Big Hero 6 is a movie we had been waiting on for most of this year. With Disney and Marvel coming off of huge successes from Frozen, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, and Guardians of the Galaxy in the last year, we had high hopes that this would be an equal success. After all, both Marvel and Disney seem to have hit their stride in storytelling – combining forces should be a slam-dunk, right?

For the most part, yes. Big Hero 6 gave us much of what we wanted. It’s a superhero film through a Disney lens, perfect for kids while also still engaging and entertaining for adults. It also carefully balances the audience it’s aiming for to appeal to both boys and girls, with a subtle message that geniuses – and heroes – come in all shapes, sizes, and skin colors.

Here’s our full review of Big Hero 6:

Synopsis

From Walt Disney Animation Studios, the team behind Frozen and Wreck-It Ralph, comes Big Hero 6, an action-packed comedy-adventure about the special bond that develops between Baymax, a plus-sized inflatable robot, and prodigy Hiro Hamada. When a devastating event befalls the city of San Fransokyo and catapults Hiro into the midst of danger, he turns to Baymax and his close friends; adrenaline junkie Go Go Tomago, neatnik Wasabi, chemistry whiz Honey Lemon and fanboy Fred. Determined to uncover the mystery, Hiro transforms his friends into a band of high-tech heroes called Big Hero 6.

The Feature

Big Hero 6 is an interesting mix of being a classic superhero story and a fairly traditional Disney film. We have the Disney protagonist  – young, orphaned, ready to go off and have their adventure – but we also have a very typical superhero origin story that could have been taken from the script for Iron Man: genius inventor finds that his technology is being used by an evil mastermind, uses technology left by his deceased family member and his own developed super suit to do battle against his own tech. It’s really almost a Disney version of Iron Man, without the drinking and playboy shenanigans. (But still the gambling.)

This makes for a film that is both extremely satisfying from the point of view of action and spectacle. The scenes of Baymax and Hiro flying through the skies of San Fransokyo are right up there with those of Stark flying in his Iron Man armor, and the battles between the team and Yokai are easily as well done as those of the Avengers facing against the Chitauri. But it also giving us plenty of time to explore the family dynamics and relationship between Hiro and his brother Tadashi (and then later, Baymax).

The team of heroes, aside from Hiro and Baymax, include Honey Lemon, Wasabi, Go Go and Fred. They round the cast out nicely, with each character having enough personality to be distinct, and their various super suits are varied enough to keep the heroes from being redundant. Other members of the cast have certainly enough personality to keep them interesting and make them more than just background, and they’re all fairly consistently developed, which is certainly a plus.

On the downside, one of the glaring missteps that we noticed was that the friendship between Hiro and the rest of the gang is almost completely left off-screen. We have it clearly established that they were all very good friends (and classmates) with Tadashi, and it is implied that Tadashi told them all about his genius-prodigy-younger-brother-who-has-been-wasting-his-time-with-bot-fights. There is a montage that has the potential to establish that Hiro has begun forging friendships with the rest of the gang, but their appearance in that montage is blink-and-you’ll-miss-it short.

Similarly, they’re present at the memorial for Tadashi, but we don’t really see them interacting with Hiro, yet by the time we get to the second act, we’re supposed to just accept that they are all the closest of friends, and that the idea of putting on super suits and fighting Yokai is something they will all just go along with.

A lot of this is simply a result of an unbalanced script. While establishing the relationship between Hiro and Tadashi is vital, a bit too much time is paid to it, and therefore not enough time is left to create the bonds between Hiro and Go Go, Honey Lemon, Wasabi and Fred. In fact, for all that they are each developed a bit, and the characters have distinct personalities and interests, we don’t see a lot of time given to any member of the team.

It’s a tough thing to balance, and certainly something that creators of other ensemble superhero films have struggled with. But one only needs to look at The Avengers or Guardians of the Galaxy to see where it works well. Big Hero 6 falls just a little short on that regard.

But what balances this misstep and makes the film delightful is Hiro and Baymax. Baymax is, perhaps, Disney’s most successful “cute sidekick” creation of the past two decades. He’s adorable and cute, but is also absent of the more annoying traits of the cute sidekick. Although ignorant of many things, Baymax is never dumb. His voice is calm and soothing instead of loud and grating. (The one thing I didn’t like as much about Olaf in Frozen.) And he absolutely is vital to the plot, in a way that cute sidekicks never are.

Little kids will want a plush Baymax to cuddle. Older kids will want an armored-up Baymax to play with and to fight alongside the Avengers and Justice League and Incredibles. And parents will wish they had a Baymax to send out in to the world alongside their children.

The Good

We have great action, inspired character design, and a really touching story about two brothers. Add in a villain with a complex motivation, and some great moral lessons and Disney delivers again. One positive is the diversity in the film. Of the five main (human) heroes, we have a mix of ethnicities, and two of five are female.

And while Honey Lemon is animated in a more exaggerated “eyes bigger than her knees” way, Go Go is a more solidly built woman. It might seem like a minor detail, but having thighs that would naturally be larger due to muscle development for a female character is significant to me, and having the two female heroes drawn with such different proportions sends the message that female heroes can come in different shapes and sizes.

The Bad

Insufficient time is given to four members out of the six heroes to make them fully-realized characters. They’re great sketches, but that’s all they are. More time spent forming the core friendship and unifying force of the team would have resulted in a more cohesive story. There were moments where the team felt like background players for Hiro and Baymax.

There are also some moments in the film that might be a little hard for younger kids. While Hiro and Tadashi’s parents are long gone when the movie starts, Tadashi’s death doesn’t come until we’ve already grown to like him and see how much he means to Hiro. His death is sudden and jarring, which could upset some kids.

Equally sad is a moment near the end that left Mira in tears. I don’t want to give away the details, but if you see the film and reach that point (and you’ll know it when it happens) with an upset kid, just know that the very end isn’t as tragic as this moment seems and it will get better. As a parent who often has to get advance peeks at films so I know when I’ll need to reassure my sensitive child, I promise it still ends on a happy note for the characters involved in that moment.

I also can’t understand why they decided to have Hiro and Tadashi raised by their aunt. Some might say the alternate family arrangement is a sign of diversity, but Disney already has a long track record of dead parents. The story would have worked equally as well if one parent was always traveling for business and the other was busy trying to keep up the bakery at home. Or a divorced parent scenario, perhaps.

The Ugly

If you’re a big fan of the appearances of the Big Hero 6 from Marvel Comics, then this movie is not for you. Their names and powers are (mostly) the same, but the characters couldn’t be much more different.

Also, something I wasn’t aware of until after I saw the film, several people were upset by the choice to make Fred a white guy. In the comics he was a member of the Ainu, a group of indigenous people on a Japanese island who historically were oppressed and discriminated against. I can see why Disney made the choice, since few Americans would know anything about the Ainu and it would be difficult to work into a movie designed for kids, but I also understand why it upset people.

Final Thoughts

Again, Big Hero 6 is not a perfect movie, and it would be very easy to fall prey to letting this movie become a victim of over-expectations. Which would be a shame, because what Big Hero 6 is, is a lot of fun. There’s a good heart-warming story at the film’s core, accompanied by some great action, incredible visuals, solid voice acting, and lovable characters.

Don’t overthink it. Sit back, relax and enjoy the film, and I think you’ll find Big Hero 6 to be a worthwhile experience. We really enjoyed the advanced screening we attended (the girls even said that they thought it was better than Frozen, which I had to disagree with them on), and have since gone to see it again and enjoyed it equally a second time.

Also, don’t forget that this is a Marvel movie. Look for the requisite Stan Lee cameo appearance, and be sure to stick around for the post-credits stinger.

