Jeff Bennett Movies

Based on the children's books by Dan Santat, the Disney animated series The Replacements concerned itself with a pair of orphan children, Riley and Todd, who took it upon themselves to order two "normal" foster parents from the Fleemco Replacement Parent Organization. Instead, they ended up with a mom who was a British superspy named Agent K and a dad who was a foolhardly movie stuntman named Dick Daring. And oh yes, Riley and Todd also fell heir to a Knight Rider-style talking automobile named C.A.R.T.E.R., or C.A.R. for short (its voice was wittily supplied by former "Man from U.N.C.L.E." David McCallum). Offering two fast-paced adventures per half-hour episode, The Replacements premiered September 8, 2006, on cable's Disney Channel, and not long afterward joined the weekend-morning lineup on Disney's sister network ABC. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In the tenth incarnation of Hanna-Barbera's animated Scooby-Doo franchise (which dated back to the original Scooby-Doo, Where Are You?), the spotlight was on cringing, crime-solving Great Dane Scooby and his funky human pal, Shaggy (Scott Menville), with the other familiar characters -- Velma, Daphne, and Freddy -- consigned to occasional guest appearances. This time around, the premise had Shaggy's scientist uncle, Dr. Albert Shaggleford, disappearing from the face of the earth -- but not before bequeathing millions of dollars to his nephew, and also passing along a passel of high-tech crime-fighting inventions. Tooling about in an upgraded "Mystery Machine" -- which could now morph into other vehicles, from submarine to helicopter -- Shaggy and Scooby continued their mission to solve crimes and bring heavily disguised miscreants to justice. Scooby was helped along in this pursuit with his familiar "Scooby Snacks," which were now seasoned with nanotechnology enabling our doggie hero to fly, turn invisible, and so forth. The principal villain was mad scientist Dr. Phinius Phibes, based partly on the Vincent Price character of the same name -- and partly on real-life animation director Bruce Timm, longtime collaborator of series developer Eric Radomski. To sum up: less mystery and more action, but the same old "meddling kids and that stupid dog." Shaggy & Scooby-Doo joined the CW's "Kid's WB" Saturday-morning cartoon lineup on September 23, 2006. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Based very loosely on the classic novel by Alexandre Dumas, this direct-to-video Disney version of The Three Musketeers features Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, and Goofy as janitors who become pawns in a scheme by Peg-leg Pete to take the throne away from Princess Minnie. The threesome works together in order to save the princess and the kingdom. The film features a half-dozen new songs, some of which are based on classical works by famous composers like Tchaikovsky and Beethoven. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide

This WB Network Saturday morning cartoon series was a spinoff of the animated theatrical feature Osmosis Jones. The stories took place in the City of Hector -- actually the blood and immune system within the body of 13-year-old Hector Cruz. The heroes were white-blood-cell police officer Osmosis Jones, aka "Ozzy," and his assistant, over-the-counter cold pill Drix. Together, Ozzy and Drix did battle with the many infectious enemies threatening Hector's health and well-being. Though the TV series lacked the celebrity voice-over lineup (Ron Howard, William Shatner, et. al.) that added so much life to the original feature, the actors chosen to supply the voices did excellent impressions of their predecessors. Ranking high on the gross-out meter, but hilarious all the same, Ozzy & Drix made its first weekly appearance on September 14, 2002. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The History of the World and other business is reinterpreted through the skewered vision of the Warner Bros. Animation team in Season One of the aptly titled cartoon series Warner Bros! Histeria. Led by the decrepit Father Time, the Histeria! crew (including the likes of Mr. Smartypants, Miss Information and Big Fat Baby) get things rolling by introducing Alexander Graham Bell via the Serlingesque "Telephone Zone", then move on to make life miserable for $Thomas Edison and J. Robert Oppenheimer. In later episodes, the life of Abraham Lincoln is morphs into the Brady Bunch theme song; George Washington bids farewell to his troops in the manner of a Bob Hope monologue; Nostradamus and Descartes have a philosophical discussion over whether the chicken or the egg came first; Leonardo Da Vinci becomes a painter through the patronage of the Book Formerly Known as "Prince"; the royal family of Ancient Egypt performs its own version of "Cats"; the conquest of Montezuma is detoured by a perusal of the Inca Shopping Network; the history of the Tudors is reformatted as a bloody slasher flick; there's an informercial for "Super Amazing Constitution"; the Yalta Conference degenerates into a pie fight; and Khrushschev tries yet again to sneak into Disneyland. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Several ships have vanished without a trace in the Indian ocean, near Christie Island in the Republic of Seychelles. The Quest team investigates the phenomenon, hoping to disprove rumors of a huge sea monster in the region. Inevitably, however, both Jonny and Hadji find themselves in the grip of an enormous squid -- and at the mercy of the squid's human "masters." "East of Zanzibar" made its first cable-TV appearance on September 3, 1996. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Kit Walker is the 21st Century Phantom, one of a long line of superheroes who have lived in the jungles and dutifully defended mankind's precious natural resources. After the cataclysmic Resource War, Kit moves to the urban jungles of Metropia, looking to thwart the baddies. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide

