Not sweet enough . . .By John DeSando, "It's Movie Time," "Cinema Classics," and "On the Marquee"
Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole
"Legend tells of a band of noble warriors... known as the Guardians of Ga'hoole. Whenever trouble is at hand, seek them out. For they are sworn to protect the innocent, and vanquish evil."
Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole is a tale told for children in some allegorical universe of simple barn owls to glorious warrior owls, all engaged in battle against the "pure" owls who want to take over the world. They plan to do it by abducting, enslaving, and hypnotizing the younger owls into submission to become workers and warriors.
Wait, you're thinking this low-rent Lord of the Rings is too bellicose and unfit for young children?I agree. Most of the animation is owls donning war gear of metal talons and masks and fighting each other or those pesky bats that have no innards and thus are invulnerable to the "flecks," a lightening-like force that zaps owl enemies.
I'm tired of explaining plot because there should be more than Nazi and noble battle subtexts. Sorry, the need to be fierce and warlike is the dominant mode here, best exemplified in two brothers who fight for the opposing armies.
It's all pretty dreary except for the flying scenes, which have grace and believability, aided by 3-D, which I usually find annoying but appropriate here for the lofty places the owls inhabit. Additionally, the owls are sometimes lookalikes that add to the confusion of a fairly intricate plot for kids.
The tale can't be that pleasing given the complicated allegiances and quick-cutting battles, where directors even in animation can do just about what they want because you can't really tell what's going on.
Not sweet enough for children, too formulaic for adults, Legend of the Guardians finds itself in limbo and therefore questionable box office clout. Enough people were parading in and out of the preview to convince me it has limited appeal.
John DeSando co-hosts It's Movie Time, Cinema Classics, and On the Marquee for WCBE 90.5. The shows can be heard streaming at http://publicbroadcasting.net/wcbe/ppr/index.shtml and on demand at http://www.publicbroadcasting.net/wcbe/arts.artsmain Contact him at JDeSando@Columbus.RR.com