The Rugrats Movie

Rugrats: A name I had never even heard until my daughter started watching it. My son soon followed and joined sis on the couch when the familiar theme song kicked in. They are 6 and 4 now and were thrilled when they announced the movie version of their favorite show. Mom and I promised to take them. As we arrived in the theatre, there were families all over just like ours. Once the film started, however, I was 6 years old again, watching my favorite cartoons. Rugrats movie is a joy for parents and kids alike. There is adult humor (referring to the sex of the new pickles baby, one parent says "if born under venus, look for a" ...before being cut off. There is kid humor too, multiple diaper jokes, and just plain FUN! Parents, and non-parents alike owe it to themselves to see this fun movie. If you have kids, it is a joy to see their faces light up when the theme song kicks in, and Tommy squirts the screen with his bottle (just as the SDDS sound kicks in, and the title breaks on-screen)

This is a great way to spend 85 minutes, and while my 4 year old got a little restless during the forest scenes (about 1/3 of the movie), my 6-year old sat through it with nary a word. A great time for kids of all ages, and a good way for parents and kids to spend some time together.

RUGRATS RULE! I love this movie. It's like one of my favorite cartoon movies ever. If you don't like Rugrats you are crazy. Everything about it is cool. The plot was good. The music is very cool. I recommend this movie to anyone who loves rugrats and likes cartoon movies.

Why do filmmakers find it necessary to try to turn cartoons into musicals? I found the many star-studded music numbers irritating, and a poor attempt to appear "cool" to the adult viewers. The entire plot element of the train-wrecked monkeys added nothing to the film, and seemed senseless. My 7 year old son enjoyed it except for the singing. The TV show is better.

As a big fan of the Nickelodeon television show, "The Rugrats", I was really itching to see this when I first heard they were making a movie, and I am a teenager, too. I was there opening weekend, and lemme tell ya, you don't have to be a toddler to love animated movies. I thoroughly enjoyed this movie. There was very good animation, a good little story, upbeat and catchy songs as well as lyrics, and the action will keep the little ones entertained. ***** out of *****.

Taking place immediately after the "Rugrats" episode "The Family Tree" where Didi finds out she's pregnant. "The Rugrats Movie" is when Tommy's new sibling is finally born. The Rugrats are very excited about Tommy's new sister, but when the baby is finally born, it's a boy. Baby Dil practically does nothing, but cry, scream, and poop. Tommy thinks he can take him back to the hospital in exchange for a new baby brother, but soon they all get lost in the woods. This is their first time in actual danger, not just their imaginations.

This is certainly not the best story for a movie, but it is okay. Baby Dil, however is very annoying. More-so in the later episodes of the show than this movie, because he constantly interrupts their adventures and makes every episode about baby-sitting Dil.

While "The Rugrats Movie" is a decent film, it has flaws.

• It's starts the downfall of a once great cartoon show.

• Like in "Pokémon: The First Movie" this film tries a little bit too hard to be darker and more dramatic than the TV show it's based on.

• There are WAY too many jokes about poop, pee and other such gross things. I'm fine with crude humor when it's in small doses (like on "Rocko's Modern Life"), or when it's actually made funny (like on "The Ren & Stimpy Show"). But this movie (and the later episodes of the show) just over-do it.

There are good things too though.

• I loved the opening sequence of the film.

• The animation is great, and perfect for the big screen.

• The voice acting is top-notch.

• Some parts were really funny. Like when they spoofed "Indiana Jones".

Overall this is a decent and mildly entertaining film. But it's certainly not one of the greatest animated movies ever. There are better movies of animated TV shows ("The Simpsons Movie"; "The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie"; "Batman: Mask of the Phantasm"), but there are also worse ones ("Aqua Teen Hunger Force: Colon Film for Theaters"; "Pokémon: The First Movie"). Funny, nicely animated, good voice acting, but a little bit too much potty jokes, and it added a horrible character to a great TV show.

Rating: 6/10 "Decent"