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Last month Paramount Home Entertainment and Nickelodeon Movies released The Spiderwick Chronicles on DVD and Blu-ray. Based on the series of Spiderwick Chronicles books, the movie brings to life the unseen, magical world that surrounds all of us. The all-star cast includes Freddie Highmore from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Mary Louise Parker, Sarah Bolger and the voices of Seth Rogen and Martin Short

If you’re not familiar with the story, here’s a quick description:

From the moment the Grace family moves into a secluded old house peculiar things start to happen. Unable to explain the accidents and strange disappearances, the Grace children, Jared, Simon and Mallory start to investigate and find the unbelievable truth of the Spiderwick Estate and the amazing creatures that inhabit it.

The release of this video as well as recent releases on Disney DVD including The 45th Anniversary Special Edition of the Sword in the Stone and The Jungle Book 2 make me wonder what comes first, the book or the movie. Obviously the book if the movie is based on it, of course. But how often after seeing a movie do you go back and read or reread the book? What about your children?

I think it’s half and half with me. I’ve read the Harry Potter books years before the movies came out. But movies like Lord of the Rings and Chronicles of Narnia made me go back and read books I tried to read, but couldn’t get through, as a child.

Bottom line for me is that anything that gets people to read is a good thing. So enjoy the movies and then go check out the books!

Have you had a chance to see Kung Fu Panda yet? We did the first week the movie was out, and I was very impressed. Not only did my children enjoy it, but I loved the characters, the story and the animation. It’s the best thing DreamWorks has done in years.

All the noodle and bun eating made me hungry and gave me a great idea for a Kung Fu Panda inspired meal - dim sum!

Eat In, Take Out, or Make It At Home

We like to drive into Denver on the weekends for dim sum at the Empress Seafood Restaurant. We were going to stop by on Father’s Day, but we woke up too late and my husband wanted to watch the US  Open on TV. So we headed over to our nearest Asian Market to pick up lobster for dinner, and noticed they had dim sum take out. We got sticky rice in lotus leaves, shrimp balls, and sesame seed dumplings with sweet bean paste.

We also picked up half a roasted duck since Lucie wanted to try it. Delicious, but greasy as to be expected. (Lucie is eating a sesame seed dumpling in the picture, and has pieces of duck on her plate.)

When we got home we also steamed up some Chinese beef buns that we had in the freezer. What a feast!

If you don’t have an Asian grocery with take out dim sum, try making your own at home. It isn’t as hard as you think thanks to Sunset magazine.

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One of the nice things about blogging is getting review copies of DVDs and books. I work with several children’s and adult book publishers and get a variety of books - everything from cooking to photography. From Click Communications, I get a lot of terrific Disney movies and grownup films like The Kite Runner (see my review here).

But a lot of the kids’ movies that get pitched to me I don’t accept, things like Caillou the whiniest cartoon boy ever. So with reluctance, I had Special Ops Media send me Handy Manny - Fixing It Right and Disney’s Little Einsteins - Race for Space after consulting with my daughter, Lucie. She said she’d like them. And she was right, she did. But then again, she’ll watch just about anything including America’s Next Top Model. (Heck, it’s my guilty pleasure, too.)

All in all, Handy Manny - Fixing It Right and Disney’s Little Einsteins - Race for Space aren’t bad. Handy Manny is sort of like Bob the Builder meets Chico and the Man.” (Am I showing my age here?) And Little Einsteins is like Meet the Robinsons. The animation is o.k., too. It’s just that they’re not very original and kind of boring. Plus, we’re not big Disney Channel fans. (I much prefer their movies and their Pixar division’s films.)

Also, these are just repackaged TV episodes according to the Amazon reviews. If you’re a fan of either of these shows and have a TiVo, you already “own” the shows and can watch them any time your child wants. Plus, if you have a DVD-R, you can make copies to play in the car.

Still, you may want to watch these clips and decide for yourself:

HANDY MANNY: FIXING IT RIGHT Clip 1

LITTLE EINSTEINS: RACE FOR SPACE Clip 1

My advice? Go to the library and get a few good books instead.

