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Alec Baldwin, Hugh Jackman, Isla Fisher, Chris Pine, Jude Law ... see more see more... , Dakota Goyo

Rise of the Guardians is an epic adventure that tells the story of a group of heroes - each with extraordinary abilities. When an evil spirit known as Pitch lays down the gauntlet to take over the wor... read more read more...ld, the immortal Guardians must join forces for the first time to protect the hopes, beliefs and imagination of children all over the world. -- (C) Official Site

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144 critics

PG, 1 hr. 37 min.

Directed by: Peter Ramsey

Release Date: November 21, 2012

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DVD Release Date: March 12, 2013

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Flixster Reviews (4,442)

  • 366weirdmovies
    May 11, 2013
    366weirdmovies
    Eternal teenager Jack Frost reluctantly joins the legendary Guardians (including Santa, the Easter Bunny, etc.) who protect the world's children from the Boogeyman. It has a few issues, and some of the action scenes look like pitches for theme park rides, but any movie that depic... read morets Santa Claus as a tatted-up saber-wielding Cossack with an army of Yetis is at least willing to take chances.
  • xXGiNoBiLiPRXx
    April 28, 2013
    xXGiNoBiLiPRXx
    When darkness falls, the Guardians will rise.

    Decent movie but not great! The plot is heavily about the idea of believing. We are told to believe in Santa Claus, The Easter Bunny, The Tooth Fairy, The Sandman and Jack Frost. Yet there's an underlying issue that goes unresolved.... read more Two of the heroes - Santa and The Easter Bunny - are attached to holidays with religious themes, specifically the birth, death and resurrection of Jesus. The Bunny comes close to explaining the meaning of his holiday by reminding Jack that "Easter is about new beginnings", but he stops short of getting deeper than that. It seems rather cheap to ask kids to hold on to their faith in Santa and The Tooth Fairy but makes no mention of God. What's the message there? Give us chases and fight scenes, but don't ask us for anything more. That seems rather false. Now the million dollar question: will kids enjoy it? Likely, but it will probably appeal more to the kids than to the parents. It is a fun movie with lots of bright colors and colorful characters and fun chase scenes. The villain meets an inevitable fate and the heroes are united as one. All your basic stuff. It's a good movie, an entertaining movie, but not one that is likely to be handed down through the generations. Although, be warned, The Easter Bunny sports a boomerang and your kids may want one for Christmas.

    When an evil spirit known as Pitch lays down the gauntlet to take over the world, the immortal Guardians must join forces for the first time to protect the hopes, beliefs, and imaginations of children all over the world.
  • SirPant
    April 12, 2013
    SirPant
    Rise of the Guardians hit Dreamworks hard. I really don't see why though? Maybe the marketing was a little slack, it's not really a Christmas film but many thought and still think it is. Maybe Dreamworks had unrealistic targets, it really wouldn't surprise me these days as films ... read moreare regarded as failures if they don't make a billion or don't make 100 times what they cost to make. Unfortunately, this is almost like they're admitting that the film wasn't very good. People wont watch and I know of people who aren't interested because of this. The film was only released a few months ago but Dreamworks admitted defeat after the first weekend. It's a puzzling state of affairs, especially as Rise of the Guardians is a very good film. I was initially unconvinced by the style of animation but that didn't last long, I loved the way each character was represented. Maybe people didn't like Santa's Russian accent, maybe they didn't like his Tattoos or the fact he wasn't quite as fat and Rosy as he is usually portrayed. Who knows, I know I liked it though, it's tons better than the majority of animated films that have come out in the last decade. I hope the trend of film failure due to the public's lack of imagination rather than the film makers end soon but then the public have been spoon fed crap for many years so maybe it's comeuppance!
  • phubbs1
    March 3, 2013
    phubbs1
    Another children's storybook is adapted for the movies, I never knew there were so many popular children's books! one after another every year. I have never heard of the author and I've never heard of the book/s but I was intrigued by the 'Avengers' like team up of well known fab... read moreled holiday characters.

    It sounded a bit whimsical and babyish at first but the animation looked so good I gave it a go. First impressions were 'holy Buzz Lightyear!!', the visuals in this film are fudging excellent!!. This film looks sharp and crisp believe me, its a feast for the eyes on every level and in every sequence. Either when the atmosphere is fun and joyous or when it dark, brooding and nightmarish, it all looks tremendous.

    Not only are the colours beautiful and animation slick, the characters all look good too! and that includes the human characters which often aren't as exciting as the fantasy ones. There is almost a Disney look about the humans here, the big clear eyes, smooth faces, plus 'The Boogeyman' looks very much like 'Hades' from 'Disney's Hercules'. Not only do all the characters look good but their facial expressions are really well done too, right down to the smallest change depending on the emotion eg. raising an eyebrow or shaking of the head. I think what they have managed to do is get the voices synced precisely with changing facial expressions, this is why it looks so flawless, very impressed.

