This movie has been out for 6 years and despite hearing about it here and there, it never crossed my mind to go watch it. I honestly thought it was some lame ass attempt to make superheroes out of Santa and the Easter bunny. Boy was I wrong!Every single scene is riddled with emotion and there was something every minute that left me in awe. I don't think I have seen many movies where every single character - and i mean every one- even if they are an extra that is in frame for 2 seconds - has a such an expressive, charismatic appearance. It made me feel all the feels and more! Messages about hope, facing your fears, magic, believing in yourself and in miracles are brought to you in a way that hits home. I'm a sucker for animated movies with a lot of heart and this one wrapped my heart in a warm cuddly blanket. There are so many moments that make you go "awww" and the first half of the movie is so incredible endearing and charming, while the second half gets more serious and really engaging. The villian here - the Boogyman - is protrayed like a real devil. Sly, charming, cunning, dark but intriguing. You even think at one point that his reasons for doing his evil are justified. He's not a 100% villian, he tries to get on your gullible good side, and that is exactly what a devil does. Outstanding character in every way! Making Santa a big, tough Russian cuddle-tank was a daring move but it worked like a charm. His facial expressions can speak novels within a single shot.... the animation department gave full attention to the characters' emotions and they nailed it! If you haven't seeen this one, you. are. missing. out!!! Out there with Coco, How to Train your Dragon and Wall-E.

For a long time I've been debating on whether or not to see the movie. Then I found it on my Apple TV for a cheap price and thought " Why not" and I was blown away by it. One of the best parts was the characters. I've grown up with a few of these characters, and seeing them in a different way, like a Russian Santa or an Australian Easter Bunny, was really great and I got to learn about other characters that I didn't know about( Jack Frost and the Sandman) and to see them interact with each other and being happy and seeing them kick butt and I loved them all. The vocal actors were amazing and brought more joy to the movie ( Chris Pine, Hugh Jackman, Jude Law to name a few). The animation was beautiful and so detailed. I loved Jacks backstory and his playful personality. I laughed and cried. I would recommend this to anyone and to anyone with kids,if they believe in Santa or not.

The movie begins with Jack Frost floating up from a lake. He rises toward the moon. Next thing you know, Jack Frost gets his magical staff. He plays with it and realizes it's power. He questioned why he was there and what he was suppose to do. He didn't get an answer. Learning to fly amused him. He was happy! He then walked into a small village and started being friendly with the people but he doesn't realize they can't hear him until one of them walks through him. That's when the moon told him his name was Jack Frost. That was all he was ever told.The next scenes show North noticing an imbalance on the globe. He immediately sets off the alarm to call all of his fellow Guardians to the North Pole to have a meeting because the children are in danger. Soon Sandy, Tooth, and Bunny appear. North tells them about the darkness that is looming. They don't believe him. They argue and then the Man in the Moon appears. He tells them that it is time to get a new guardian. It is revealed that it is Jack Frost. Bunny is in total disagreement. Jack Frost is known for his wild antics and his ornery attitude. Bunny doesn't believe he can protect the children from the danger that is coming.Santa sends his helpers to grab Jack and they transport him to the North Pole. Jack is confused and is trying to figure out his place. They announce that he is now a Guardian. Jack shuts down the celebration because he doesn't want to be a Guardian. Tooth tries to explain the job of protecting the children and then they tell him about Pitch coming to hurt all the children and all their innocent beliefs. That isn't convincing enough so North decides to give him a tour of the North Pole. North's pep talk gives Jack something to think about. Jack agrees to help just this once to defeat Pitch to save the children from terror. Pitch decides to take on each character one by one so the children will stop believing in them. He starts with Tooth and then moves on to making Sandy disappear. Tooth becomes very weak to battle, so all that is left is North, Bunny, and Jack. Pitch then ruins Easter so Bunny then becomes too weak to battle. The final battle is between Jack and Pitch. Jack enlists some neighborhood kids that still believe in the Guardians. Their strength helps Jack and together they defeat Pitch. Pitch ends up being forced to go back under the bed where he is trapped and forced to stay away from all of the children.The lessons in this movie are simple. There is always going to be good and evil in life. As a child, you believe in both. As an adult, good and evil are still a part of life but in very different ways. One can always choose to believe in good or evil. Evil will take away happiness every time. The theme of this movie shows how believing in good can make your life wonderful.

Rise of the Guardians (2012): Dir: Peter Ramsey / Voices: Chris Pine, Alec Baldwin, Hugh Jackman, Isla Fisher, Jude Law: Corrupt holiday family animated candy coated crap with a title that references the promise of goodness emerging from each holiday. It is like a holiday version of The Avengers only instead of the Hulk, Thor and Captain America we have Santa Claus, Tooth Fairy and the Easter Bunny. The problem is that the super heroes are intended for action and a certain amount of violence but these holiday theme characters are faulted with unlikely qualities. We have Santa Claus brandishing swords. We have a feisty Easter Bunny with an Australian accent throwing boomerangs. We have the lady Tooth Fairy who protects the memories of teeth. Finally we have Jack Frost whom kids cannot see because they do not believe in him. The one interesting character is Frost who desires to learn where he came from. He is recruited to assist the other Guardians in battling the Boogeyman / Pitch Black. He creates nightmares and aims to make children not believe in the guardians. Director Peter Ramsey is backed with dazzling animation but the story is preposterous. The movie seems fitted for its action and violence and that seems to go against the theme of the characters. The cast would do better starring live in a better film as oppose to wasting their voices in this holiday farce. It just seems that the only guardians who should rise are the parents who should really demonstrate the good nature of these characters and not subject their children to this holiday rubbish. Score: 3 ½ / 10