Think Calvin in Hobbes' body

So I'll give my little commentary on OTH and hope that it's the last we hear of it (but I doubt it). First let me say this - we all know I'm predisposed to like any animated film with witty jokes, unique perspective, and cute furry animals with hearts much bigger than humans. I'm also more willing than most to enjoy the simpleness of bits of humor meant for kids around Tiana's age. I'm notoriously faithful to feel-good and the idea that people are at their best when they have something they love that they need to protect (or teach in this case). Am I in the minority? Of course not. I mean, look at Christianity as a whole, devoted to a guy who happily gave up his life to save even those who didn't care about him. I just like the cute fuzzy less graphic and more innocent versions as entertainment. Don't get me wrong - I don't think hyperactive squirells are better than God or anything :) I'm just saying the appeal is the same as a good story with a solid moral lesson about family and love, be it of spiritual importance or just cute and furry.

So we see Over the Hedge, having all of those qualities, is obviously going to be a favorite of mine. If you are cynical about family, don't find humor in poking fun at human consumerism (but not preachingly so by any means -it's just to get a laugh), or don't care for fuzzly tails and cute little noses, then this is definiitely not for you. But, if you liked Shrek and Madagascar enough to let out a laugh once in awhile, then it's worth a watch. I'd be more than happy to get you a copy....or buy you one after Oct. 17.

Anyway, I've noticed that the more harsh critics (who didn't like Madagascar and thought Shrek was a waste of time incidentally) aren't readers of the comic strip either. In my quest for more of the little not-so-talented-as-actual-animals family, I've learned something. The animals in the comic strip really live in a kind of Eden. Though they are as wrapped up in twinkies and tv as we all are, they are still untouched by the harsher realities of the world and eager to embrace the good. For instance, they don't understand how rabbits seem to just come out of nowhere in mass, nor so they care. When one animal figures it out by reading a book on reproduction and runs to tell the rest he realizes (as the group sits and watches Sponge Bob Square Pants) that letting them in on the secret would take away one of the few innocent realities they still have. And when the christmas killjoy (the official title one year for the turtle) tries to bring everyone down by calling christmas a commercially generated holiday about greed, the raccoon (the true heart and spirit of the group as well as the most detached from being an animal) digs through trash can after trash can to find a small nativity scene to show everyone the true meaning of christmas with no words. Very Charlie Brown-ish.

So that nearly ends my soap box. Almost. I'm really just talking (typing) for the sake of hearing myself (type) becasue it costs money to do anything else. So the movie is a genesis story. The characters are different than in the strip but you can easily see how they will become what they now are. Verne, the paternal leader who knows it all will easily become unsure of himself and as dependant on humnas as the rest of the group as he realizes how much he doesn't know and how little he can now help his friends. Once he loses his position as 'father knows best' he doesn't get upset over it, but embraces his new world to the point of becoming more like a human than the rest of them because he's just too smart for his own good. RJ, the other paternal leader of the crew, leaves his life of 'crime' to enjoy what suburbia is all about - not just the food he adores but a family that lives in a nice neighborhood with nice houses and plenty of everything. He doesn't change that much really but it's obvious that he enjoys the easy life and having a family to care about and to care about him. Unlike Verne who thinks everything through to the point of it being a bad thing, RJ simply does what feels right, which generally is right, and maintains his position as the moral center of their universe at the same time that he steals, critisizes and prides himself on being as lazy as possible. Through all his misguided wisdom, questionable ideas about ownership he is really innocent and spiritual and embodies the raw qualities of goodness. He equates the sunset to a tv show, but revels in its beauty none the less. And the squirrel? I'm waiting to read about that one. I know the one in the movie "Hammy" was in the comic for awhile but was turned into roadkill for some reason or other and was replaced by "Sammy", a carbon copy of "Hammy". I'm sure that time had a lot of thoughtful dialogue that I'm eager to read :) Throw in the sassy skunk that doesn't change a lick when she gets a 'makeover', a cat who loves her for who she is, a father/daughter opossum duo that is truly endearing, a trio of porcupine kids who excel at 'Auto homicide 3' (yes a take on Walter's favorite PS2 game 'Grand Theft Auto'), nemisises such as the Verminator (who NOT in character but in profession resembles my own brother) and the president of the local HOA (Walter being the VP just makes the character funnier) and the real bad guy - a grizzly hungry bear and what's not to enjoy??

So why waste my time with this? Like I said, it costs money to do anything else. The weather won't allow us to go to the pool or walk to the park, it takes gas to get anywhere fun, money to do anything fun if it close by, and honestly it's nice to just stay home once in awhile - even if it leads to pointless mini-essays like this one. I suppose I should help Tiana clean her room or something or other but that no more exciting for me than for her. She's enjoying making ice-pops anyway. Maybe one day I'll show how to use kool-aid or juice but for now, I'm enjoying the innocence of liking a popcicle just for the idea of being a popcicle and not because it's been tainted with sugar.

And let us not forget, on the issue of stem cell research, RJ's simple mind just crashes, having had the first serious thought in its life as Verne watches, amused.