We have a question for the many children out of school for summer break: are you bored yet? Boredom usually sets in just after the first week without classes, homework and school bells.
Our answer? You can always go to the movies. Today, we tell you about some of the films that might be just right for the young.
Animation is as popular as ever this summer. We can start with what appears to be already one of the most successful movies of 2015. The Disney Pixar film “Inside Out” was released June 19. It has sold close to $300 million dollars of tickets since then. “Inside Out” makes talking characters of human emotions. They belong to a girl named Riley, who has moved with her family to a new place. Joy, fear, sadness and other feelings are always at work in Riley’s mind and on display for movie viewers.
Critics widely praised “Inside Out.” New York Times movie critic A.O. Scott calls it a “delightcharming and funny.” He also writes, approvingly, that the movie “is a defense of sorrow,” a feeling that helps us all connect and care for each other.
Another animated movie sure to be a big hit is a spin-off from the “Despicable Me” series. The new movie “Minions” features the little yellow creatures who served the evil character Gru in “Despicable Me.”
The new movie tells their story. It starts years before they meet Dru. They have accidentally killed off all their past evil leaders. A search for a new one takes them to New York City and Florida and even overseas.
Actor John Hamm is one of the voices in the animated movie. He jokingly explained to Jon Stewart of the “The Daily Show,” why kids are not the only people who like Minions. “I think the reason they’re appealing to adults is ‘cause they look like capsules, they look like pills.” He then said he was going to get into trouble with filmmaker Universal studio for what he said. Maybe you think you are too old for animation. If so, there is also a highly anticipated young adult film opening. “Paper Towns” is a movie based on a John Green novel. John Green is also the author of “The Fault in Our Stars,” a hugely popular 2012 book that became a hugely popular film last year.
“Paper Towns” deals with some of the same themes as “The Fault in Our Stars” -- friendship, disappointment and loyalty, to name a few. The two movies also share an actor -- Nat Wolff. He played the blind cancer patient Isaac in the earlier film. In “Paper Towns,” Wolff is the lead actor, along with actor-supermodel Cara Delvenigne. They play longtime neighbors who were friends as young children but belong to different social groups in high school. But, they remain emotionally close, and when one of them disappears, the other starts a search.
John Green describes the film as “a great movie about friendship.” Moviegoers are not expected to leave the theater crying as they may have after seeing “The Fault in Our Stars.” The new film is said to have more humor and mystery, and less tragic romance.
