Sorcerer's Apprentice: The Movie

Bruckheimer, J. & Turteltaub, J. (2010). The sorcerer's apprentice [Motion Picture]. United States: Walt Disney Studios. 

Summary

In 740 A.D Maxim Horvath is an apprentice of Merlin but betrays him along with the evil sorcerer Morgana. As Morgana delivers a fatal blow to Merlin, Merlin's other apprentices, Balthazar and Veronica try to save Merlin and defeat Morgana and Maxim. Phew. Oh yeah, Veronica's body is overtaken by Morgana's soul and in order to save the real Veronica, Balthazar imprisons the two in a Grimhold, which is in the form of a nesting doll. It is up to Balthazar to find the next Prime Sorcerer. Got it? It gets easier to understand. 

Jump to present day and Balthazar has located Dave who is the next Prime Sorcerer, the only problem is that Dave wants nothing to do with his destiny. Will Balthazar be able to convince Dave to take on this task, or will humanity be destroyed by Morgana and Maxim?

Review

How could this not be entertaining? This movie has adventure, mystery, mythology, and even romance. Fans of the book will be pleased to see that this movie follows closely and does not leave out important parts like so many other movies from books do. Tweens can relate to Dave who is a quirky, impressionable, and genuine human being who is just trying to survive the typical drama of growing up. 

Genre

Movie

Interest Level

Tweens-Adults

Similar Movies

Cirque du Freak

Harry Potter movies

Percy Jackson and the Lightening Thief

Annotation

Dave Stuler is just trying to grow up in a world that for whatever reason, doesn't cut him a break. Now, he is up against a whole new battle when it is discovered that he is not only a sorcerer, but thee Prime sorcerer that is chosen to save the world. 

Epic Mickey Video Game for the Wii

Junction Point Studios. (2010). Disney: Epic mickey. California: Disney Interactive Studios.

Summary

Epic Mickey is an open ended platform game that allows players to use their own solutions for getting through the levels. The main feature of this game is Mickey's magical paint brush that has the ability to create or erase objects or players in the game. The game is set in a paper and pen world called Cartoon Wasteland which was created by the sorcerer Yen Sid for all things that have been forgotten. Out of curiosity, an unknown Mickey mouse enters Sid's workshop through a mirror in his house and sees a model of the land Sid created. He also sees the magic paintbrush and he accidentally ruins the model that Sid created. Many years later, and now a superstar, Mickey is visited by an evil force and a now mad sorcerer, and is taken to the Wasteland where he must recreate areas and characters that have been destroyed by the two. 

Review

We are a Disney loving family and we bought this on the day it was released. It is super hard for me to play but super easy for my tween...go figure!! It is a great game for fans of Disney and it's colorful history. I like playing it just to see characters that never quite made it to the limelight or got there and fell quickly. My younger son like just playing with the magic paintbrush which is a whole game in itself. Disney is one of those ageless treasures that people of all ages can have fun with. 

Genre

Video Game

Interest Level

Tween/All ages

Similar Games

Kingdom Hearts

Kingdom Hearts II

Final Fantasy games

Annotation

Mickey Mouse will save the forgotten!

A Year Without Rain- Selena Gomez and the Scene

Selena Gomez. (2010). A year without rain. Los Angeles: Hollywood Records. 

Summary

A Year Without Rain, is Selena Gomez and the Scene's second album and was released September 17, 2010. The sound of this album is a mix of pop, electronic, and dance. According to Selena Gomez the majority of the songs were written for her fans and all of them talked about love, freedom, and living in the moment. This album sold 66,000 copies in its first week of release and reached number 4 on the US charts. Critics have labeled this album a growth in the bands development and is more serious lyrically and musically then their first album. This was also the first album that Selena Gomez wrote and produced the songs herself. 

Review

Ugh, guilty pleasure!! I have a tween daughter and I was dreading replacing my indie/hardcore CD's with this cheesy music CD. I have in to my daughters pleas and after I made sure all the windows were up, I let her listen to her CD. To my dismay, I was singing along by the end of the trip! This CD is catchy, safe, and all around fun. It is so sad to have your daughter grow up from Raffi and Hannah Montana, but I do not mind to listening to this. All of the songs are well written, age appropriate, and all around fun to listen to. (I even will admit that I eagerly bought my daughter and I tickets to see Selena Gomez and the Scene at our local fair!)

Genre

Music-CD

Interest Level

Tween-Teen

Similar Artists

Taylor Swift

Miley Cyrus

Justin Beiber

Awards

Teen Choice Award- 2010

MTV Europe Music Award- 2010

People's Choice Award- 2010

Annotation

If a punk rock mom allows this to play in her car, it says something. Try it out!