"Pooh’s Heffalump Movie” (Walt Disney Pictures)
Parents can rest assured when they enter theaters to see “Pooh’s Heffalump Movie” they are getting Disney family entertainment at its best. This sweet and gentle movie features all of the favorite Pooh characters from Pooh and Piglet to Rabbit and Eeyore. Plus there are the comic antics of Tigger and the adorable curiosity of Roo. Your kids are going to love this one and you aren’t going to have difficulty sitting through it either.
The movie starts off with the inhabitants of the “hundred acre” wood being roused from their sleep by the trumpeting sounds of the “heffalumps” who live in the adjoining forest. Roo is particularly intrigued by this sound and gathers all the others together to discuss it. They finally agree to go on an expedition into the “other” forest to try to capture a “heffalump.” Roo can hardly wait to go but at the last minute Rabbit tells him he is too young for such a scary trek.
So while the others go off on an adventure, Roo is left behind. But not for long. He gets his rope and heads into the woods on his on. Soon he meets Lumpy, a baby heffalump, who is friendly and fun as he can be. Roo makes friends with him and soon realizes that “Heffalumps” are not terrible monsters but just people like him and the rest of his world.
This is the basic premise of the story and it is carried out with humor and warmth. The loveable Lumpy is a welcome addition to the world of Pooh, and even Mama Heffalump would be welcomed back. This is where the genius of the Disney people comes in to full play. They make these creatures so appealing to kids that they want to see them over and over.
One of the big plusses of the movie is the music. Carly Simon wrote six songs for the film and she and the characters in the movie perform them with simplicity and beauty. These songs interweave with the animation and the forcefulness of the characters to become a seamless part of it all.
The movie is rated G and is completely kid friendly and appropriate.
For a nice family outing “Pooh’s Heffalump Movie” is the perfect one to see. It entertains completely and also raises the issue of being accepting of all people. We can learn form Pooh and his friends that we shouldn’t prejudge people, and never make decisions concerning them until we have gotten to know them. Good message, good movie.
I scored “Pooh’s Heffalump Movie” an adventuresome 7 out of 10.
