Movie Review: HOP

While I was back home this past weekend, my sister Amber and I decided to do the whole dinner-and-a-movie thing. We gorged ourself on the delicious Mexican cuisine of Riviera Maya and then headed to the theater, where we purchased tickets to see Hop. I've been wanting to see this movie since I saw the preview a couple of months ago, and I'm pleased to say I was not disappointed by the outcome.

Hop tells the story of Fred (James Marsden- yummy), an unemployed "slacker," and E.B. (voiced by Russell Brand), the son of the Easter Bunny who would rather follow his rock & roll dreams than follow in his father's footsteps. While E.B. is busy imposing on Fred's life in Hollywood, his father is back at Easter Island dealing with his missing son and unknowingly being plotted against by a power-starved chicken, who is determined to take over one of the most important jobs in the world. It's up to Fred and E.B. to sort out their differences and stop Carlos the chick from ruining Easter.

Alright, so obviously this movie doesn't have the most sophisticated plotline. It's definitely a family-friendly film marketed towards kids under the age of 13. But if you're like me (a HUGE sucker for cutesy kid movies), I strongly recommend you give Hop a chance.

James Marsden, Kaley Cuoco, and Russell Brand (along with the rest of the cast) do a great job at maintaining the movie's breezy, comedic feel. They make even the most corny jokes seem funny, and I found myself laughing out loud on several occasions throughout the movie. The animation and cinematography is great; at one point I wanted more than anything to step through the screen into the candy factory at Easter Island. Everything looked so real and so delicious.

I was a little disheartened when I got on Rotten Tomatoes and saw all of the negative reviews this movie had acquired after it's opening night. I feel like critics were a bit too harsh when it comes to Hop. Nobody expected it to be the next Avatar! But if you're looking for a movie that's cute, silly, and happy, you should have no qualms about this film.

And hey- David Hasselhoff makes an appearance. It's gotta be good if it involves The Hoff... right?