A Fun Kiddie Film ‘Axel the Biggest Little Hero’

AXEX boxart

 

Although the animation figures are a little odd looking, that won’t bother your kids as the shape friendly characters are fun to watch. Now on DVD, the action adventure film Axel: The Biggest Little Hero takes young tikes on a ride across the lands in a different universe while showing them how to make friends and help their community. The adventure gets a little rough however, so be sure to watch the film with your youngsters, recommended.

The story follows Axel (Yuri Lowenthal) who has always dreamed of being a hero. Actually he already thinks he’s accomplished the feat. But his best effort involves pulling some pranks that just get him in a lot of mischief. Since they are in a desert, the village he lives in thrives on a special kind of cactus food. One day the people find out that they need food from the Boonta cactus in order to survive. Having seen the lost Boonta Grove while catching a bug, Axel tells the people he can find the plant and bring back the much needed food for the village.

Axel and Juno in AXEL The Biggest Little Hero
Axel and Juno in AXEL The Biggest Little Hero

The villages call him a hero and he sets out with his best friend Jono (Colleen O’Shaughnessey). Along the way they come across an Ostrich named Pootron (Marc Thompson) who follows them on their journey. They come to a valley where they get attacked by mechanical lizards lead by the Lizard King (Matthew Lillard) with his daughter Gaga (Kate Higgins). Gaga befriends the two travelers and she goes along on the hunt for Boonta.

My only objection to the film is that it never has a real ending. Will the two hero’s get to the Boonta Grove and bring back the much needed food for their villiage? Will they have to face more obstacles and have to fight off evil as with the valley of the Lizard King? Will Gaga come between Juno and Alex’s friendship? Will they have a shorter title? All these question and more will probably end up in a sequel of sorts and then I’ll be able to pass my opinion of that film on to you. In the meantime, like most little kid’s animated films, just roll with it as I bet your young tyke does already.

Alex: The Biggest Little Hero has been rated PG by the MPAA for some scary images, perilous action sequences and mild rude humor. The filmmakers make the scary lizards look like mechanical robots so it’s not overly frightening, but there are a few odd looking other characters you may want to check out before running it for your children.

As a bonus: The DVD comes with a VUDU, a free download of the film to you computer or other source. There is a special code found inside the box for your use.

The animated film is very colorful and fills the whole 16×9 television. The sound is up to par with other DVD’s using the Dolby Digial 5.1 and all the dialogue is very clear.

Specifications and additional film information:
Voice Cast: Ed Asner, Yuri Lowenthal, Colleen O’Shaughnessey, Tim Curry, Matthew Lillard, Kate Higgins and George Takei
Director: Leo Lee
MPAA Rating: PG for some scary images, perilous action sequences and mild rude humor.
Genre: Animation, Adventure, Comedy
Running Time: 1 hr 23 min
Video Release Date: June 3, 2014
Language: English
Format: DVD
Audio: Dolby Digital 5.1
Video: Widescreen, 16×9
Subtitles: None (cc)
Number of Discs: 1 Disc
Distributed by: Arc Entertainment

Writer, critic, film editor John Delia, Sr. has been on all sides of the movie business from publications to film making. He has worked as a film critic with ACED Magazine for more than 20 years and other publications for a total of 40 years. He earned a Bachelor’s degree in communications from the University of Florida. John is a member of the Southeastern Film Critics Association and Critics Association of Central Florida Send John a message at jdelia@acedmagazine.com