I'm honestly baffled by the way the marketing of trite crap works so well. Saturation-marketing turns me off, even from good movies sometimes. I know that with family films, a lot of parents simply go with what's showing, because they need something, anything, to take the kids to, but $50 million for a Chipmunks sequel? Yeesh.
A few years ago, I remember Roger Ebert reviewed the awesome kiwi movie Whale Rider, and essentially begged parents to skip the latest Scooby Doo movie or other mass market crap and make a beeline for this movie. (Rightly so. It's fantastic.) I wish there was always such good counter-programming for family audiences as a matter of course. (Even the best Pixar movies seem hyperactive and hollow next to something as warm and uplifting as Whale Rider. Can you tell I loved this movie? If you've missed it, queue it up.)
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