This movie is exactly what you would expect. It won’t surprise or challenge you in any way, and nothing rocks the boat as it sails toward a big family-first finish that packs a message. And yet, I enjoyed it. Your kids will love it, and I’d much rather sit through this than the last Ice Age movie or even (blasphemy!) the last couple Pixar films.
What Works: I believe in grading family-friendly animated films on a different scale. And I can honestly say that this falls just shy of Wreck-it-Ralph but surpasses Cars 2/Brave/Rise of the Guardians (and, let’s be honest, probably the upcoming Monsters Inc. sequel). Animated films need to create a new world for us to fall in love with, and even if this film isn’t entirely fresh (there’s been four ice age movies and countless dinosaur/caveman films) it’s still unique enough to make you glad you aren’t sitting through Shrek 5. Visually, the movie is a knock-out, with a real sense of magic and wonder in most scenes that live-action films like Jack the Giant Slayer would be wise to copy.
What Doesn’t Work: I hate to keep carping on this angle, but if a bunch of soon-to-be-prehistoric characters on a walking journey through dangerous terrain sounds familiar that’s probably because your children have been playing The Land Before Time films on an endless loop for years. [Not to mention Dinosaur, Ice Age, etc.] Still, if you’ve seen those films a dozen times, you might be grateful for anything new, even if it’s not totally new. And it’s good to see Nicolas Cage in a hit movie after a decade of bombs…he’s finally cracked the secret to box office success: not appearing on-screen. Maybe a fat franchise paycheck for the inevitable Croods 2 will get him clear of the I.R.S.
What I Would Have Done Differently: Who cares? Your kids will leave happy, you’ll leave happy, and if you avoid the ridiculous extra 3.50 per ticket for the 3D showings (I watched it this way, and there’s not much difference), then your wallet will be happy.