Good family entertainment, catch this one on mother's day for sure

Rating: 8/10 (14 December 2014)

"Brave" has a lot of laughs, a touching story about the relationship between a girl and her mother and some interesting, well developed characters. The film looks great (the hair and clothes look better in this film than in any other computer generated movie) and it has a lot of subtle qualities that make it enjoyable. My favorite? The lack of a contrived love plot, something present in countless children's movies? When I was a kid, I didn't care about getting married and I know most of my friends didn't pay any attention the idea either, so why do so many children's films shoehorn in those love plots? I also liked that there are some jokes aimed more at the parents, without the movie using innuendo or other cheap "adult" gags so there's something for everyone here. It's not Pixar's strongest film, but it's better than most movies aimed at kids and you'll be hard pressed to find a family movie about a mother and a teenage daughter that will make you smile as much as this one. (3D theatrical version on the big screen, July 24, 2012)