    The odd thing about this film is the legendary characters, I dunno if they are like this in the book but there are some strange ideas here. While 'Jack Frost' is imagined nicely, almost like a winter elf of sorts, the others are...curious. Good old Santa or 'North' is made out as a huge bearded old fella as expected but he's...Russian??. A thick Russian accent, carries Russian swords into battle, wears a thick black traditional Russian hat (Cossack Cap hat I think) and his traditional Santa suit of red n white trim now has thick black furry trim giving that Soviet military feel. But I gotta admit it lends well to the cold, snowy, frozen image of his background. Oh and one more thing...he has tattoo's on his forearms, yep you read that correctly, 'naughty' and 'nice' tattoo's on each forearm that look like they are part of sleeves actually!.

    Next up is the Easter Bunny or 'E. Aster Bunnymund'. Now this guy also has some kind of tribal markings on his fur in various places, dresses like a 'wookie', has an Australian accent and carries two boomerangs into battle. The Tooth Fairy 'Tooth', looks a bit like a mermaid crossed with a hummingbird and is very colourful, she has hundreds of little baby Tooth Fairies that assist her. Lastly we have the Sandman 'Sandy', a short tubby little fellow who is completely sandy in colour and communicates via sand images that he conjures above his head.

    A weird set of ideas for traditional characters of lore but this is what I liked about the film to be honest. Yes the plot is completely mundane and has not one inch of originality in its run time, the good guys team together to beat the bad guy, high points, low points, high points once more for the finale, good guys win, the end.

    Nothing remotely surprising or unpredictable so don't think otherwise. Its the spectacle and characters that are the winner for me, some lovely moments that will make you smile or put a lump in you're throat. As said the way the characters have been approached are bizarre but original (only original thing here), the tiny little jingle bell hat wearing elves that help Santa are great for a giggle, the yeti's that also help Santa are a fun touch too. Must also gives kudos for the voice casting which really combines to make the characters well rounded, haven't heard such good voice work for ages. Jackman manages his Aussie accent again whilst Baldwin is really good as a Russian Santa (didn't even realise it was him!).

    Total feel good film with grade A standard animation from Dreamworks (one in the eye for Pixar). I mean really, if you didn't like this then you gotta be a bit cold inside, sure its a soppy kids film but the crack team of elite holiday guardians put a smile on my face. I really wanted to see more guardians but to be honest I struggled to think of anymore, a Leprechaun was mentioned for St Patrick's Day, I presume...maybe a red dragon for St George's Day? I'm sure there are some other good foreign ones. But yeah, totally 'The Avengers' for the very young, I like it.
  • aliceinpunderland
    January 30, 2013
    aliceinpunderland
    Very thrilling tale about the origin of Jack Frost. The narrative is a bit long and meandering in parts, but all the characters are cute and silly. Like Thomas in "Pocahontas," Jack Frost is too sexy to be a cartoon character :~/
  • ajaymuthecooldevils
    December 30, 2012
    ajaymuthecooldevils
    Fresh, funny, yet amazing animated movie based on children's belief about their guardian.. Dreamworks has did it again for making a movie that not only came from a fresh idea but also make the audiences stunned with the effects they had in here.. North (Santa Claus), Bunny (Easte... read morer Bunny), Tooth (Tooth Fairy), and Sandman with the help of a new guardian Jack Frost must save the world from the danger of Pitch the Boogeyman.. Even the voices of those character came from famous actors such as Hugh Jackman, Alec Baldwin, Jude Law, Chris Pine, and Isla Fisher, a truly Dreamworks trademark.. But I must be honest that some scenes of this movie seems flat and got me a little bored at the middle of the movie even though the stunning animation they had in here.. But overall, I must say that Dreamworks did a quite great job with this movie and I'm really curious if they're gonna make a sequel of this movie or not..
  • c0up
    December 24, 2012
    c0up
    'Rise of the Guardians'. A very clever re-imagining of childhood legends, and the best animated feature of the year.

    The exhilarating movement that's produced time and time again is a ball to watch!
  • thmtsang
    December 21, 2012
    thmtsang
    Good animation with an interesting storyline. Children's guardians - Santa, tooth fairy, Jack Frost, Easter bunny and sandman rise up against the boogeyman. Famous voices - Chris Pine, Jude Law, Isla Fisher, Hugh Jackman, Alec Baldwin.
  • MovieGeek13
    December 11, 2012
    MovieGeek13
    Essentially a family-friendly holiday version of The Avengers, Rise of the Guardians is a lot of fun. It's about time a movie not only gives Jack Frost a name, but actually portrays him as a fully dimensional character. Santa, the Easter Bunny, Sandman, and the Tooth Fairy are g... read morereat supporting heroes who have unique personalities that pair together with great chemistry and a lot of humour. The world they inhabit is a colourful, beautifully rendered one. There's enough here that will entertain young kids as well as parents. It's a got a kind heart, a nasty villain, and a fast pace that rarely slows down. This is a welcome alternative to the majority of Oscar-bait and late season blockbusters playing at every cinema near you.
  • fb535316333
    December 9, 2012
    fb535316333
    Rise of the Guardians is fundamentally simplistic. From it's formulaic story to it's reluctant hero archetype with a "dark mysterious past" there just isn't much wiggle room for imagination in that department.

