You may be one of those people who has been intrigued with tales of the Loch Ness Monster and Bigfoot.  The movie “Smallfoot” plays upon those tales, bringing elements of both the Abominable Snowman and Bigfoot together into an engaging and thought-provoking kids movie that adult audiences will also enjoy.

Familiar voices star in this movie, from Channing Tatum as the yeti Migo, his flat-headed, gong-ringing father voiced by Danny Devito, and Migo’s free-thinking friends (Zendaya, LeBron James, Gina Rodriguez and Ely Henry).  On the human side of things, we meet a wildlife reality TV host, voiced by James Corden. When Migo and Corden’s character meet up and finally learn to communicate, they discover things about both the yeti world and human world that make them second guess their beliefs. Both struggle with what they always thought to be true and along the way, hilarity ensues and heartstrings are pulled.

There are so many facets of this story and I’m impressed with the way the writers and directors brought it all together. Sure, there may be people who notice and raise their eyebrows at some of the political and religious undertones, but it’s my contention the writers tried very hard to give all sides of the story regarding the varying beliefs in society. In addition, I feel the movie recognizes the fact that both politics and religion are important to the way our world has been shaped.

We also get the feeling that the writers of this movie want to show us how to just get along. I was especially impressed with the way the movie showed how animals and people feel that they are actually communicating well, only to find out someone (or something) doesn’t understand them. Migo speaks to the humans, thinking he’s making sense, yet all the humans hear are growls. Likewise, the yeti population only hears little, squeaky baby talk coming from the humans. Interesting spin.

There’s lots of good story, good music and fun. Warner’s Animation does an impressive job and the movie is not only visually stunning but also meticulously detailed and appealing to the senses. It’s one of those animated movies you forget is animated from time to time.

Go see it. Take your kids and make a night of it. Well done. You’ll enjoy. I give it an “A”.

“Smallfoot” is rated PG for action, rude humor and thematic elements.  The movies stars Channing Tatum, James Corden, Danny Devito, Zendeya, Common, Ely Henry, and Gina Rodriguez and runs 1 hour and 36 minutes.