Category: Movies

May 28, 2017

My Little Pony Friendship is Magic: Twilight and Starlight Giveaway

Everypony knows the best gift is the gift of friendship!

About My Little Pony Friendship is Magic: Twilight and Starlight

My Little Pony – Friendship Is Magic: Twilight and Starlight is coming to DVD on May 30 in the U.S. and Canada from Shout! Kids in collaboration with Hasbro Studios. We all know friendship is special and magical but it takes work! We are all different and those differences make us perfect for each other. Sometimes its hard to learn how to accept those differences, love each other for them and how to share.

In this DVD, now that she’s fully reformed, Starlight Glimmer still has a lot to learn about friendship. And who better to teach her all about friendship than the studious pony who once had to learn the valuable lesson herself: Twilight Sparkle? Join Twilight and her best friends — Spike, Pinkie Pie, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Rarity and Fluttershy — as they embark on the quest to give Starlight the most powerful magic of all… friendship.

My Little Pony Friendship is Magic: Twilight and Starlight is available to order on Amazon, Amazon Canada and Shout! Kids.

Episodes Include:

No Second Prances
To Where and Back Again, Part 1
To Where and Back Again, Part 2
Celestial Advice
All Bottled Up
BONUS: Sing Along

Trailer

If you are ready to get in on all the My Little Pony friendship action, enter the giveaway below via Rafflecopter. Shout!Kids and I are giving you the chance to win a copy of this DVD. Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclosure: I received the above DVD in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.

April 7, 2017

Miraculous Tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir: It’s Ladybug!

The most Miraculous adventures of Ladybug and Cat Noir continue in It’s Ladybug! Paris’ favorite crime-fighting duo return in a new volume of the action-adventure comedy that will have you on the edge of your seat.

About Miraculous Tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir: It’s Ladybug!

The action-packed CGI animated TV series Miraculous™: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir: It’s Ladybug! will be available on DVD April 11, 2017, from Shout! Kids, in collaboration with ZAG. This release includes six amazing episodes on DVD and a Ladybug paper doll, while supplies last.

When Paris is threatened by super villains, two amazing heroes are our only hope: Ladybug and Cat Noir. With the help of their magical kwamis, this incredible duo team up to outwit the forces of evil but their biggest challenge might be getting through school. In their normal lives, Marinette and Adrien are just a pair of young students, but in reality, this terrific twosome must juggle schoolwork, friends, family and growing up in a world where every day is a high-flying adventure!

Episodes included in this DVD are:

Princess Fragrance
Gamer
Reflekta
The Puppeteer
Antibug
Volpina

We are huge Ladybug and Cat Noir fans in our house! We love their sense of adventure and humour, all while providing children with a strong, intelligent female superhero. The graphics are amazing and geared to the appropriate age group. We loved that these two are normal kids with school work, pressures from school, friends and family but also lead this exciting second life as superheroes. You can find a review of the Canadian release of Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir here and Be Miraculous here.

The Giveaway!

My Canadian and American readers can now enter to win their own DVD copy of It’s Ladybug! from Shout!Kids and Working Mommy Journal via the Rafflecopter form below. Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclosure: I received a copy of this DVD in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.

March 29, 2017

Break Down Gender Stereotypes with Inspirational Content #StreamTeam

My parents raised me to know that I could do anything and be anything that I wanted to be. They encouraged me to play sports, get dirty and have fun. I was the kid who always came home from daycare and later school with cuts and bruises (and I still have some of the scars on my legs to prove it) and the one who wanted to be first to try everything. I had no fears and I felt safe to be myself, even through some of my crazier phases! My parents never stopped supporting me to be the best me.

It wasn’t until I was older that I started to realize that some people have different expectations for girls and young women. I loved the sciences and wanted to be a surgeon when I was in high school, which my parents fully encouraged me to follow. They reminded me that I could do anything that I wanted and that I should never let common gender stereotypes guide my decisions. While that wasn’t the field I found myself in, my parents supported me and encouraged me throughout my years at McMaster and when I became a parent myself.

When I had my boys, I wanted them to know the exact same security and confidence my parents gave me as a child and young adult. I wanted them to feel free to cry, to show emotion, run, play and dress however they wanted without fear. It was important to me that they see that Dads cook, clean and do laundry and Moms can cut the grass, go to work and can play just as hard on the soccer field as Dad can. That is what I grew up with and it is so important for children to see that there are no rules for boys and rules for girls. We are all strong individuals who need to be pushed to be the best version of us.

An important part of supporting our children is to monitor what they see on TV. While sometimes the content can be okay, other times the content can actually push the typical gender stereotypes we are trying to push away from. It has even been show that girls as young as six can be effected by the gender stereotypes they see on television and it can have lasting affects.