Tommy O'Haver wrote and directed this gay lifestyle comedy about aspiring photographer Billy (Sean P. Hayes) who encounters rocky romantic roads intersecting among an assortment of Los Angelenos -- handsome Fernando (Armando Valdes-Kennedy), who has a steady boyfriend; blond waiter Gabriel (Brad Rowe), who has a San Francisco girlfriend; Billy's roommate Georgiana (Meredith Scott Lynn); and pal Perry (Richard Ganoung). Entranced by Gabriel, Billy takes him on as a model and introduces him at gallery openings and parties, only to see Gabriel leave for better modeling assignments with well-known fashion photographer Rex Webster (Paul Bartel). Fantasy sequences parody Vertigo, '30s musicals, and From Here to Eternity. Shown at 1998 film festivals, including Berlin and Sundance. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide

Directed by makeup effects artist John Carl Buechler, the seventh in the long-running, grisly horror series was far from the last, although the climactic fate of its antagonist would seem to suggest a final send-off. Lar Park Lincoln stars as Tina Shepard, a teenager with uncontrolled telekinetic powers. As a girl vacationing at Camp Crystal Lake, Tina killed her abusive father with the use of her mental abilities. Years later, seeking intensive counseling from manipulative, greedy psychologist Dr. Crews (Terry Kiser), Tina agrees to participate in a radical therapy that takes her back to Camp Crystal Lake. Unfortunately, Tina's psychic skills rouse the slumbering Jason Voorhees (Kane Hodder) from his watery grave and, in typically bloody fashion, the vengeful spook begins dispatching the randy teenagers partying in a house nearby. As Tina attempts to stop Jason's slaughter with the use of her powers, the mass-murdering ghoul encounters his toughest opponent yet. Friday the 13th, Part VII: The New Blood was often referred to by series fans as "Jason vs. Carrie," an apropos reference to Tina's strong similarity to the main character in the horror classic Carrie (1976). ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide

The first appearance of Mickey Mouse and the rest of his gang of friends in over 40 years in this newly created ABC Saturday morning cartoon series. ~ All Movie Guide

The naughty little monkey from Margret Rey and H.A. Rey's beloved children's stories makes the leap to the big screen in this animated adaptation. Ted (voice of Will Ferrell) is an explorer with a large yellow hat who is good friends with Bloomsberry (voice of Dick Van Dyke), who runs a natural history museum. Bloomsberry's greedy son, Bloomsberry Junior (voice of David Cross), wants to tear down his dad's museum and put a parking ramp in its place, but the elder Bloomsberry is convinced that a spectacular new exhibit could save the museum from the wrecking ball. Ted heads to Africa on an expedition to find some special artifacts that will keep his friend in business, but while he's there he befriends a playful monkey he calls George (voice of Frank Welker). While George is friendly, he has a taste for mischief and seems to always get Ted in hot water; Ted thinks he's seen the last of his simian friend when his ship heads back to America, until he discovers that George managed to hide aboard the boat before it set sail. Ted's search for a eye-catching exhibit proved to be a failure, and Ted and his good friend Maggie (voice of Drew Barrymore), a schoolteacher who's sweet on him, struggle to find of a way to save Bloomsberry's museum. But time becomes precious for Ted when George has an entire new city to explore. Curious George features a handful of original songs composed for the film by surfer-turned-singer/songwriter Jack Johnson. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide