"Rio"

Okay, so as you know... I did not enjoy Atlas Shrugged. And the less I say about the review's reception in some parts of the world wide web, the better. Let's just say for now that some people can be insanely delusional and we'll leave it at that, yes?

So naturally, we find ourselves wanting to take a trip that takes us far away from that. But... that gets a little difficult with life. So... we leave that to the movies, right?

Right. And that's what I did with today's movie.

Rio

Blu (Jesse Eisenberg) is the last of the blue macaws, who got captured at a young age and found by Linda (Leslie Mann), who he's lived with ever since. When a nerdy ornithologist comes to Minnesota, however, Blu finds himself taken to Rio di Janero in an attempt to repopulate the species with Jewel (Anne Hathaway). However, hijinks ensue as Blu and Jewel then find themselves caught up in a bird smuggling ring. Together,  and with the help of Rafael (George Lopez), they must evade capture and get back to their respective places.

Shenanigans ensue.

So yeah. We have fairly standard plotting all around, fairly standard laughs all around. So... it would lend itself to being mildly stale, you know? There isn't a whole lot that they do different with the kind of storyline they've got here (though the areas that the film makers do approach slightly differently than you'd expect are some of the film's strongest areas), so it has the potential to be a little flat.

But it's not.

Of course, this is another one of those movies in which the palette is one of its main saving graces. This movie, much like its namesake at the right time of year, is vibrant and incredibly full of color. Extreme shades of color make the whole enterprise look incredibly nice to look at, and in many spots when the movie gets going the colors of the visuals just as a whole new flavor to what happens. It also helps that the color scheme also seems to mold the situation the characters find themselves in; the more hopeful the scene, the more vibrant it gets. And this vibrancy gives life to the proceedings in ways you could never imagine.

Though, it also helps that the actors all have a very good sense of comedic timing and make the whole thing float effortlessly. (I won't use fly for all the bad puns that would no doubt ensue). The voice overs help keep everything light on the air, just as it should be for a movie like this. And some of the deliveries are absolutely priceless.

Is it deep entertainment? By no means. But is Rio enjoyable? Certainly. The movie is kept extremely light on the air by a combination of the actor's performances and by an engaging color scheme that adds a vibrancy to the movie. In the end, it's perfectly harmless entertainment.

And let's put it this way: I wasn't so ready to walk out of this particular movie, you know?

3/4

It has a few flaws, but it's still worth checking out.

This is Herr Wozzeck Reviews. I'll see you guys next time.