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For ages 3-7 The Backyardigans: It’s Great to be a Ghost Paramount Home Video; G; 98 minutes $17 Available Aug. 30 Animals that talk and go on adventures have been around since Mickey Mouse was a first mate in “Steamboat Willie,” but the viewers of this Nick Jr. animated series don’t know that, nor do they care. This animated series doesn’t break new ground on any level, but it is fun for small fry who like singing, dancing and a dash of silliness. And which youngster doesn’t? Regular characters Tyrone the moose, Uniqua the ladybug and Pablo the penguin are ghosts who have found the perfect old house to haunt in this pre-Halloween DVD. Accompanied by Roaring ’20s jazz, they test out their ghostly skills abilities that come in handy when Tasha the hippo shows up uninvited. Grade: B- Barney: Aleph-Bet Sisu Home Entertainment; G; 60 minutes $23 Available Aug. 2 We’ve always known Barney can sing and dance and teach young children all sorts of things. But did you know he spoke Hebrew? Well, maybe that’s stretching the truth a bit. I mean, he’s not exactly prepared for a Barney-Mitzvah. Still, the purple dinosaur does know his ABCs, or should we say his aleph-bet. All 25 of the Hebrew letters are covered in this title that’s been available on VHS since 2001. The songs are fine, and there’s nothing wrong with exposing children to one of the less-spoken languages in California outside the Jewish faith. However, there is better product out there, namely a title from Sesame Street’s Hebraic series called “Shalom Sesame.” Barney’s video is way too silly for my taste, but what do you expect from a spotted dino who giggles and prances? Grade: C Max & Ruby: Max & Ruby’s Halloween Paramount Home Video; G; 112 minutes $17 Available Aug. 30 One of the better-drawn Nick Jr. animated series is “Max & Ruby.” It also boasts some of the better children’s stories on cable television. Packed with autumn-time episodes, the DVD is led by a lightly spooked story that finds Max wanting to dress up as a vampire, but Ruby, believing his costume will scare grandma, thinks he should go as a prince. By the end, it’s Ruby as Cinderella who gets goose bumps when Grandma answers the door. Oh man, I gave away the ending. Grade: B+ For ages 4-9 Lilo & Stitch 2: Stitch Has a Glitch Disney; G; 72 minutes $30 Available Aug. 30 I wasn’t a fan of the 2002 Disney animated feature starring a Hawaiian girl and her misbehaving alien pet, so it shouldn’t come as a shock that yours truly was hardly enamored by this direct-to-video sequel. Like the original, the follow-up focuses on the title characters and Lilo’s sister Nani. A big hula competition provides the backdrop, and Stitch can’t help but bring calamity into the picture. Production quality is better than the average straight-to-video fare, but if there’s a more obnoxious, unlikable character than Stitch in Disney’s portfolio, I wouldn’t want to meet him, her or it. Dakota Fanning, who seems to be the only child actor these days, is the new voice of Lilo. Also among the voice cast are Tia Carrere, Jason Scott Lee and David Ogden Stiers. Grade: C- For ages 6-11 Because of Winn-Dixie Fox Home Video; PG; 106 minutes $30 Available Aug. 9 Based on the Kate DiCamillo’s Newberry Medal-winning bestseller, the poignant and humorous tale follows a lonely 10-year-old girl who adopts a stray dog, Winn-Dixie (so named for the supermarket where she found him), who helps her makes friends in the small Florida town. The bond between India Opal Buloni and her canine companion brings together the eclectic people of Naomi, and helps heal her own troubled relationship with her father, a preacher (Jeff Daniels) whose wife abandoned the family seven years earlier. Grade: B David Dickstein is the father of two boys, 11 and 9, and husband to a schoolteacher. He is a regular contributor. |
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