Ernest Scared Stupid (1991)

This is a bit of a guilty pleasure, but as with a lot of content from childhood, it occupies a warm fuzzy space in the ol' cockles. You've got a 200-year-old curse, Eartha Kitt as a grizzled witch living in the woods, and a big ugly troll wandering around at night turning children into wooden dolls. What's not to love? This film used to traumatize kids back in the day because there was actual peril and stakes involved. Halloween was made for this shit.

You gain a fresh perspective and appreciation for certain things as you grow older. People who criticized these movies never got the point. Ernest was always meant to be a bit of lighthearted fun.

3½ Brussels sprouts out of 5

TOY STORY 2 [1999]

Recapturing the spirit and the warmth of the first film, Toy Story 2 manages to keep up with the quality we've come to expect from Disney/Pixar collaborations. 

Even though it may not be the most overly complicated film, it still never talks down to it's audience no matter what age they are.  It's funny, creative and beautifully animated with well-rounded characters to boot.  

Timeless storytelling at some of it's best.

4 Geri's out of 5

TOY STORY [1995]

Disney & Pixar's first collaboration, Toy Story, is arguably their most cherished film & series to date.  

Reinventing the quality & style of animated films, the modern classic set up a new standard for family films that had been missing for years before it. Brilliantly shot from the toy's point of view, Toy Story is filled with energetic voice work, inventive action pieces and more than enough warmth to defrost the coldest of hearts.

It really doesn't get much better than this.

5 sad, strange little men out of 5 

Ernest Saves Christmas (1988)

This is one of those movies that can only truly be appreciated with nostalgia glasses. If you weren't a kid around the time this came out, then you probably won't agree with the rest of my review. Like Pee-wee, Ernest P. Worrell is one of those goofy, misunderstood characters that I really identified with when I was younger (and I still do). Here, he plays a down-on-his-luck cab driver who transports Santa Claus (who is searching for a successor) and ends up with the magic sack in his back seat. This offers all kinds of opportunities for zany humor, but it's actually genuinely sweet and funny. As a kid, I fell in love with Noelle Parker...I'm talking head-over-heels in love here. I still feel pangs every time I see her...

4.5 Chuck & Bobby takes out of 5