Me Mini Movie Reviews – Hoodwinked

Ok, normally I’m all Mr. Film Noir/Crime Drama/Sci-Fi, but Hoodwinked is just plain fun. This’ll be a brief review, but had to throw something up to mention this little gem of a movie. It an animated flick, but it’s hard to believe this is directed solely at the kiddie demographic. Sure, they’d probably enjoy it, but most of the jokes and humor are probably aimed at an older crowd (though it's still totally clean humor and safe for kids). Either way, I found it laugh out loud funny and way funnier than most live action big screen “comedies” that come out these days. It starts out with the realization that there’s a thief on the loose in the Enchanted Forest stealing the critter’s goodies recipes. This is resulting in the different goody makers closing up shop. Granny still has her recipes in the care of Red Riding Hood, who decides to take them to Granny’s cabin in the woods for safety. A series of events later, and Red Riding Hood, Granny, The Wolf, and The Woodsman are all holed up at Granny’s under investigation of local police (Chief Grizzly). Each gets their chance to tell their side of the story, and we see each one play out as they try to solve the mystery. To say any more would ruin the hilarity. The charm of this movie is the humor. It’s certainly my kind of funny – sarcastic oneliners aplenty. They also do takeoffs of a couple different movies as well. The Wolf is definitely a take on Chevy Chase’s Fletch, and there’s a good run of Vin Diesel’s XXX jokes too. My favorite characters are Wolf and his sidekick squirrel photographer Twitchy, who talks a hundred miles an hour. Some great lines come from Wolf. Also, Bunny just cracks me up – especially closer to the end (the whole “Keith” bit is hilarious). The animation is top notch. Colorful surroundings and detailed everything including the facial expression of the various characters which often times make the jokes even funnier. This is a perfect movie if you just want something light to make you laugh and you’re tired of the lame attempts of modern comedies. A nice way to relax and not have anything heavy for 90 minutes. Verdict: Highly Recommended. You can download the trailer here.