Joshua Keaton Movies

The fourth animated TV incarnation of Stan Lee and Steve Ditko's evergreen comic-book superhero and megamovie franchise "Spider-Man", the weekly, 30-minute The Spectacular Spider-Man returned to basics as an "origins" show, a la the live-action "Superman" derivation Smallville. Having only recently been bitten by a radioactive spider, 16-year-old high school junior Peter Parker was having a lot of trouble adjusting to his new powers, specifically the ability to climb walls, and his heightened "spidey-sense." This would be bothersome enough if Peter had been an adult, but as a high-schooler he was also struggling with such issues as teen angst, peer pressure and raging hormones. In addition to surrounding the hero with younger versions of such friends, family members and coworkers as Aunt May, Mary Jane, Gwen, and bombastic "Daily Flash" editor J. Jonah Jameson, the series was also well stocked with the familiar "Spider-Man" villains, among them the Sandman, Doc Ock, Venom, Electro, and the pre-Green Goblin Harry Osborn; foremost among the heavies was the Vulture, head of the fearsome assassination group known as the Enforcers. Greg Weisman, whose prior credits included the classic Disney animated series Gargoyles, served as story editor. Produced by Marvel/Culver Entertainment, The Spectacular Spider-Man joined CW's Saturday-morning cartoon lineup on March 8, 2008. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Embittered Vietnam veteran Nick Stratton (Nick Stratton) owns an appareal factory where his underpaid workers, mostly Vietnamese refugees, labor under sweatshop conditions. Monica (Roma Downey) shows up to teach lessons in American citizenship to Nick's long-suffering employees, including a girl named Am-Nhac (Jennifer Paz). The angel's real goal, of course, is to redeem the apparently iredeemable Nick by forcing him to confront a traumatic memory from his wartime past, in which he was dishonorably discharged for trying to do the right thing at the wrong time. Unfortunately, Monica's efforts are unwittingly undermined by fellow angel Andrew (John Dye), whose zeal to expedite Nick's salvation has disastrous--and explosive--consequences. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

A handful of zoo animals leave behind their well-protected environment for the streets of the big city in this computer-animated comedy. Sampson (voice of Kiefer Sutherland) is the king of a make-believe jungle far from the African plains -- he's a lion on display at a zoo in New York City's Central Park, and he lords it over the other animals, including Nigel (voice of Eddie Izzard), a testy koala bear; Larry, a dumb but well-meaning snake; ; Bridget (voice of Janeane Garofalo), a bright but cynical giraffe; and Benny (voice of Jim Belushi), a very New York-ish squirrel who is good friends with Sampson and is trying to romance Bridget without much success. The pride and joy of Sampson's life is his son, Ryan (voice of Greg Cipes), and he's devastated when one day Ryan is crated up and shipped back to Africa. Sampson is desperate to find his boy, and with the help of his pals he escapes the zoo and sets out on a daring mission to rescue Ryan, battling the unfamiliar terrain and Kazar, a wildebeest with a will to power and a passion for choreography (voice of William Shatner) along the way. The Wild was the first directorial credit for animator and special-effects artist Steve "Spaz" Williams. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide