Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius (2001)

(In theaters, December 2001) Kid’s movie, kid’s shmoovie: Jimmy Neutron packs more cool ideas in barely 90 minutes than all other SF films of 2001 together. Not only that, but it’s half the length of A.I. and considerably more fun. Granted, it’s a silly comedy, but don’t let that fool you into thinking that it’s not clever: Watch for the hilarious Blair Witch Project reference, and the seamless Star Trek joke. Jimmy is an enormously sympathetic character, and so are the supporting characters. (Even “the bad kid” gets a few endearing moments or two; watch the end reunion with the parents.) Best of all, Jimmy Neutron is good clean fun, with only one or two innocuous toilet-humor jokes through it all. Even though the garish colors and the simplistic models aren’t as detailed as the Pixar films, they create a lovely style that greatly benefit the film. Kudos to the artists -animators and screenwriters alike-, because the result is a wonderful little film that kept me grinning throughout. Splendid!