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One night at their home in Japan, Professor Sato (voiced by Gedde Watanabe) tells his young, baseball-loving son, Kenji (Hiro Nakamura), that “Ultraman’s most important task is to find balance.” Moments later, Sato receives a message that the kaiju monster Gigantron is approaching. Sato goes outside and transforms into Ultraman, a giant superhero who battles such monsters. Fast forward 20 years and Kenji is now a professional baseball player known as Ken (Christopher Sean). When he moves from the Los Angeles Dodgers to Japan’s Yomiuri Giants, he takes over his father’s role as the monster fighter Ultraman.
Since 1966, Eiji Tsuburaya’s superhero creation has spawned a fair number of spinoffs, and this Netflix version focuses on themes of family, parenthood, and finding balance in life. That might sound a bit lofty for younger viewers, and the life-lesson sequences bored my 6-year-old a little, but there were enough action scenes to ultimately keep his attention.
Ken is up against his own ego, rampaging monsters, and Dr. Onda (Keone Young), the head of the Kaiju Defense Force. The parenting theme kicks into high gear when Ken adopts an adorable baby kaiju named Ami (Julia Harriman). Shannon Tindle directs the film, which he co-wrote with Marc Haimes.
Lincoln Loud (Bentley Griffin), a spy-loving boy, is more than excited to have a spy as a new grandmother when his grandfather Pop Pop (Piotr Michael) becomes engaged to Myrtle (Alex Cazares), a former professional detective. As Lincoln and his 10 sisters prepare for their tropical wedding, he assures his Gran Gran-to-be that if any enemies from her past surface, he will help her save the day. Of course, an old enemy do disrupt the wedding.
An extension of the long-running, Emmy-winning Nickelodeon series “The Loud House,” this film has some clever touches that riff on blockbuster spy films like, of course, the James Bond film “No Time to Die.” And it’s fun to watch Pop Pop worry that he’s too boring for Myrtle, only to become a hero and develop a new sense of self-confidence. Kyle Marshall, who helped create more than 60 episodes of the series, directed. Whitney Wetta and Jeff Sayers, also series veterans, co-wrote the screenplay.
The film contains lots of chases, booby traps and funny, family-friendly humor, so it will be suitable for older preschoolers and younger children of primary school age.
‘Big City Greens the Movie: Spacecation’
Kids don’t have to be die-hard fans of the Disney Channel series “Big City Greens,” created by brothers Shane and Chris Houghton, to love this big-budget adaptation, which sees the rural Green family head into space. Wild child Cricket Green (Chris Houghton) is constantly seeking adventure, but his farming family can’t afford the SpaceX price tags to actually travel into space. When they’re offered a free trip if they can save a failing asteroid farm, Cricket convinces the gang — his predictable father, Bill (Bob Joles), sister Tilly (Marieve Herington) and grandmother Alice (Artemis Pebdani) — to take the ultimate vacation. Bill’s motorcycle-riding ex-wife, Nancy (Wendi McLendon-Covey), and Cricket’s wealthy best friend, Remy (Zeno Robinson), also join the cast.
The charm and humor of the characters, which make the show so watchable, are on full display and the musical numbers should hold the attention of the little ones. Anna O’Brian, who has directed several episodes of the series, directed.
‘Blue’s Big City Adventure’
Most parents who watch TV with a preschooler have probably heard the words, “My handy, awesome notebook!” at least 100 times. It’s a catchphrase on the popular educational show “Blue’s Clues & You!”, which follows a predictable formula: The host, Josh (Joshua Dela Cruz), jots down clues in his notebook, which he and his animated canine friend, Blue (voiced by Traci Paige Johnson), follow to solve mysteries.
In the film, Josh and Blue leave the animated, colorful Storybook World, where the show is set, for the real Manhattan. Josh has an audition for a Broadway show, but when he realizes he’s lost his precious notebook containing the address to the audition, the duo dance and sing their way through New York City looking for clues to find it. Original “Blue’s Clues” host Steve Burns returns to the story, and there are animated, talking salt shakers, alarm clocks and bars of soap to charm younger kids. Preschoolers will love the film’s ultra-spicy vibe, and the inclusivity of the casting is a big plus.
Music video director Matt Stawski directed the film and Angela C. Santomero, who co-created the show and created “Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood,” wrote the script.
‘Kleks Academy’
Based on a novel by Polish author Jan Brzechwa, this dark fantasy opens in the eerie Realm of the Wolfurs, where werewolf villains declare that “no creature will ever stand in our way again.” Cut to a Polish neighborhood in New York City, where Ada (Antonina Litwiniak), a preteen on a scooter, is tearing through the streets, calling a rude cab driver a “fatso” (not the best way to introduce a character to children, but she later redeems herself). She’s quickly recruited to join Kleks Academy, a Hogwarts-style wizarding school. Ada is skeptical, but her kindly (and mysterious) neighbor urges her to go, telling her she must follow her destiny and solve the mystery of her father’s disappearance. “Which will you choose: the world you know, or the greatest adventure of your life?” the neighbor asks.
Adults may be annoyed by the dubbed English dialogue, but kids who enjoy (and aren’t too afraid of) dark themes should be enchanted by the magical realism of the world Ada enters. There are lessons about empathy and self-belief that help Ada transform from tough, cynical city kid into courageous leader. Maciej Kawulski directed, and Krzysztof Gureczny and Agnieszka Kruk wrote the screenplay.