The DVD of Enchanted was released this week. And thanks to the folks at Click Communications, I have a preview copy that I hope we can watch this weekend, since we were too busy last week.

You see, it was my daughter Lucie’s fifth birthday, which included a fancy Disney princess party. Unfortunately, her little majesty decided it was her party and she could cry if she wanted to. Yes, she spent most of the time pouting or up in her room crying and screaming. Luckily, the other kids had a good time and everyone enjoyed a gorgeous and delicious Disney princess birthday cake made by Cutting Edge Cake Design.

The Queen Mother (that’s me) wasn’t happy with the bratty princess who was FINE once she started opening presents. So after I cleaned up, I went to my royal chambers for several hours to work on my plans to have this blog “prettied up” by Girly Blog Designz. (I’m so excited! More details coming soon.) The Queen was still peeved at the princess the next day, but finally issued a royal pardon.

Since Lucie is too adorable to be mad at for very long, like most fairly tales this tale of the pouty princess had a happily-ever-after ending. And so does Enchanted, a romantic spoof of Disney fairy tale films.

Enchanted features an animated heroine (Amy Adams as Giselle) from a kingdom far, far away who finds herself transformed into a real live woman in bustling New York City. Susan Sarandon plays the evil sorceress Narissa (who may just outdo another Disney baddie, Glenn Close as Cruella De Vil). Narissa exiles Giselle from her fairytale kingdom and James Marsden is the handsome prince who travels to the Big Apple to rescue her. Of course, all the moms will swoon over Patrick Dempsey (from “Grey’s Anatomy”) as a contemporary knight in shining armor. Idina Menzel plays his girlfriend Nancy who suspects Giselle might just be a little too good to be true.

The film is rated PG and Amazon.com reviewer, Tami Horiuchi, recommends it for ages 6 and older with parental guidance due to some scary images and mild innuendo. Besides watching a fun movie with my family, I’m looking forward to spotting the 13 scenes in Enchanted that reference Classic Disney movie scenes.

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Everyone who read Beowulf in high school raise their hands. O.K., now all of you who either enjoyed reading it or remembers what it’s about, keep your hands raised. I’m guessing there aren’t many hands up because most people thought reading Beowulf in English class was the height of drudgery. It was for me and I like mythology.

So when I received a review copy of the unrated director’s cut of Beowulf from Click Communications, I was hoping to have my faith restored in epic poetry and mythic hereos. Here’s the movie description:

In the age of heroes comes the mightiest warrior of them all, Beowulf. After destroying the overpowering demon Grendel, he incurs the undying wrath of the beast’s ruthlessly seductive mother who will use any means possible to ensure revenge. The ensuing epic battle throughout the ages, immortalizing the name Beowulf.

Academy Award® winner director Robert Zemeckis tells the oldest epic tale in the English language with the most modern technology, advancing the cinematic forum through the magic of digitally enhanced live action. A stellar cast is led by Ray Winstone (“The Departed,” “Sexy Beast”) in the title role. Joining him are Academy Award winner Anthony Hopkins as the cursed King Hrothgar, John Malkovich, Robin Wright Penn, Brendan Gleeson, Crispin Glover, Alison Lohman and Angelina Jolie as Grendel’s mother.

Sounds cool right? Well, Beowulf ended up being an R-rated Shrek. I wouldn’t recommend showing it to even the most mature teenager since it’s violent, gory, and there’s too much sex and lust. First, Hrothgar, King of the Danes disrobes, and tells his people to make merry. (And boy do they ever.) I love Anthony Hopkins, but don’t want to see a nude cartoon version of him doing pelvic thrusts. Ick.

Then super hottie Beowulf shows up (Ray Winstone) to fight Grendel. And he must disrobe to do so. (Can you say beefcake?) It’s amusing - and distracting - to see how the director always placed something in front of Beowulf to hide his crotch. Of course, Grendel’s mom (Angelina Jolie) is naked too and she gets it on with Beowulf, his predecessor and his heir, which doesn’t exactly happen in the original tale. Oops.

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