The Croods 720p - (2013 Lang: English)

VERY funny - a very pleasant surprise!

I was talked into seeing this, and I have to shout it out, because it is a RIOT! I don't write many reviews, but when I love a film, I have to. If I have any complaint on this one, it's the title. I expected gross-out humor ("crude"). There isn't any, really. It's actually extremely unpredictable, subtle and extremely smart humor.

It has a story arc that you begin to somewhat anticipate, but you don't feel you're being patronized. Instead, you're left feeling that very intelligent people put this thing together in hopes that everyone would find something to love about it.

The cast is great, the animation is fun, and it's non-dizzying 3-D.

When I saw it, the entire audience clapped at the end, because we were entertained throughout, and found the ending really satisfying.

What else? Sweet emotions crop up because we can all relate to the family dynamics. Every family has the screw-up, the salt of the earth, the rebel, and the stubborn one. And it has one of the funniest babies ever put on film. A baby unlike any baby you'll ever see anywhere.

Very, very funny. Definitely recommend.

The Croods is a 2013 American 3D computer-animated adventure comedy film produced by DreamWorks Animation and distributed by 20th Century Fox. It stars the voices of Nicolas Cage, Emma Stone, Ryan Reynolds, Catherine Keener, Clark Duke, and Cloris Leachman. The film is set in a fictional prehistoric Pliocene era known as "The Croodaceous" (a prehistoric period which contains fictional prehistoric creatures) when a caveman's position as a "Leader of the Hunt" is threatened by the arrival of a prehistoric genius who comes up with revolutionary new inventions as they trek through a dangerous but exotic land in search of a new home.

The Croods was written and directed by Kirk DeMicco and Chris Sanders, and produced by Kristine Belson and Jane Hartwell. The film premiered at the 63rd Berlin International Film Festival on February 15, 2013, and was released in the United States on March 22, 2013. As part of the distribution deal, this is the first film from DreamWorks Animation to be distributed by 20th Century Fox, since the end of their distribution deal with Paramount Pictures.

The Croods received generally positive reviews, and proved to be a box office success, earning more than $587 million on a budget of $135 million. The film launched a new franchise, with a television series, Dawn of the Croods, which debuted on December 24, 2015, on Netflix. A sequel was announced for a 2018 release, but was later cancelled.

A cave family called the Croods survives due to the overprotective nature of their stubborn, stern patriarch, father, Grug. The only one who questions the family's sheltered life is his teenaged daughter Eep who frequently disobeys her father's orders out of curiosity, which he finds dangerous. Grug and Eep, along with her mother and his wife Ugga, her grandmother Gran, and her younger brother and sister Thunk and Sandy face time sheltered in their cave home.

Eep sneaks out when she sees what she discovers to be a torch of fire and she encounters an inventive modern human boy named Guy and his pet sloth Belt. He warns her of an impending apocalypse and offers to take her with him, but concerned for her family, Eep stays, getting a shell horn from him to blow in case she needs his help. Reuniting with her frantic father, she tries to tell her family what Guy told her, but fearing things that are "different" and "new" Grug destroys her horn.

A massive earthquake then destroys their home, and to avoid the earlier carnivore, they descend down into a tropical forest that lay hidden behind their cave all the time. Encountering a "Macawnivore" a brightly colored feline that Gran dubs "Chunky the Death Cat," the family flees him until he is deterred by swarms of piranhakeets that devoured a ground whale. Using another horn, Eep calls to Guy who rescues them from the birds with his fire. After a great deal of confusion regarding their first contact with fire, Grug imprisons Guy in a log until he can guide them somewhere safe.

Outrunning the destruction, Guy is trusted enough to be let out of the log and he gives the Croods rudimentary shoes to walk over the harsh landscape as he leads them to a mountain in which he says will be safe. Guy also tells them stories of "Tomorrow" a haven of safety where he is headed and where curiosity is not deadly as Grug had claimed. At his treetop home, Grug sees the impression Guy is leaving on his family and he becomes jealous, especially when he realizes that Eep has fallen in love with Guy. Attempting to invent things like Guy, Grug only further embarrasses himself and drives his family further away from him. After the family is split up in a labyrinth of tunnels, all but Grug manages to escape by coming up with ideas of overcoming obstacles in their paths.

Reaching the mountain, Grug tries to force his family to hide out in a cave, but they resist, telling him that they can't live in caves anymore, that they don't want to "survive" but to "live". This enrages Grug, who attacks Guy and the both of them end up in a tar flow where Grug learns that Guy's family had perished in one. Realizing that Guy's method of survival is better for his family, Grug works with him and they lure Chunky into a trap to free themselves. The family reunites, then flees a massive cataclysm as the land begins to violently rip apart.

The family is cut off from their destination by a continental split, but Grug, realizing the errors of his ways decides to throw his family to safety. He shares an invention he calls a "hug" with Eep, briefly before sending her across as well. Cut off from his family, Grug finds a cave for safety, where he encounters Chunky; who is truly a frightened and sweet feline, and he comes up with an idea to get across the chasm. Using a skeleton and the Piranhakeets to fashion a simple airship, Grug manages to send themselves; including several animals the family had encountered during their journey, across the chasm, reuniting with his family once again. He apologizes to them all and promises to never be so overbearing again.

Later, the Croods now live on the land and have settled on a vast beach where every day they can follow the light to "Tomorrow."

I saw this movie at a sneak preview this afternoon. This was a very enjoyable movie for our whole family. Me and my husband sat there and laughed frequently, being completely enthralled with the story and graphics. Meanwhile, my daughter and my 7 year-old grandson sat with us, and they also were laughing throughout most of the movie. It has something for people of all ages to enjoy. It was heartwarming, and at times, it totally pulls on your heartstrings, too. The characters were appealing, and the type you find yourself rooting for as time goes by, and the animals that interact with the humans frequently stole the show! I know that some critics will have issues with some of the fantastic creatures that are seen, and they may take issue with the extraordinary things that The Croods are able to do physically. I knew going into this movie that this movie was a work of fiction, though, and therefore I was able to suspend my expectations of reality, and go on the ride that Dreamworks wanted to take me on. I thoroughly enjoyed myself, and took this movie for what it was - a lighthearted comedy about a family going through changes, and how they deal with those changes. I would definitely recommend this as a great movie to see!!

Excellent movie for the whole family to enjoy!