Bonus

Disney has typically included an original short film before their films, and they’ve really been knocking it out of the park with the last few animated releases. Wreck It Ralph featured the exquisite Paperman and Frozen gave us the nostalgic Get a Horse. Big Hero 6 one-ups them with Feast, which is both incredibly funny and heart-breakingly sweet. The story of one man’s life through the dog he adopts – seen entirely from mealtimes. If Feast doesn’t tug on your heartstrings, then you’re made of stone.

I’m not sure who came up with the idea of releasing new Blu-ray and DVD movies on a Tuesday, but it certainly makes your Tuesday a little brighter when a movie you like is now available to everyone. Today is one of those days: Maleficent is now available on Disney Blu-ray™ Combo Pack, Digital HD, Disney Movies Anywhere, DVD and On-Demand.

I reviewed this movie when it was released to theaters back in May, and my review of the film itself still stands. (Go read the review if you haven’t already.) The film still works amazingly well on the smaller (48″) screen. I’m always concerned about darker parts of a film being too dark on my TV, but the Blu-ray has fantastic image quality and sharpness, and the sound is equally rich and vibrant.

Maleficent also holds up well for multiple viewings. We saw it twice in the theater: once with Aaron and me, and once with the kids included as well. I wanted to make sure the film wouldn’t be too scary for them, and found it was at just about the right level of entertainment and scare.

There are some scary moments.

Mira was a little too scared during the scene with the dragon when viewed in the theater, but at home and six months later, this scene no longer bothers her. I found myself just as interested watching it again at home as I was in the theater.

The storytelling throughout the film keeps the pace moving, and each stunning scene is filled with so much detail that I continue to find new things I hadn’t noticed before.

There are some fun extras included with the Blu-ray Combo pack, too. As is now almost a routine offering, a selection of deleted scenes are included. I particularly enjoyed the deleted scene between a younger Stefan and the King, where we see Stefan’s hunger for power developing early. The scene of the three fairies asking the newly crowned King Stefan for asylum was also a fun bit of backstory that I wish would have remained in the film.

Beyond the deleted scenes, there are also a few making-of featurettes that I liked, too. In “From Fairy Tale to Feature Film,” the cast and crew discuss how the concept of the film was developed from the Disney classic, Sleeping Beauty, and the challenge of how to make the audience care about Maleficent, who is often described as one of the greatest Disney villains.

And yes, it’s in that featurette you’ll also get to see the Jolie-Pitt family on-set, with Brad convincing his daughter (dressed as toddler Aurora) to walk to the edge of the “cliff” for the scene.

I also really liked the “Maleficent Revealed” featurette, which showed several clips of scenes starting from visual concept and progressing through the development and CGI process to result in the final storybook world.

The only featurette I was a little let down by was “Classic Couture,” which displayed some of the Maleficent head wraps and accessories, but disappointed on the commentary of the development of all of these gorgeous costume pieces.

The Maleficent Disney Blu-ray Combo Pack includes the Blu-ray and DVD versions of the film, plus the code for a Digital HD download as well. I entered the code into my Disney Movies Anywhere account, so we can now watch Maleficent on computer, tablet or phone whenever we want.

This is definitely a film I’m happy to include in our collection. It’s a great twist on the classic fairy tale we all know, and the acting and design are outstanding.

Want to extend the fun with your kids? Check out the Maleficent activity pages that Disney put together by clicking on the image below!

Disclosure: I received a copy of Maleficent to facilitate this review.

It’s hard for me not to love Sleeping Beauty. It was the first princess movie that Cordy really liked, and Aurora was the first princess she dressed as for Halloween.

I remember seeing the movie sometime during my childhood, too, and while the details are fuzzy, I do recall the slower pace, the beauty of the animation, and the songs that often had a soothing quality to them.

The story of Disney’s Sleeping Beauty is a simple one. Unlike Cinderella, with the mice serving as almost a sub-plot of the movie, Sleeping Beauty instead chooses to intensely focus on the classic tale itself, spending more time on character nuance and the moments that drive the action of the story.

