Freedom Force

Watching this horribly executed film will make you wish you could hit your own reset button. Although it has an incredibly clever plot, some cool gadgets, and some great actors voicing some of the characters (Sarah Michelle Geller and Christopher Lloyd), FREEDOM FORCE badly misses the mark. Although everyone talks a lot about Jules Verne, you're only given the most minor details of the plots of any of the stories featured. Instead, a lot of time is taken up focusing on Profiterole's horrible gas and how it can be used to save the day. The subject matter being borrowed from is so rich (Journeys to the moon! Giant squid! Submarines! And more!), but the character development is weak, and too much time is spent on slapstick and gross-out humor. The dialogue is also often really awkward, but some of that may be due to it being overdubbed. It's such a shame, because with some better dialogue and a slightly stronger plot, this could have been a great way to get kids interested in science fiction.

Kids will no doubt be entertained by the gadgets -- and the gross-out humor. But you'd probably be better off doing a double feature of Spy Kids and 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea instead.