guardians

[Warning: Potential Spoilers]
Before I discuss this movie I have to say that the commercials had me a little wary, and I hadn't watched this movie because I wasn't sure how good or cheesy it might be. It turns out that the star-studded cast was reflective of the quality. I wouldn't say it was one of my favourite animated movies, but it was pretty good.
Rise of the Guardians tells the story of Jack Frost, a young boy who becomes a guardian. The guardians are magical beings who keep hope, joy, and imagination in the world. They are Santa Claus (aka North), the Easter Bunny (aka Bunnymund), the Tooth Fairy (aka Tooth), and Sandman (aka Sandy). As the movie opens, Jack Frost is trying to remember who he was while trying to find his place amongst the Guardians. At the same time the Guardians must deal with the rising power of their enemy, the Bogeyman (aka Pitch, as in pitch black). Children are losing hope and forgetting about the Guardians, which is only allowing the Bogeyman to gain more power.
No one believes in Jack, so he remains visible to all the humans, and so he decides not to become a Guardian. However, he agrees to help them fight Pitch. Pitch works to destroy all of the Guardians' realms because he wants children to lose belief in the others in the same way that they no longer believe in him. The Guardians must team up to complete their jobs, but they struggle to get along and do it all when and how they should. Jack works hard to help, even though no one know about or believes in him. Finally, when the Guardians are at their weakest and are unable to maintain their duties, Jack convinces a boy named Jamie to believe in him. Jamie convinces his friends that the Guardians are still real, and the kids also begin to believe in Jack. In the end, the Guardians are able to defeat Pitch and Jack recovers his memories of his past.
The cast in this was actually pretty amazing, and I am always a fan of anything with Chris Pine or Hugh Jackman in it (although, I like it better when I get to see them). I love stories that are centred around fairy tales and myths, especially those that encourage you to believe in magic again. I know it sounds a little odd, but there is a part of me that really wants to believe that magic is real and so the message of this movie totally appeals to me. On top of that, the exploration of Jack's past and the depth of his character makes him a very relatable main character. He is very hard on himself, but he doesn't have a single memory of anyone who ever believed in him, so it is understandable that he feels that he is worthless, and also why he thinks he must fight on his own. He is a really neat and complex character, and the story works really well with his personal conflict in combination with the overall conflict. Even if you're not a child, the magic and the story in Rise of the Guardians are enjoyable. If you're looking for a light movie, I'd recommend this.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

The Wolverine

Les Misérables

The Strange Case of Finley Jayne