St. Cloud Times from Saint Cloud, Minnesota • Page 63

Movies 'Hey will captivate young 1J J'w Page 21 Thursday, June 27, 2002 -r 1. July 3-4-? 7:30 pan. r- Adults who accompany children will find film long, predictable, somewhat violent By Malcolm Ritter The Associated Press "Hey Arnold! The Movie" held the attention of a roomful of otherwise active youngsters at a New York screening the other day. And as a practical matter, that may tell parents all they need to know. But grownups who accompany their kids to the theater may notice their own attention wandering during the show.

This feels like a long and fairly predictable cartoon. It's based on the "Hey Arnold!" television show, which began in 1996 on Nickelodeon. Of course the animated movie features Arnold (voiced by Spencer Klein), a decent 9-year-old kid with a football-shaped head, and Helga (voiced by Francesca Marie Smith), who acts as his nemesis to conceal her love for him. They live in a cozy urban neighborhood, nicely rendered in lush colors in the movie. But the evil tycoon Mr.

Scheck (voiced by Paul Sorvino) wants to bulldoze the place and put up a shopping mall, it's up to Arnold, his best friend Gerald and other neighborhood pals to stop Scheck and his sleazy henchmen. No moral ambiguities here. It's greed and evil on one side, and ordinary folks protecting their homes on the other. It's bulldozers, helicopters and a SWAT team versus handbills, a small picket line and a street concert Children irj the audience will have no trouble voting with their -J It all unfolds just about as a grownup might expect, though at a leisurely pace that makes the movie's 72 minutes seem longer. There are some bright spots.

When Arnold and Gerald visit the city morgue, the scene itself is not only funny, but Christopher Lloyd gives an inspired performance as the voice of the spooky coroner. And kids may catch and enjoy references to other shows: Arnold Benton Gounty (1 Featuring some of the top cowbbys ahd cowgirls in the country competing in: Bareback Calf Roping Saddle Bronc Steer Wrestling Barrel Racing Team Roping Bull Riding BULL-A-RAMA EVENT JULY 5th, 7:30 P.M. Gannett News Service photo Gerald (left to right), Arnold and Helga in the motion picture "Hey Arnold! The Movie." Review Iby Arnold! Th2 Starring Voices of Spencer Klein, Francesca Marie Smith, Paul Sorvino. Rated PG. Showtimes starting Friday 12:30, 2:30, 4:30, 6:30, 8:30 p.m.

daily. i Parkwood 18, Waite Park. and Gerald don spy outfits to be- come an animated version of Men in Black; when Helga's dad is doused with green pickle juice in a fistfight, he does a fair imitation of the Incredible Hulk. Be aware, parents, that fistfight is only part of the violence portrayed in the movie, which also includes destructive explosions, a man getting whacked in the groin and a bus crash. It's not bloody, but some young children and their parents might be Presented by: 'GMT CHEVROLET JLtcMMMM.

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