I hate to say it, but I have been hoodwinked! Actually, Hoodwinked is a new animated feature currently in the theatres. Take my word for it and do not rush out to see this one. My friend McHale and I saw this one, along with our moms and his little brother so I can honestly tell you that it fell flat with the middle school crowd and did not thrill the late elementary audience either. The moms chuckled once or twice but were not particularly impressed. Even the younger children sitting near me spent more time running the aisle than watching the movie. Early on, I could tell that this would not be one of my most pleasing viewing experiences. The “bad bunny” gave me the willies because he was creepy; Pee–Wee Herman style. YUCK! I knew five minutes in that the movie was going to be almost as lame as Shark Boy.

I must say however, the squirrel, aptly named Twitch was hysterical. I also got a laugh or two from a lumberjack that put me in the mind of California’s “Governator.” Little Red had eyes as big saucers and a highly irritating whiny voice. Then there was Granny. Granny was just a bit off to me with her purple cotton candy hair and no color eyes. With her triple–G tattoo and her love for extreme sports. Granny was not funny, she was just ridiculous.

Hoodwinked got mixed reviews from the middle and elementary school crowds. The wolf portrayed a stereotypical dyed–in–the-wool tabloid type of writer, and his contact in the flock of sheep seemed almost like a stoolie from the old gangster movies.

The moms thought Mr. Flippers, the frog detective, was reminiscent of Agatha Christie’s famous detective Hercule Poirot, but since I have never read Christie that bit was lost on me. Some of the humor was obviously aimed toward adults with references such as Euro–trash. Most kids would not know what that is and would not care if they did.

This movie targeted its audiences like one aims with a shotgun. They aimed it in the right general direction and hoped for the best. Unfortunately, the best was barely two stars.