VeggieTales: An Easter Carol (2004)

the audience applauded

Simply Perfect

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.

the film does speak of Jesus as the central figure in history & gives a brief summary of his incarnation, life, suffering, death, & resurrection. it includes moral insights into the value of people over things. but it misses the mark in such a horrific way that i was disgusted, saddened. in easter future (play off dickens), mr. nezzer sees the consequences of tearing down a church building--a police officer who once displayed courage has lost hope, those who once cared for orphans give up & orphans walk the streets homeless...all this because of the loss of a building. i understand the place for symbolism, but the inference that a building stands for hope or the meaning of the resurrection is folly. let us consider history & the enduring work of Jesus. when nations have tried to rid their people of the influence of Christianity by removing bibles or tearing down church buildings or forbidding meetings, was the hope of the resurrection lost?

I find it interesting that an adult that obviously doesn't attend a church will leave a comment about a religious movie geared towards kids. I am a huge fan of Veggietales and have watched them from the beginning when my kids were preschool age. I feel the morals behind the stories our geared not just for religious kids but kids needing to learn the difference between right and wrong. Veggietales knows not to stray to far away from their Christian principals but they also know how to come across the story without cramming religion down your throats. I think most kids should watch these cartoons because at least they are better than a lot of the crappy Saturday morning cartoons that are on TV now. I was pleased to see that on Saturday mornings the program Qubo is showing Veggietales as well as 321 penguins (written by the same people) and though they have edited some religious content out for the show they still have strong moral meanings on the programs and they are still a blast for the kids. Go Larryboy! I wish TV shows were like they were ten or more years ago. TV is one big disappointment these days!

OK, I read a few of the people's comments, and really, I think you've sort of missed the point of the movie. The movie isn't talking about Easter, but about the main character's view on life. See how he always thinks that his mother was talking about items, things, material stuff? But she really wanted to teach him to follow God, and love others. I understand that this is a very Christian oriented movie, and that it doesn't offend anyone- it is Veggie Tales, after all, a movie for Sunday School teachers and other Christian teachers for little kids, mostly preschool, to show to their students. Veggie Tales is a pretty safe way to get the point across.Now, to the movie itself. Awesome! The kids love it. We had forty preschoolers or more stuffed into one large room to watch it when it came out, and they payed attention! Rebecca St. James' song about Easter is spectacular, and Larry and Bob get into trouble by not obeying (will they ever learn?). The main character misses the point of Christianity, but in the end, he learns what it truly means. Just in time....There are a lot of statements in the film about Easter not being all of this silly stuff. But in reality, I don't think that that is the point at all- it's about remembering what Christ did for us, and that we should follow him first, and not material things. If you're teaching a class of young Christians, I highly recommend this to you.

If you enjoy the other Big Idea productions, you will like this one. A unique look at Dickens that places the lovable Veggies in a struggle between what society says they should do and what their conscious tells them to do. The literary and movie allusions are priceless. The Rebecca St James song at the end is absolutely gorgeous. To say that you didn't like a Veggie Tales product because of the "religious propaganda" is like saying you watched a football game but didn't like it because of all the athleticism. That's the whole point.My children loved it and I even found myself snickering a few times.