Warner Brother Pictures releases the new animated film “Smallfoot”
September 28, 2018.
The movie features Channing Tatum as Migo, James Corden as Percy,
Zendaya as Meechee, Common as Stonekeeper, LeBron James and Gwangi and
Danny DeVito and Dorgie, Migos father.
The movie is centered around a group of characters (the Yeti) and the
rules that surround their existence and are literally “set in stone” ,
carried around by (and, one surmises, enforced by) the Stonekeeper.
If it isn’t in the Stones, it just isn’t so.
Conversely, if it IS in the stones, it MUST be so, even if your eyes and
experiences tell you differently.
Each member of the village has a job, and even though the jobs are
monotonously repetitive, and even though at the bottom of it all, they
don’t really know the “why” behind what they are doing, all the Yeti
happily go about their days and participate to make the village run
smoothly.
Until, that is, Migo sees and chases down an airplane that crash lands
into their mountaintop sanctuary. There are legends of Smallfoot in the
Yeti’s folklore, but the stones emphatically state that Smallfoot do NOT
exist.
Migo brings his exciting news of the Smallfoot sighting back to the
village, only to be met by the Stonekeeper questioning whether Migo
could have ACTUALLY seen a Smallfoot, since the stones say they do not
exist. Migo does not let go of his story of seeing the Smallfoot, and is
subsequently banished from the village until he can “see the truth”.
(Maybe he REALLY saw a new breed of Yak!)
Migo leaves the village not knowing where his path should take him now,
and is intercepted by the members of the SES (Smallfoot Evidentiary
Society) who tell him that they believe him and show him the reasons
why, as backed by evidence that they have found over the years.
The three members of the SES are Meechee (Zendaya), who happens to be
the Stonekeepers daughter (!!), Kolka (Gina Rodriguez), Gwangi (LeBron
James), and Fleem (Ely Henry). The four encourage Migo to follow his
curiosity to find the Smallfoot and see what he can find out about them.
With trepidation, Migo heads down the mountain to see what he can find.
Once he has made his way down the mountain, Migo meets a videographer
named Percy, who has been lamenting his recent dismal ratings and lack
of viewers. Percy was going to go so far as to fabricate a story to get
“hits” online and to make a story go viral. Meeting Migo changes all
that and what follows is a heartwarming story about overcoming
differences, learning how to communicate, friendship & sacrifice.
The movie is colorful, and has great, catchy songs. The characters are
funny, there are lots of jokes, and I didn’t feel like there was any
“dead space” in the movie. The story was easy to follow but not boring.
I wouldn’t be surprised to hear about some sort of outcry raised by a
certain segment of the population, saying that the movie is
“anti-religious”, but I found it entirely refreshing for a kids movie to
send the message of not believing something someone tells you just
because “they say so” or just because “that’s the way its always been”,
or even “we do it this way for your own good (because you can’t be
trusted to think for yourself)” . Critical thinking skills are highly
lacking in today’s society, and I think that this movie is a great
example of finding out the truth by asking questions and not just
blindly following where you are told to.
My 10 year old son loved the movie, and I would go see it again in the
theatre, just to watch it again!
I would give this movie 5 out of 5 stars for kids & family
entertainment.
Second Review by Barnetty Kushner
“Smallfoot” takes place high atop a mountain that exists above the clouds. Among the mountains lies a village of yetis, who spend their days living in harmony and governed by the sacred laws written in stone. Yes! The head of the village is named the Stonekeeper (voiced by Common), he wears a cloak that carries thousands of stones. Each stone contains a law; you never question the laws. Questioning the laws gets you banished. This is just what happens when our protagonist, Migo (voiced by Channing Tatum) comes face to face with A “SMALLFOOT” (aka a human) and runs back to his village to warn the others. The stones say that smallfoot doesn’t exist; do not question the stones. Even Migo’s father (voiced by Danny Devito) realizing his son is failing to conform, agrees that he must go. As Migo makes his way to uncharted territory, he befriends a group of conspiracy theorists called the S.E.S.-the Smallfoot Evidenciary Society, led by the Stonekeeper’s daughter Meechee (voiced by Zendaya) who believes Migo did see a Smallfoot. The group realizes the only way to prove they’re right is to have Migo go beyond the clouds and try to find one.
It’s a Bigfoot encounter in reverse, or both ways, since Migo does end up meeting Percy (voiced by James Corden), a Steve Irwin-type nature documentarian. After an rather frightening introduction, Percy, desperate to find an audience for his low ratings show, decides to tag along with Migo in hopes of recording the entire experience. And, Migo eager to reverse his banishment, takes Percy with him back to his village. Even though they both speak different languages, Migo and Percy forge an unlikely friendship. Unfortunately, fear of not knowing what each species will do to one another plagues both human and yeti villages.
A hilariously delightful tale about friendship, trust, and staying true to yourself and what you believe to be right. When is it necessary to tell a lie to protect those you love? To protect your species? Smallfoot at its core is all about changing beliefs. Are those beliefs for the greater good? Who gets to make those decisions for the yeti society? What about the human race?
Many moral dilemmas with a handful of crowd-pleasing dance numbers, and the perfect amount of slapstick humor. You can’t help but laugh out loud at the many Wil E Coyote-esque types of antics Migo gets himself into. Every kid will love it , every parent will appreciate the message behind the story. Let’s hope it will resonant with our younger generations.
4.5 out 5 stars
