Rise of the Guardians - Limited Edition Easter Gift Pack

You'll have to just see it to believe.

I'm 47 years old. I normally walk out of animated films which sound too noisy for me.

I not only stayed the entire movie. I watched it again 4 times -alone even, just to experience it again and again.

The magic of childhood is the magic of wonder, play, dream, believing. And if you still have that imagination left in you,

then maybe you could still sit down, laugh, cry, cheer with your kids while watching this movie.

The previews for this movie looked fun and funny; seeing this movie in full-length was an even broader experience. This is one of those movies like "Finding Nemo" or "Toy Story" that will be timeless because of the content, the humor, and the wise message inherent in the storyline. I loved it . . . and so did my 29-year-old daughter and my four-year-old grandson.

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Ever since "The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen" comic (not the movie), I've been intrigued by the basic premise: legendary characters from other genres are given the superhero treatment and then brought together under unlikely circumstances to face a global threat. This structure is the standard plot of just about every Avengers and Justice League comic, but only recently -perhaps a sign of the times -has cobbling together a diverse cast of characters become movie entertainment.

"Rise of the Guardians" continues the trend by turning the dial on iconic characters like Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, the Tooth Fairy, and the Sandman up to 11. Each of these characters gives a gift to children, which in turn causes the children to believe in them and bestows a form of immortality. It's an oddly parasitic relationship that was prominent in Wizard of the Coast's "The Primal Order" supplement, in which deities need worshippers to gain power. Our heroes may not be all that powerful, but they are certainly popular. At least some of them are.

One of the questions weighing on my mind in bringing my five-year-old to this film was how "Rise" would deal with Santa Claus. It's one thing to question the existence of the Tooth Fairy (I never liked her anyway), the Easter Bunny (does anyone believe he exists?), and the Sandman (pretty sure NOBODY believes he exists)...but Santa Claus? That's some tricky turf right there.

Parents needn't worry. Santa is a jovial, dual saber-wielding slavic warrior full of wisdom, jolly humor, and generosity. As voiced by Alec Baldwin, this is a Santa I can get on board with!

The Sandman doesn't speak, but he pantomimes through thought-forms that lend themselves well to 3-D viewing.

The Easter Bunny is voiced by Hugh Jackman, which seems oddly natural. He's a combative, boomerang-wielding humanoid rabbit that can throw egg-smoke bombs like a ninja. He's also pretty adorable.

Isla Fisher (yes, the nymphomaniac from "Wedding Crashers") plays the Tooth Fairy as a neurotic workaholic who has been "out of the field" for so long that she no longer knows how to relate to kids. She also moons over Jack Frost (Chris Pine, AKA Captain Kirk).

Frost is the teenager of the bunch, frustrated by his lack of fame which makes him literally invisible to children. Frost is on a personal journey to discover how he became who he is and in doing so, accepting his role as a new Guardian of children.

And that's what "Guardians" is secretly all about: aging gracefully into parenthood. The older adults (the existing Guardians) worry about being forgotten, uninvolved in their children's lives. Pitch the Boogeyman (voiced by an unctuous Jude Law) craves attention so much that he would be happy to just be feared because it means he will be remembered. And Frost has to deal with his own childhood before he can become a parent.

There are some amazing set pieces, plenty of clever quips, and enough magical battles to keep the movie clicking along. But Frost is something of a bland catch-all for every rebellious "cool kid" in the history of movies (he wears a hoodie, he MUST be cool!) and his big revelation about his past isn't much of a revelation at all. "Rise of the Guardians" is clearly just getting beginning to launch a franchise, and this is a good start. But I'll take a movie about just good ole sword-swinging Claus any day.

Read Best Reviews of Rise of the Guardians - Limited Edition Easter Gift Pack Here

I took my grandchildren to see this movie at the theater and they were completely taken in by it! We, adults were captivated as well. Awesome movie!!! I want to see it again and again!!

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We take our 5 year daughter to the movies often and this was the only movie that she sat still and actually watched the whole movie. Usually she fidgets, needs to go to the bathroom several times and talks through the whole movie. We had to keep checking that she was still next to us she was so quiet. She was just mesmerized and when we left she told us we needed to buy this movie when it came out. Wow!!! Great movie

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