I thought this looked like such a cute movie. Perfect for my kiddos, or so I thought. They were so bored. It is to bad because: the idea was there, the actors were there, the effects were there and the plot could have been there....... but it was not. It focused to much on the relationship between the shopkeeper and the employee and not nearly enough on the ownders of the store. All the producer/director etc had to do was watch charlie and the chocolate factory and they would have seen the way to go to make this successful. My suggetion worth the rental at your local redbox for $1, but not worth the money it costs to go to the theater.

I've seen some of the reviews where people are saying this movie isn't very convincing, or it falls short in the character development. Hooey. They are missing the point. This is a Children's movie, rated G. I can tell you that my 5 year old little girl was mesmerized enough to sit through the entire movie it without going into the wiggles and then said afterwards with a big grin on her face that she really liked it and can we watch it again. Nuf said. If you are 30+ then you can find the plot holes and critique the characters, but if you are 5 or 6, you don't care...you like the movie and get drawn into the wonder with all the incredible animation (and it is incredible) and that is all that counts. Go see it with your little ones.

Mr. M's Emporium was entertaining and family friendly and for that alone I'd say "Go!" The draw-back (if you care about this sort of thing) is that Natalie Portman's performance as an insecure scattered individual was hard to believe at times. This could create "bad dreams" for children 4 and under, but great for the 4-13 crowd (and older :) A nice option for early holiday family movie-goers!

Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium is sure a mouthful, however the movie itself seemed less complex than the title. Mr. Magorium, played by Dustin Hoffman, is the 243 year old manager of the toy store who one day runs out of shoes and decides it is his time to leave. There are many instances of imagination, randomness and fun that make this "G" movie very suitable for younger children. This movie was almost like looking at a Toys R Us catalog come to life. It is a Christmas list waiting to be written. This movie is not aimed for adults, but is great for kids.

I heard all the hype and thought this movie was going to be like "WOW' but it fell way short. I took my two nieces and could tell they were bored throughout the movie because there was no laughter coming from either of them. I'm a kid at heart and love to laugh and must say I was quite disappointed to say the least. The movie just didn't come together in so many different aspects. Wait for the video.