As you know 2009 was a record-breaking year for movies and family films, specifically animated films, accounted for a a big part of the $10.5 billion spent at the box office. Not all of those family films were worth seeing, but many of them were, and 10 stood out above the rest.
Here is my list of the Top 10 Family Films of 2009:
#10) “Bandslam” – It came out in August and hardly anybody noticed, which was too bad. Good acting and nice story, with believable characters and surprising twists. See it on video.
#9) “The Blind Side” – Inspiring, true story of football player Michael Oher and the family that takes him in. Sandra Bullock’s role of a lifetime.
#8) “Paul Blart: Mall Cop” – Released in January and still made it on my list. Funniest live-action film of the year. Kevin James was born to play this role of a mall security guard forced to become a hero.
#7) “Star Trek” – The best of the big budget summer blockbusters. Fast-paced and action-packed. A cool looking film that provides the back-story to the Star Trek saga, meaning you don’t have to be a Trekkie to really enjoy it.
#6) “Julie and Julia” – Outstanding performances by Meryl Streep and Amy Adams bring this clever story of a young wife looking to become a good cook and her idol, Julia Child, to life. Maybe the most entertaining movie I saw this year.
#5) “Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs” – The third and BEST of the “Ice Age” films. Very funny dialogue, great voice work and sparkling animation.
#4) “Michael Jackson’s This Is It” – A wonderful tribute to The King of Pop. Fantastic music and rehearsal footage. I smiled through the entire film. Amazing job by director Kenny Ortega of putting this outstanding documentary together so quickly after Jackson’s death.
#3) “Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs” – Great writing, terrific animation and a nice story. Plus, the 3-D animation is as good as it gets. So many funny lines and gags that I had to see it twice just to get them all. The funniest animated film of the year by far. Sony Pictures Animation stays on a roll.
#2) “Up” – Nice bounce-back by Pixar, after last year’s disappointing “Wall-E”. A very emotional story that also has it’s funny moments. The most adult of any of the Pixar films. It was #1 on my list until December.
#1) “Fantastic Mr. Fox” – An fantastic script, memorable characters and phenomenal stop-motion animation puts “Mr. Fox” at the top of the list. It has a quirkiness that I simply love. And the voice-work, led by George Clooney and Meryl Streep, is outstanding. It didn’t do well at the box office but will get the attention it deserves when it comes out on DVD.