We want both boys and girls to see girls in strong leadership roles – this is not a role reserved solely for boys and girls should be encouraged to be a strong leader. More often than not, films and series aren’t showing enough of this. But if you look hard enough you can definitely find some pretty great content that will help your child understand they can be and do anything they want. If you are looking for great content for your children, check out these top three picks currently featured on Netflix:

A Series of Unfortunate Events
One Day at a Time
Home: Adventures with Tip and Oh

Spending quality time with your children teaching them that they can be and do whatever they put their mind to is one of the most important things you can for your child, whether you have a daughter or a son. They need to understand that there are no restrictions on what they can achieve if they put their mind to it. You can do it every day by sharing roles as parents, supporting your child in their decisions and ensuring they are watching content with you that inspires and encourages them to be their best.

How do you help break down gender stereotypes for your children?

Disclosure: I am a Netflix #StreamTeam member and receive perks with this affiliation. All opinions expressed are my own.

March 15, 2017

Gwen Stefani’s KUU KUU HARAJUKU: MUSIC, BABY is Coming to DVD!

Gwen Stefani’s animated series KUU KUU HARAJUKU will be coming to DVD in North America from Shout! Factory in collaboration with DHX Media and will be available on DVD on June 13^th 2017.

About KUU KUU HARAJUKU

The animated series KUU KUU HARAJUKU follows the fun-filled adventures of the band HJ5 – Love, Angel, Music, Baby and G – through their super kawaii (cute) world of music, fashion and style. The inspiration for this popular animated series came from Grammy® Award-winning musician Gwen Stefani who wanted to create an animated series for girls that encourages and celebrates creative self-expression, imagination and individuality. The show’s setting is inspired by the exuberant street fashion and creative youth culture of the Harajuku district but takes place in a magical fantasy world like nothing you have ever seen before.

G is the lead singer of HJ5. She is a natural leader and an amazing friend. She’s positive and enthusiastic, and fond of saying “Tick tock, time to rock!” Love is a fashionista, a great dancer, and cute as a button. She’s also a genius who often saves the day with her inventions. Angel is super chic, fun and enthusiastic. This fashionista has 325 pairs of shoes, and even her accessories have accessories! Music has a tough girl attitude, and is brutally honest. She brings a hint of edge and attitude to the group, and is fiercely protective of her friends. Baby sees the kawaii in all things: babies, puppies, rattlesnakes. She sees the good in everything, and also knows how to take care of herself. As G says, “Baby can charm the fire out of a dragon.”

Then, there is Rudie Rhodes, HJ5’s well-meaning but semi-incompetent manager. He books the band on all sorts of gigs, and they are happy to play anywhere, but dealing with villains, aliens and general Harajuku weirdness makes it impossible for them to ever finish a concert!

Episodes Include:

Totally Teen Genie
Angel’s Flight
Music, Baby
Wanted Audience
Game Over
Phony Ponies
Hello Puppy
G, This Is Awfully Deep
Baby’s Birthday
Labor Of Love
Bad Boy and Little Girl
Yummy Bear Nado
Drums of Doom
Adventures In Housesitting

KUU KUU HARAJUKU: MUSIC, BABY! is available now for pre-order at Amazon.com and ShoutFactory.com. The 2D-animated series currently airs on Nickelodeon in the U.S. and on Family Channel in Canada.

March 7, 2017

Kikoriki: Legend of the Golden Dragon Giveaway

Kikoriki: Legend of the Golden Dragon, is the first of two Kikoriki movies and is set to release March 7th, 2017 from Shout Factory.

About Kikoriki: Legend of the Golden Dragon

The lovable simple residents of peaceful Kikoriki Island are thrown kicking and screaming into big adventure when their resident scientist invents an amazing device – a helmet called “the Improverizor” – which takes personality traits from one person and swaps them with someone else’s!

But when spineless young Wally tries to use the untested device to cure his cowardice, he ends up even more spineless – by getting accidentally body-switched with a squirmy little caterpillar. Now he’s got more to fear than he ever dreamed, and so do his fellow villagers, as they’re dragged into a madcap adventure packed with plane crashes, mistaken identities, erupting volcanoes and angry natives on the warpath. Boy, do the Kikoriki Сrew wish they could switch places now – with anyone!

My Thoughts

Kikoriki: Legend of the Golden Dragon is an adorable movie with loveable characters, especially Wally. Wally is scared of everything and just wants to be brave and show his friends that he can be just like them. He would do just about anything – even use a device to improve himself! This backfires on him and he turns into a caterpillar and this is when the adventure really begins.

Wally needs to change bodies back otherwise he will be stuck as a caterpillar and eventually a butterfly. He enlists the help of his friends but nothing seems to go right. They are met with danger, angry villagers, tomb raiders and more. Wally is tested to his limits at each obstacle and meets it with grace and courage.

Kikoriki is a beautiful story of having the courage to stand up and believe in yourself no matter your size or how brave you are. We all have courage inside of us, we just need to find it. Wally was just a little caterpillar but he managed to save the day and his friends. The movie reminds us that even though we may wish we were someone else, no one can be a better you. You are special and a gift to this world in your own way.

You will fall in love with the adorable creatures, great graphics and fun music. It was a true delight to watch from start to finish.

Rating: 4.5/5

Trailer

Now my Canadian and American readers can now enter to win their own copy of Kikoriki: Legend of the Golden Dragon. Enter via the Rafflecopter form below – good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclosure: I received a DVD of this movie in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.