Review..not beauty :)... The Croods DVD.

Lou Lou clearly approves of the choice of film :)

Watching The Croods accompanied a morning wrapped in a duvet.

The Croods launches imminently on DVD & Blue ray and it is a fabulous release just in time for Christmas as it is a film for the entire family.

It is a film from the Dreamworks studio and it is a computer-animated adventure. I LOVE cartoons (maybe a little too much ) and as a family we really enjoyed The Croods.

There are some points that really set it a part: John Cleese was one of the writers -so the story moves along a brisk pace with lots of slapstick moments and the strong female characters opposed to the females being *lacking*. The music is orchestral and definitely enhances the dramatic scenes. The cast of actors is A list ranging from: Nicholas Cage, Emma Stone & Ryan Reynolds.

The Croods is essentially a story about family/growing up and how parents adapt to that (in particular Father/teenage daughter) relationships. How change sometimes is thrust upon us, not just a physical change but changes in our environment and how we adapt as a family dynamic. How as parents you sometimes need to listen to other advice and even the age old story about realising as a parent when your children are actually adults. It is about evolution in more than one sense of the word.

The Croods are cavemen that see danger in *everything* with the Father's mantra being "Never not being afraid". At the end of each day he tells a story that pretty much results in somebody being killed because they weren't cautious enough. The family bicker and have the normal disputes but because this is a cartoon all ends well and we are taken along on this coming of age/ 1st love story with many implausible parts (of course) but it is a sweet story. Eventually through circumstance The Croods stop seeing everything as a potential *threat* and start to see the wonder and beauty around them, they start to change. The cartoon has some genuinely laugh out loud moments and some touching ones too. To sum up...Children grow up, the world changes at breakneck speed around us, there is danger everywhere but you have to *live* and enjoy life.

We LOVED it!  We are: 2 parents and an 8yr old and it kept us thoroughly entertained throughout the whole film.

Some beautiful animation.

PS: There are some REALLY cute animal characters and the 1st incarnation of the domestic cat (a sabre tooth tiger).

The family *cat*.

*Belt* the sweetest sloth in cartoon history.

The Croods, their extended family including *pets*.

Token *baddy*

More than a passing resemblance to the bad guy (but our Mr Whiskers) is no baddy :)

* I was sent this film to review by Mumsnet*  The DVD/blueray is out on Monday 9th.