The Best New Disney Movie You Probably Haven’t Seen Yet
With six children, it’s always a fun time in the DVD section of our favorite stores. Baby Gingy is addicted to Sesame Street (old school, of course) and the oldest is 12 going on 17 and scoffs at anything that looks too kiddie like. The four in between are hit and miss depending on the film.
I finally picked up a movie that I had been very curious about since it’s release on DVD almost a month ago. It’s a Disney co-production called The Secret of the Magic Gourd.
The title is an odd one. The cover art even more odd. Would kids sit through a movie about a talking VEGETABLE?!?! Most kids HATE vegetables!
I am so glad I went with my instinct that there was something magical going on with this title.
This effort was apparently the first of Disney’s Chinese co-productions. So you will notice right away that the cast is Asian and the film is dubbed into English. For a kid that grew up on Godzilla movies (the REAL ones) and Ultraman on television, this was just fine with me.
And luckily it didn’t bother the kids any, either. In fact, they were all glued to the screen. Well, my 12-year-old abstained from family movie night as he generally does. But even HE popped into the room once or twice and was genuinely intrigued by what he was seeing (although he would never admit it…hahaha).
The film is about a young boy named Raymond who finds a magical gourd named Bailey. The cute orange vegetable grants him any wish his heart desires. All his friends get to see a movie, so one wish is to be in the movie, too. Only problem is, sometimes Raymond isn’t clear enough, and sometimes Bailey can take things a little too literally. So next thing he knows, Raymond is IN the movie being chased by a gigantic T-Rex.
It’s the age old lesson, be careful what you wish for because you just might get it. And you won’t always like it when you do!
The movie is a mixture of live action and actors mixed in with some of the most beautiful and imaginative computer generated images you have seen.
It amazed me that good, solid, G rated movies could still be made that can entertain kids and adults alike. It seems that even many animated, supposedly “family friendly” movies are PG rated. That’s not the end of the world, granted, but why does a kids movie have to require (or recommend anyway) the presence of adults??
The Secret of the Magic Gourd offers wonderful characters and amazingly–a moral at the end of the story. How refreshing to have a movie that teaches kids that having everything you want isn’t always what it’s cracked up to be! And that the biggest rewards in life are the ones we work the hardest to achieve!
I was so pleased to watch the kids squeal and laugh with delight throughout the film. I had tears welling up at the end because it wraps up so beautifully and powerfully. The kids want to see this one again and again. It has a home right next to the DVD player for now, and I am sure, for some time to come.
So take it from me, a movie with an orange vegetable as the title character delivers more than meets the eye. WIthout question, go buy it today if you have kids. And if you don’t, you owe it to the kid in you to at least rent it.