    A lot of the dialogue also comes out heavy handed, which makes the mo... read morevie feel like it was written by a couple of whining depressed teenagers, patronizing the older audiences.

    But lets take a moment to forget all that because... sometimes formulas/archetypes work. (Paranorman) Sometimes simple storylines are there for purity and can resonate when a film makes a huge enough effort to fill it with little bits and pieces that create it's own voice.

    So despite the shit dialogue and trite story, RotG was a beautifully designed, fast pace animated action adventure full of epic magical battles. If I was 12 and saw this I'd think it was freaking awesome and would want to be Jack Frost immediately.\

    As a 24 year old man I see an action adventure with some of the most amazing character designs, set pieces and well choreographed battles ever from Dreamworks. Also congrats on them for moving away from excessive pop-culture reference jokes in a modern premise, really.

    Earlier I mentioned "little things" that give RoTG it's own voice. THERE WERE SO MANY THINGS that did it for me! The way the Tooth fairies were designed, the way each tooth-case opened up with a person's memories, how Santa was a dual sword wielding badass Russian or how his workers were yetis instead of the elves, how they had a "European division" cameo of the tooth mouse, the Easter island/egg type juggernaut walking around... etc. etc. The list can go on.

    Granted... I thought Pitch's design was very unimaginative and boring or like how every nightmare was a evil horse. Or that Jack was just wearing a lame blue hoodie and is essentially created to be the biggest Bishonen lady-killer ever.

    It's a good movie maybe even great, for sure. But to say it's amazing or has something for everyone? Nah. Only if you're a sucker for great character/environment design and epic magic battles which I am :]

View All Rise of the Guardians Reviews

Critic Reviews

Richard Roeper
December 4, 2012
Richard Roeper, Richard Roeper.com

Less-than-compelling storyline. Full Review

Michael Phillips
November 30, 2012
Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune

Rise of the Guardians is harmless enough, and the lack of easy pop-culture jokes represents the post-Shrek direction of DreamWorks well enough. But this is the studio's least entertaining film. Full Review

Peter Rainer
November 30, 2012
Peter Rainer, Christian Science Monitor

The conceit has its charms but too much of this movie, directed by Peter Ramsey, is more clamorous than inspired, and little kids might find parts of it too scarily intense. Full Review

Derek Adams
November 27, 2012
Derek Adams, Time Out

'Rise of the Guardians' is an effervescent dose of fantasia that's pretty hard to dislike. Unless, of course, you're a cynical grump. Full Review

Joe Morgenstern
November 22, 2012
Joe Morgenstern, Wall Street Journal

The script seems to have been written by committee, with members lobbying for each major character, and the action, set in vast environments all over the map, spreads itself so thin that a surfeit of ... Full Review

Stephanie Zacharek
November 22, 2012
Stephanie Zacharek, NPR

Too cluttered and manic to bring real pleasure. Full Review

Christopher Orr
November 22, 2012
Christopher Orr, The Atlantic

A children's fable reimagined as a superhero flick--a peculiar but delightful hybrid that just may be the best animated offering of the year. Full Review

Mary F. Pols
November 22, 2012
Mary F. Pols, TIME Magazine

Like most children's movies, Rise of the Guardians mimics the patterns of adult entertainment. Where is the magic in that? Full Review

Alonso Duralde
November 21, 2012
Alonso Duralde, The Wrap

And as much as I often found myself enchanted by this 3D animated film, based on the series of books by William Joyce, I couldn't help noticing that this movie falls into a conundrum I like to call "Y... Full Review

Liam Lacey
November 21, 2012
Liam Lacey, Globe and Mail

All this feels formulaic and the believe-in-magic message is even more treacly than typical, but give first-time feature director Peter Ramsey credit for his visual panache. Full Review

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

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Facts

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    • Jack Frost: Don't look at me, I'm invisible.
    • North: We are too busy bringing joy to children! We do not have time for children.
    • Bunnymund: To Christmassey, mate. Paint them blue.
    • North aka Santa Claus: You cannot say no, it is destiny.
    • Pitch: You can't get rid of me! Not forever! There will always be fear.
    • Bunnymund: Alright, nobody panic.
    • Jack Frost: But that's a, um, that's a greyhound. Do you know what greyhounds DO to rabbits?
    • Bunnymund: I think it's a pretty safe bet he's never met a rabbit like me. 6 foot 1, nerves of steel, master of Tai Chi and the ancient art of [Jack sets off an alarm clock, making the dog start to chase him] CRIKEY!
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