PARANORMAN | FAMILY MOVIE REVIEW INFORMATION FOR PARENTS AND KIDS

"PARANORMAN"
(2012) (voices of Kodi Smit-McPhee, Tucker Albrizzi) (PG)

QUICK TAKE:: Animated Horror/Comedy: A boy, who can see and talk to ghosts, finds himself appointed to deal with a 300-year-old witch's curse and seven related zombies that are now on the loose in his small town.

PLOT:

In the small town of Blithe Follow, Norman Babcock (voice of KODI SMITH-McPHEE) is considered the odd kid, what with him walking around talking to people who aren't there. He even does that at home, much to the chagrin of his parents, Sandra (voice of LESLIE MANN) and Perry (voice of JEFF GARLIN), and older teen sister, Courtney (voice of ANNA KENDRICK).

In fact, Perry is concerned that his son will turn out like the boy's reclusive and strange uncle, Mr. Prenderghast (voice of JOHN GOODMAN), and the boy's actions make him the target of bullies such as Alvin (voice of CHRISTOPHER MINTZ-PLASSE) at school, leaving chubby Neil (voice of TUCKER ALBRIZZI) as his default friend. Yet, Norman isn't losing his mind, as he has the ability to see and talk to ghosts, including his late Grandma (voice of ELAINE STRITCH).

That gift has led Mr. Prenderghast to inform Norman that it's now up to him to stop a centuries old curse from afflicting the town once again. It seems that 300 years ago, The Judge (voice of BERNARD HILL) and his jury of six convicted young Aggie (voice of JODELLE FERLAND) of being a witch and had her hanged. As a result, she cursed them and the town, and it's now up to Norman to figure out how to stop that.

With the help of the others, including Neil's somewhat dimwitted brother, Mitch (voice of CASEY AFFLECK), Norman sets out to do just that, but must contend with the vengeful ghost, seven unearthed zombies and an angry mob of residents who want to run the undead from their town.

WILL KIDS WANT TO SEE IT?: It's a good bet some will, especially if they liked similar movies such as "Coraline."

WHY THE MPAA RATED IT: PG: For scary action and images, thematic elements, some rude humor and language.

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