If you’ve never seen Sleeping Beauty, now is the time to do so. Disney just brought it back out of the vault to join other classic films in the Diamond Edition on Blu-ray, Digital HD, and the new Disney Movies Anywhere service. The film has been polished and remastered, and several new bonus features have been bundled with it.

So why should you check out the new Diamond Edition of Disney’s Sleeping Beauty? Here are my top five reasons:

1. The restoration of the animation results in a film you can’t take your eyes off of. This is the first time Sleeping Beauty has been released in Digital HD quality, and every square inch of the screen is filled with a tapestry of colors and patterns that delight the eye. It proves that animation can be art, and indeed, you can pause at almost any moment in the movie and the frame looks like it could be a piece of art on your wall.

It’s one of the few animated films where the background is just as interesting to look at as the characters. It reminds me of medieval tapestries and paintings, in style and in color.

I’d love to have this as a print in my living room.

2. If you think the visuals are better, wait until you hear the music. The audio track of this film has also been digitally remastered to bring out the intended clarity of the music and vocals that simply couldn’t be accomplished with recording technology from 1959.

3. You’ll be reminded why Maleficent is one of the most chilling Disney villains ever. She’s stunning, and she’s unapologetically evil. Watching the movie again, I marveled at Maleficent’s cool, confident demeanor. When she taunts the imprisoned Prince Philip, you can tell she’s enjoying his torment. Every move is calculated, and yet ever-so-graceful.

She really is the mistress of evil. With style.

Having watched the live-action movie Maleficent recently, I was reminded again that Angelina Jolie had some large horns to fill in taking on this role. The original voice of Maleficent, Eleanor Audley, has a richness in her voice that is unmatched. When Maleficent threatens, you feel it on the other side of the screen. I’ve always felt Maleficent was the character to watch in this movie. Aurora is beautiful, innocent, and a joy to listen to, but not nearly as interesting as Maleficent.

4. The deleted and extended scenes show a peek at how the story could have gone. Additional all-new bonus features include never-before-seen deleted scenes “The Fair” (with Deleted Character The Vulture,) “The Curse is Fulfilled” and “Arrival Of Maleficent.”

I really enjoyed watching “The Fair,” where Aurora switches clothing with a servant to sneak out of the castle to see what life is like outside the castle walls. (Sounds like another daring princess we know – Jasmine.) While out, she finds a small town fair and meets Maleficent in disguise as a fortune teller, as well as Prince Philip.

It’s definitely a different version of the story, but I think it could have worked out just as well as having Aurora meet Philip in the woods, and would have provided a chance for Aurora to have contact with Maleficent before her spinning wheel accident.

5. The bonus features are great for Disney geeks. Some of the new features include “Once Upon A Parade,” in which “Modern Family” star Sarah Hyland tells us the tale of Walt Disney World’s new Festival Of Fantasy Parade, “Art of Evil: Generations Of Disney Villains,” a legacy piece spotlighting Disney’s favorite villain animator and Maleficent creator Marc Davis, and “@DisneyAnimation: Artists in Motion,” in which Walt Disney Animation Visual Development artist Brittney Lee goes through the process of creating a three dimensional sculpture of Maleficent, completely out of paper.

If you’re a recent visitor to Walt Disney World, you’ll especially love the “Once Upon A Parade” short, where the creation of the Festival of Fantasy Parade is given the fairytale treatment.

Disney’s Sleeping Beauty is the sixteenth animated feature in the Disney animated features canon and was the last animated feature produced by Walt Disney to be based upon a fairy tale. It is the tenth film released as part of Disney’s Blu-ray Diamond Collection – and with the Disney Movies Anywhere program, you can use the code to take the movie with you on your mobile devices.

Disclosure: I received a copy of this movie to facilitate my review. (And will now be retiring our old DVD copy of Sleeping Beauty.) All opinions are my own.