A Ten-Year-Old Film Critic Reviews ParaNorman
I loved ParaNorman. It was a little scary, but I would still recommend it. I do not recommend it for children under eight years old and people who do not like scary movies. I definitely recommend bringing someone to cuddle with. The movie is a little unusual. ParaNorman is about a boy named Norman (voiced by Kodi Smit-McPhee) who is able to talk to ghosts. At first I did not understand the beginning of the movie because I think it is unusual that Norman’s dad didn’t believe in his son. I didn’t understand why his dad was getting so upset about Norman speaking to ghosts. I think he thought Norman was just pretending. I realized later that Norman’s dad was just trying to protect Norman and he was trying to make sure Norman was okay. By the end of the movie, I started to get the whole story. ParaNorman is saying that if you believe in yourself, you can do anything.
I think the movie was very well-written. I really think that the writers put a lot of thought into it. I am amazed just thinking about it. It’s just a beautiful story that has a lot of meaning to it. Norman is the only person who can speak to ghosts and he has to save the world. Norman and his friend Neil (voiced by Tucker Albrizzi) are both picked on by other kids. Norman’s talent of speaking to ghosts helps him interact with other people and helps him be himself. In the middle of the movie there’s a lot of action going on with people being angry and there are zombies that get a little weird. The zombies are scaring people and are trying to get to Norman. (Editor’s note: slight spoiler ahead!) In the end, Norman figures out that the zombies aren’t going to eat his brains, they need his help to stop something bad from happening.
My favorite character is Norman who has a crazy talent (being able to talk to ghosts) but in the end he puts it to great use. Smit-McPhee did a great job with the voice of Norman. He was really expressive. I related the most with Norman because he had the same emotions that I was having at certain situations while watching the movie. Another thing about Norman is that he has to deal with some pretty horrible bullies. I don’t think bullying is a good thing. I felt bad for Norman but like that he found a friend that is kind of like him.
Norman’s friend Neil is very similar to Norman and he can relate to Norman. He is a very good friend. Norman did a good job of choosing Neil to be his friend. I feel that Neil is very strange, but also brave. He gets bullied just like Norman, but he handles it well because he doesn’t let it bother him. A lot of people can’t make bullying not bother them. I think Neil has a good trait.
A scene from “ParaNorman.” © 2012 – LAIKA/Focus Features.
Another one of my favorite characters is Norman’s sister, Courtney (voiced by Anna Kendrick). She is very rude and obnoxious throughout the movie. But I think it is kind of like a stage she is going through – because a lot of teenagers are like that in real life. Courtney doesn’t really care about Norman because when her parents leave and Norman runs away she doesn’t care. She does try to find him when her parents are coming home and she doesn’t want to get into trouble. In the end she becomes a great person and starts to care about Norman. I found this character to be interesting and amusing.
There are a lot of lessons to be learned in this movie. But one of the lessons that stands out is that just because someone does something mean to you doesn’t mean you should do something mean back to them. It just makes the situation worse and it doesn’t help it at all. You do not want the fight to continue. Tell a parent or grownup you trust about what happened. They will help you solve your problem so you can get back to your life and be happy.
I think ParaNorman is a movie about life. Norman changed the world in his own way. Even if you don’t have everything you can change the world too, in your own way. You should see ParaNorman. It’s funny, it’s crazy and it’s out there. This movie is like no other movie I’ve seen. It’s really good.
Miranda Clarke
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